Louisiana Tech pushed Rice women’s basketball to the brink, but the Owls prevailed thanks in part to a clutch performance from Malia Fisher.
Thursday’s midweek tilt between Rice women’s basketball and Louisiana Tech was a grind from the start. There were eight fouls called in the first quarter, four on each side, compared to nine total field goals. The pace picked up a bit in the second but neither team got much headway with Lousiana Tech taking a one-point lead into the break.
Rice got things going in the third quarter. Malia Fisher and Trinity Gooden combined to go 8-of-11 from the floor, pushing Rice to a six-point lead before Louisiana Tech battled back to tie the game up in the first few minutes of the fourth quarter. The physical slug-fest was on again.
With Louisiana Tech leading by one under a minute to play, Destiny Jackson slashed to the rim, scored and drew the foul. Trailing by one, head coach Lindsay Edmonds called a timeout and delivered an ultimatum to her team. “We’re gonna win this game and I need everybody to believe it,” she said. “And if you don’t believe it, don’t go back out on the floor.”
The motivation worked. Not only did Jackson bring the game level again with the ensuing free throw, but soon after Malia Fisher delivered the knockout blow with this steal, score, and subsequent foul shots.
The de-facto game winner by Malia Fisher. Wow!pic.twitter.com/E2i9QPb3uv
— The Roost (@AtTheRoost) February 3, 2023
Final Box | Rice 60 – LA Tech 57
FINAL | @RiceWBB 60 – LA Tech 57 pic.twitter.com/58d6NCpNDb
— The Roost (@AtTheRoost) February 3, 2023
Key takeaway | Malia Fisher, two-half player
Throughout the last few weeks of the season, Edmonds would be the first to tell you Malia Fisher was a great player, but needed to improve on her consistency. She’d mentioned she wanted Fisher to be a true two-half player, steady throughout the course of the game. On Thursday night, Fisher rose to that challenge.
“She put together a complete game, that’s for sure,” Edmonds said in the aftermath. “When she’s not in foul trouble and she can get into her rhythm, she’s a huge help to us on the offensive end, the defensive end, the rebounding end. I thought she put together a complete game, a great game. The team needed it”
Fisher finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and two steals, including what might have been the most impactful takeaway of the season thus far.
Up Next: at North Texas – Saturday, Feb. 4 at 3:30 p.m.
