Rice Basketball 2020 Game Preview: Men and Women vs UAB

Rice Basketball had a great weekend, sweeping North Texas in emphatic fashion. The men and the women return to action on Thursday against UAB.

Time: Feb. 6 at 7:00 p.m. CT
Venue: Bartow Arena
Radio: Stretch Internet Portal
TV: ESPN+ (If you don’t have ESPN+ you can access a free trial or subscribe here.)

UAB 14-9 (5-5), Last 5 (3-2)

68-65 (W) at FAU
84-77 (L) vs Southern Miss
72-58 (L) vs Louisiana Tech
76-68 (W) at UTSA
69-55 (W) at UTEP

Rice 10-13 (2-8), Last 5 (1-5)

81-68 (L) at Southern Miss
79-59 (L) at North Texas
72-64 (L) vs UTEP
90-88 (L) vs UTSA
84-75 (W) vs North Texas

UAB statistical leaders

Scoring | Jalen Benjamin – 12.5 per game
Rebounds | Makhtar Gueye – 5.3 per game
Assists | Tyreek Scott-Grayson – 1.9 per game
Steals | Tavin Lovan – 1.1 per game
Blocks | Tyreek Scott-Grayson – 0.6 per game

Rice keys to victory

In their most recent outing, Rice proved they can beat anyone when they shoot the lights out. Barring another historic performance from the field, Rice will have to get better on the other side of the court. North Texas shot 51 percent from the field and 48.5 percent from three. Most nights, that’ll be good enough to win in Conference USA. Rice has to get that percentage down into the 40s, at least.

Time: 7:00 p.m. CT
Venue: Tudor Fieldhouse
TV: ESPN3

UAB 15-7 (7-3), Last 5 (5-0)

92-73 (W) vs FAU
74-68 (W) at Southern Miss
71-51 (W) at Louisiana Tech
94-55 (W) vs UTSA
63-51 (W) vs UTEP

Rice 14-6 (9-0), Last 5 (5-0)

60-47 (W) vs Louisiana Tech
75-64 (W) vs Southern Miss
69-61 (W) at UTEP
74-62 (W) at UTSA
67-52 (W) at North Texas

North Texas statistical leaders

Scoring | Rachael Childress – 17.5 per game
Rebounds | Angela Vendrell – 8.1 per game
Assists | Angela Vendrell – 4.7 per game
Steals | Angela Vendrell – 1.1 per game
Blocks | Angela Vendrell – 1.0 per game

Rice keys to victory

UAB is going to trust Rachael Childress and Angela Vendrell to run the show. The matchup between those two and the Owls’ tandem of Erica Ogwumike and Nancy Mulkey will be pivotal in determining the outcome of this gam . So far, they’ve been up to the task.