Jan. 7, 2007
GREENVILLE, N.C. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Despite a well-balanced offense led by senior guard Francine Houston's nine points, the UCF women's basketball team dropped a 62-46 decision at East Carolina in Conference USA action Sunday afternoon.
The two teams battled for ownership of the scoreboard in the opening eight minutes of the game until the 14:24 mark when a basket by Houston sparked a 6-0 run by the Golden Knights (5-11, 0-3 C-USA).
UCF held on for a 27-22 advantage at the half with 22 of those points being scored in the paint.
In the second period, ECU (7-9, 2-1 C-USA) tied the game at 31 with 16:54 then took the lead on a layup by sophomore guard Impris Manning less than a minute later. After allowing the Golden Knights to pull within two, the Pirates then scored 14 unanswered points for a 50-34 advantage.
East Carolina continued to build its lead throughout the second half. The Pirates finished the game shooting 39.1% from the field, while UCF hit 33.9%. ECU senior center Cherie Mills led all players with 14 points.
In addition to Houston's contribution, senior guard Celeste Hudson (Altamonte Springs, Fla./Lyman HS) added eight points and senior Keunta Miles (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./South Broward HS) had seven.
The Pirates also had a 46-39 advantage on the glass as sophomore guard Gabrila Husarova grabbed a game-high seven.
UCF returns home to play UAB on Friday, Jan. 12 at 7 p.m. and Memphis on Sunday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m. Tickets for home contests are available by calling (407) UCF-1000. For the latest news and information on the Golden Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF athletics.