Coogs top Temple 88-74

Posted: February 9, 2014 -- 4:40pm CST.

HOUSTON, TX (Hofheinz Pavilion) -- The Houston Cougars snapped a five-game losing streak and picked up a much-needed win Sunday afternoon with an 88-74 triumph over the Temple Owls.

Balanced offense and timely defense contributed to the victory.

"I’m really happy that we won. I told our players after the game it’s a great feeling," said Houston head coach James Dickey. "We had some guys that really played big for us. Jherrod (Stiggers) really had a terrific game and hit two huge shots when we were in a bind there in the second half. He made some big plays coming in. In the first half, he gave us great energy. He’s developing into not only a terrific player, but somebody who has really been encouraging in practice. He talks to his teammates. He loves to play defense. He’s just getting better and better, and he gave us a big boost."

The Coogs made 34 baskets out of 63 attempts (54.0%) in the game. Twenty-two of the baskets came from assists.

"I feel like we can always play like that if we share the ball," TaShawn Thomas said after the game. "We have a lot of talented people on the team that can score. I don’t feel like scoring is a problem for us, it’s our defense."

Thomas scored a game-high 25 points. Thomas also added nine rebounds and swatted six shots.

Jherrod Stiggers scored 20 points off the bench for the Coogs while Danuel House (16 points) and Brandon Morris (15 points, 5 for 8 threes) also scored in double figures.

The Coogs (12-12 overall, 4-7 in the American Athletic Conference) trailed the Owls 6-2; but, a bucket by Thomas kick started a 22-2 run for a 24-8 lead.

After Temple's Quenton Decosey made a three-point shot, the Coogs outscored the Owls 16-8 for a 21 point lead (40-19) with 3:24 left in the opening half.

However, the Coogs made one of their last five field goals and turned the ball over twice in the final minutes which helped the Owls finish the half with a 10-0 to cut the Coogs' lead to 40-29 at halftime.

Early in the second-half, Thomas scored nine points during a 19-9 spurt for a 59-38 lead; however, the Coogs' defense took a nap for five minutes plus an impatient offense enabled the Owls to outscore the Coogs 21-5 to slice the lead to five (64-59) with 8:27 left in the game.

"I believe we looked up and saw the score and got satisfied, slacked off then got back to business," Stiggers said.

Temple's Dalton Pepper scored seven points during a 71 second span; and, Jherrod Stiggers told the UH coaches "I got him." Pepper only scored 2 points (two free throws) the rest of the game.

"He (Stiggers) wanted him; and Coach Brooks usually will call out the defense. But, we talked to him, and had already made the decision we were going to put him on him. That’s one of the other places he’s really matured. Early in the game, he leaned over and said, “hey coach, call time out we aren’t ready to go.” He wanted us to play well. He’s coming off the bench and he knows what his role is. He’s like a starter. He’s really important to us, but he’s understanding how to become a really consistent, and very good player. I probably waited too long to put him on Pepper."

Brandon Morris splashed a three-pointer and Danuel House exploded for a fastbreak dunk plus the free throw to increase Houston's lead to 70-59 at the 7:33 mark.

Temple scored four consecutive points; but, Stiggers drained back-to-back three-point shots and Thomas finished a transition opportunity with a dunk for a 13 point lead (78-65) with 3:45 remaining. After the under four minute media timeout, Thomas, House, and Stiggers combined for 10 points during a 10-4 burst to seal the victory.

The Cougars shot 45.8% (11 for 24) from three-point range in the game. Morris (5 for 8) and Stiggers (5 for 9) combined for 10 of the 11 three-point baskets.

Houston's next game is Saturday, February 15, on the road against the Cincinnati Bearcats. Tip is set for 2 p.m.

CLICK HERE for The HRR's write-ups of Coogs' men's hoops games.