DENVER, Co – Julija Vujakovic and N'Denasija Collins combined for 29 points and led the Huskies to a tightly contested win against the Denver Pioneers Friday afternoon in Magness Arena. Houston Christian University (HCU), formerly Houston Baptist University (HBU), underwent a name change in September 2022.
 
The Huskies (2-2) jumped out to a 11-5 on a pair of buckets from Marilyn Nzoiwu and a three ball from Amy Cotton. The Pioneers (1-4) then went on a 6-0 run to even things up at 11 and then briefly took the lead, 14-13, on a three pointer from Mary Wilson. Enya Maguire came off the bench for the Huskies and hit a three pointer at the end of the quarter giving the Huskies an 18-15 advantage heading into the second. Both teams struggled from the field in the second, but locked in defensively. The Huskies took a 29-27 lead into halftime.
 
The second half was very back and forth. Neither team had a lead larger than four points until the three minute mark in the fourth quarter when Kennedy Wilson made a pair of free throws to extend the Husky lead to six, 54-48. Denver answered with a layup before Vujakovic drilled a three pointer to give the Huskies a seven point lead. Denver fouled the rest of the way. The Huskies knocked down key late game free throws to seal the win and end their two game losing streak.
 
Vujakovic led the way offensively for HCU, scoring 15 points while grabbing three steals. Collins had 14 points and four rebounds, while Wilson and Nzoiwu each had six. Maguire led the bench unit with seven points while Jo Oly contributed five. Abbey Sutherland had five points and collected a team high five rebounds.
 
The Huskies had the advantage in points off of turnovers, 19-8, and bench points, 17-11. Denver led in second chance points 15-6 and points in the paint, 26-20.
 
The Huskies take the floor for their final game in the Denver Classic tomorrow at 3pm when they take the floor against the Yale Bulldogs.