Aubrey Coleman, the nation's scoring leader, scored 25 points to match his season's average and Houston never trailed in a 74-55 victory over East Carolina on Saturday night.
The Cougars (10-7, 3-1 Conference USA) scored the game's first nine points en route to a 30-22 halftime lead.
The Pirates (6-12, 0-4) twice pulled within four points early in the second half before Houston went on a 15-2 run, helped by four steals and two blocked shots, to open a 47-30 lead.
The Cougars finished the game with 21 points off turnovers to nine for East Carolina.
Coleman also grabbed 11 rebounds for Houston, while Kelvin Lewis scored 13 points. Maurice McNeil had 11 points and Zamal Nixon 10 points.
DaQuan Joyner led East Carolina in scoring with 12 points off the bench, while Erin Straughn had 11 points and 12 rebounds.
