Senior forward Jonquel Jones and junior forward Caira Washington each posted a double-double, Jones’ coming with 20 points and 13 rebounds and Washington’s with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Jessieka Palmer led all scorers with 25 points, but the Colonials shot 47 percent to Houston’s 42.9 to get the win.
“[Jones] just opens up more space for me down low,” Washington said. “When she’s down low and we’re both down there we just make sure that we’re constantly moving so that we’re opening up space for one another, working the high-low and that just creates a lot of space for us to work.”
Senior guard Alexis Chandler was 5-for-7 with 10 points in the game. She and senior guard Aaliyah Brown are both from Texas, and got to play in front of a home-state crowd in the game.
The game itself was streaky, and neither team got discouraged when the other team went on a run. After both squads traded dominant streaks, they went to the lockers at halftime with the score close, 37-33 in GW’s favor.
The third quarter was the deciding frame for the Colonials, who outscored Houston 24-12, including 12 points from Washington. Along with Jones eating up the inside, GW outrebounded the Cougars 51-28 and outscored them 50-22 in the paint.
Houston had its strongest edge in points off turnovers, beating GW 27-12 in that category as the Cougars’ press rattled the Colonials late in the game. GW’s giveaways allowed Houston to crawl back from a 26 point deficit with just a little over five minutes left in the game and make it competitive with a 28-5 run.
“We went zone and I don’t know if that just put us on our heels a little bit, we didn’t execute against their press very well at all,” head coach Jonathan Tsipis said. “Whether it was even breaking it to get a good shot or at times we turned it over and it led them to, I think, confidence.”
Junior guard Hannah Schaible, who had been day-to-day with a minor injury, played for the first time this season. She was a bit edgy, collecting four fouls in nine minutes on the court to go along with one point, two assists and three turnovers, but said it was an important step to just get back on the court and that the format of the Lone Star Showcase, with three games in three days, should help.
“I can really get back into game situations better,” Schaible said. “You can play so hard in practice but games are totally different so having three chances to figure myself out a little bit, it’s a great opportunity.”
Ultimately, Houston’s late push was not enough. Palmer even hit a half-court shot at the buzzer, but the Colonials still had a four point cushion to come away with the win.
GW’s next test comes Friday at 2:30 p.m. against No. 25 Iowa.
