Aubrey Coleman scored 29 points, three above his nation-leading average, and Houston rolled to a 93-80 victory over East Carolina in the first round of the Conference USA tournament Wednesday.
Seventh-seed Houston (16-15) will play second-seed Memphis in the quarterfinals Thursday.
Brock Young had 24 points to lead East Carolina (10-21) in the final game for coach Mack McCarthy, who is taking an administration job at the school.
Kelvin Lewis had 15 points for the Cougars. Houston began to empty its bench and run clock with more than 10 minutes remaining when it had a 23-point lead.
East Carolina crept within 88-78 with 3:49 to play, forcing Houston to call timeout and put the starters back in the game. The Pirates got as close as 90-81 before Coleman scored his final basket on a layup with a minute left.
