A close game at halftime turned into a blowout midway through the third quarter as Rice women’s basketball posted another home win, this time over UT-Arlington.
In front of stands of chattering youngsters at Tudor Fieldhouse on Friday morning, Rice women’s basketball notched yet another win. The Owls made things interesting in the early moments, missing their first six field goals and allowing UT-Arlington to go ahead 6-0, despite the Owls holding the Mavericks to a 3-for-17 start from the field.
That defense would pay off, though. Rice quickly retook the lead and kept the margin at a couple of possessions through the second quarter and into halftime. Aniah Alexis contributed 13 of the Owls’ first-half points, playing all 20 minutes as she paced the team on both ends of the court.
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When the second half arrived, Rice women’s basketball took over. Shelby Hayes helped spark a decisive Rice run to put the home team up by double-digits. The lead would only grow from there. A jumper from Hayes in the early moments of the fourth quarter put Rice up by 21, allowing the Owls to empty the benches and cruise to a comfortable victory.
With the win, Rice women’s basketball improves to 8-3 on the season and 5-0 at Tudor Fieldhouse.
Final Box | Rice 75, UT Arlington 54
Key takeaway | Toughness Wins
This isn’t the first runaway win Rice women’s basketball has posted this season, but each victory has had its own unique flavor. Against UT-Arlington, Rice was able to use its physicality to dictate the game, wearing their opponent down through the course of the game and getting to the line 30 times, just the third time this season they’ve had at least that many free throw attempts.
But it’s those extra foul shots combined with a double-digit advantage in the rebounding department that turned this game into a rout. Rice has only had a rebounding margin this large on one other instance this season, against Illinois State, a game they won.
So much focus has been given to the developing offense this year, and rightly so, but this team already has the tools to get to the line and win under the basket. Becoming even more consistent on that front could make this squad truly lethal on days the offense is firing on all cylindars, too.
Up Next: vs UT Arlington (Fri. Dec. 12 at 11:15 am)
