Rice women’s basketball started fast and never let up, rolling past Texas A&M Corpus Christi on the road to improve to 5-3 on the season.
Before Texas A&M Corpus Christi had exhaled from the opening tip, Rice women’s basketball had a 9-0 lead. The visiting Owls wasted no time announcing their presence on the Islanders’ court, jumping out in front quickly thanks to the return of Malia Fisher and well-placed shots from Dominque Ennis and Shelby Hayes.
Staked to a near-double-digit lead, Rice expanded their cushion in the second quarter in which they shot 67 percent from the field including a trio of three-pointers. That lengthened the Owls’ advantage over the Islanders by a ten spot and sent Rice into halftime with a 56-28 advantage.
Both teams traded baskets after the break, but the result of the game was never really in doubt thanks to the Owls’ tremendous opening effort. Not only did Rice never trail in this game, they spent the majority of the second half with the game well out of reach. It was a dominant effort away from home and an extremely encouraging showing near the midway point of nonconference play.
Final Box | Rice 84 – Texas A&M Corpus Christi 56
FINAL | @RiceWBB 84 – TAMUCC 56 pic.twitter.com/PsxzZ7faNh
— The Roost (@AtTheRoost) December 2, 2023
Key takeaway | Winning away from home
The road had not been kind to Rice Women’s Basketball in this young season. The Owls sludged through a victory at Abilene Chrisitan in their first game away from Tudor Fieldhouse before dropping successive away contests, the first at TCU and the second at SFA.
This is a very similar team to the one that went undefeated in nonconference play a season ago, so the ability to win away from home is clearly there, but for whatever reason, it wasn’t clicking. Saturday’s performance against Texas A&M Corpus Christi served as a powerful reminder that the Owls still have what it takes to go into someone else’s gym and walk away with a win.
As cliched as it is, winning on the road is hard. The Owls were effective on offense, rebounded well and made their free throws. The defense was stingy, too. It wasn’t a perfect performance, but it was a respectable one and one that will be good enough to get the job done, more often than not.
Up Next: vs Gonzaga (Sat. Dec 9)
