GREENVILLE, N.C. --- Houston guard Lanny Smith made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 19 seconds to preserve a 76-72 win over East Carolina inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum Saturday night.

In his final game at ECU, senior Moussa Badiane scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked a trio of shots. Sophomore Mike Cook and freshman Tom Hammonds each netted 16 points in the loss.

The game also marked the final home game for ECU head coach Bill Herrion, who will be relinquished of his coaching duties at the end of the season.

Four players scored double figures for Houston (18-10, 9-5 C-USA) led by Cedrick Hensley's 20 points. Hensley and Chris Lawson combined for 31 points off the bench, while the Pirates' reserves added a single bucket. Smith added 18 points and the Cougars' leading scorer Andre Owens finished with 17 points.

East Carolina (9-18, 4-11 C-USA) trailed by 18, 67-49, with 8:41 remaining, but went on a 22-6 run over the next eight minutes to cut its deficit to two, 73-71, with 42 seconds left. Badiane converted one of two free throws with 27.5 seconds left to get the Pirates within a point before Smith marched to the foul line.

The Pirates will return to action on Saturday, March 5 at Tulane.

East Carolina Head Coach Bill Herrion
"Give the kids credit, they didn't quit. Give Houston credit too. They are a very, very good team; probably as good as any team in this league. Our kids didn't quit, but what we can't do is get into a hole like we did tonight. You can't get behind against a quality team like this."

"They [Houston] are a good team with a lot of good athletes. They beat us with a lot of dribble penetration and really beat our zone."

"When Moussa is on the court he gives us a real defensive presence, so even if you do get beat off the dribble you have somebody back there protecting the bucket."

"This has been a very difficult week, from the standpoint of keeping these kids focused and motivated on getting to the conference tournament. This is just a difficult situation right now."