Rice women’s basketball was unable to climb out of a massive early hole against Gonzaga, falling to the ranked Bulldogs at home.
The visiting Gonzaga Bulldogs were the No. 23 team in the country entering the game and gave every indication they belonged among the nation’s best from the star, opening their contest against Rice women’s basketball on a 15-0 run before Shelby Hayes broke their scoring streak nearly halfway through the first quarter.
Trailing by 15, the situation grew more dire as Zags shooter Eliza Hollingsworth delivered a career-best performance, matching her best-ever totals for points and three-pointers by the middle of the second quarter. That enabled the visitors to extend their lead to 21 before the Owls scratched the deficit down to 14 in the final minutes before halftime.
Rice was able to trim the hole to single digits in the final moments of the third quarter, leaning on a complete team effort on both sides of the court to get within seven points. After falling behind big early, to have the game in reach entering the fourth was encouraging, but the deficit would prove too big to overcome.
Gonzaga would do just enough offensively in the fourth quarter — including a pair of dagger three-pointers — to keep the game out of reach. Rice threatened, but could never close the gap, ultimately falling to 5-4 on the season.
Final Box | Gonzaga 80 – Rice 72
FINAL | Gonzaga 80 – @RiceWBB 72 pic.twitter.com/6sY9VI9H8K
— The Roost (@AtTheRoost) December 9, 2023
Key takeaway | When the threes don’t fall
Rice women’s basketball is 4-1 when making at least eight threes this year and 1-3 when they don’t (they made three today on 18 attempts). Their lone victory when they didn’t shoot the three particularly well came against Houston Christian, a team the Owls should be more than capable of handling regardless of how well their outside shooting fairs — Rice made 32.2 percent of their threes (6-for-21) in that game.
The Owls have had some career performances from long-range this year. Maya Bokunewicz tied the school record with seven triples against Saint Mary’s. Dominque Ennis had a personal best six threes against Texas Southern. When someone wasn’t lights out from deep, though, this team has struggled to find its groove offensively.
Finding a solution to that problem is becoming increasingly more important and Saturday’s third quarter might have served as one of the most tangible signs of progress yet. When Rice took possession for the first time in the period, they trailed by 16 points. They made just one three but entered the fourth quarter down by just nine.
It took some strain to get there, but Rice was able to attack the rim, get to the line a couple of times and make their foul shots. That’s a recipe for success, regardless of what’s happening from long range and it’s one Rice might need to lean on again in the near future if the cold streaks from three continue.
Up Next: vs Prairie View A&M (Sat. Dec 9)
