Coogs defeat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi by 11

Posted: November 30, 2013 -- 11:20pm CST.

HOUSTON, TX (Hofheinz Pavilion) -- The Houston Cougars bounced back from two consecutive losses and a sluggish first half to defeat the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders 78-67 Saturday night. Sophomore forward Danuel House did not play in the game due to a lower leg injury. With House out for the game, other Cougars players had to step up their production and they did just that.

"First of all, you're disappointed for him that he's not in uniform," said head coach James Dickey. "Secondly, when somebody's not having a good game then other people have to step up. That's why they call it a team. I'm not sure that we handled it as well as I would have liked. We've got to be more assertive defensively, on the boards, taking care of the basketball and playing hard."

Jherrod Stiggers (13 points), Danrad Knowles (13 points), and Tione Womack (10 points) each scored in double-digits as five Coogs (6-2) scored in double-figures in the ball game. TaShawn Thomas scored a team-high 14 points and LJ Rose chipped in 13 points.

The Coogs' bench scored 33 of the team's 78 points.

The Cougars led 16-12 before the Islanders (3-6) erupted for 15-4 run to lead 27-20; but, five different players combined for nine points which helped the Cougars creep within two points (31-29) at halftime.

Womack replaced Brandon Morris to start the second half; and, the Coogs' intensity on defense increased. However, the Islanders handled the amped up defense and each team traded baskets and the lead for nearly nine minutes which featured seven ties.

"I'm real comfortable because last season I was getting adjusted from JUCO ball to Division I," Womack said. "This year I'm fully adapted to it, so it's coming easy."

With the score tied at 47, Danrad Knowles tipped-in a missed shot and freshman guard Jaaron Simmons converted a three-point play to stretch the Coogs' lead to 52-47 with 10:13 on the game clock.

The Islanders' Joy Williamson sank a three-point shot to trim the lead to 52-50; but, Barnes and Knowles each scored during a spurt which gave the Coogs some slight breathing room and a 58-53 lead.

With 7:16 remaining, LJ Rose made the first of two free throws; but, when he missed the second foul shot, Womack picked up the offensive rebound; dished to Knowles who dished to TaShawn Thomas for a slam dunk.. Seconds later, Womack picked up a steal and fed to Knowles for a fastbreak slam dunk a 63-53 Coogs' lead at the 6:41 mark of the second half.

"Tione is like a starter. He's playing really well for us," Dickey said. "He made some terrific passes. He had 10 points, six assists and no turnovers, so he's playing really well for us. That's what you expect out of a senior point guard. He comes to work every day, and his biggest quality is that he has a high level motor. That's important."

The Coogs kept the Islanders at arms' length the rest of the game to snap their two-game losing streak.

"I was just trying to bring the energy," Knowles said. "We were down two at half, and coach told us to come out hard. Everybody did their job off the bench. We were hungry for a win. We lost two games back-to-back in Brooklyn, so we hungry for this win."

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