MONROE, La. – Gabriella Cortez and Arsula Clark combined for 39 points to lead ULM to a 77-73 victory over Houston Baptist on Sunday, Dec. 19 in Fant-Ewing Coliseum, as the Warhawks snapped a six-game losing skid.
 
The tightly contested game featured nine ties and 12 lead changes.
 
ULM jumped out to an 8-3 lead, but Houston Baptist answered with a 10-4 run to take a 13-12 lead on Britta Daub's layup. The Huskies led 17-16 at the end of the first quarter.
 
The Warhawks opened the second quarter with a 10-2 spurt and built its largest lead at 26-19 on Arsula Clark's layup with 7:23 left. HBU responded with a 13-5 run to regain the lead at 32-31 with 3:40 remaining in the second quarter. Amanda Johnson (13 points) and Sophie Taylor (12) combined for 25 first-half points as the Huskies enjoyed a 40-38 halftime lead.
 
Megan Valdez-Crader's layup gave HBU its biggest lead at 44-40 with 8:20 to play in the third quarter. Cortez scored the next eight points as ULM battled back to reclaim the lead at 48-44 with 6:15 left. The Warhawks led 60-59 after three quarters.
 
ULM (3-7) led throughout the fourth quarter, but both teams struggled to score early. Carissa Moody's layup gave ULM a 64-59 lead with 5:20 left. HBU (4-5) went scoreless for the first 5:02 of the fourth quarter. The Huskies cut their deficit to one at 66-65 on a pair of free throws by Valdez-Crader with 2:59 on the clock. The Warhawks converted 6-of-8 free-throw attempts in the final 24 seconds to secure the 77-73 win.
 
"Neither team really had much separation at any point," ULM head coach Jeff Dow. "It seemed like it was always a one or two possession game. There was a little stretch there in the fourth quarter when we finally strung together some stops. It seemed like it was Jess Harris coming up with deflections or steals that led to some easy points at the other end. Those defensive plays gave us a little bit of a lift and loosened things up as it became a two- or three-possession game.
 
"I thought the energy we played with throughout the entire game and the energy we had on the bench really meant a lot. That was the big theme going into today's game. We felt bad and wanted to get the taste out of our mouths from the loss (to New Orleans) the other day. It was important to come away with this win.
 
"We've got to get better defensively," Dow continued. "That was a struggle. At least in the fourth quarter, we started to put together some stops. Clearly, free throws kept them afloat in both halves. In the first half, HBU made more free throws than made field goals and that's not good. I told the ladies at halftime that we needed to clean things up defensively. They were hurting us on some drives; our close-outs weren't the best and we were a little late to rotate. We did a little better job in the second half and played a little more disciplined."
 
Cortez scored a game-high 20 points and collected seven rebounds while Clark netted a season-high 19 points to go along with six boards. Jessica Harris contributed 11 points off the bench.
 
"It was a true team effort, as so many people had great games for us," Dow said. "As a freshman, Arsula Clark was tremendous with 19 points, six rebounds and only two turnovers with the ball in her hands. At times, she carried us offensively.
 
"Gabby Cortez had 20 (points), went 8-of-9 from the free-line, and grabbed five big offensive rebounds.
 
"Jess was playing on fumes at the end, but it was good to see her hit the clutch free throw to make it a four-point game. She's an athlete, who can do some things with the ball and around the rim. It was good to see her give us that spark off the bench.
 
"Carissa Moody was really active. Diamond Brooks made some big plays both halves, and Tan Walker did a lot of good things in the second half."
 
ULM outrebounded HBU, 45-34, and outscored the Huskies, 40-30, in the paint.
 
"The rebound margin was huge," Dow said. "When you come away with 18 offensive rebounds, you're doing something right. We held them to 10 (offensive rebounds) and that was one of our keys to victory. We felt like we could hurt them on o-boards. We're not as big as they were but probably a little more athletic. Athleticism only means something if you use it, and clearly, we did. When five players get two or more offensive rebounds, you're playing hard. That was good to see."
 
The Warhawks close out their non-conference schedule at Oklahoma State (8-2) on Thursday, Dec. 21, with tipoff set for 7 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena.
 
"Clearly, Oklahoma State is a great team and destined for the NCAA Tournament," Dow said. "Against a team of that caliber, there's really no pressure. We just need to let it all hang out; go out there and compete; and have fun in the process. I want our players to feel good after 40 minutes, knowing that they gave it everything they had, regardless of the result. It's important they feel good going into the (holiday) break as we transition into Sun Belt play."