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Rice Women’s Basketball rallies past ACU at home

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Rice women’s basketball rallies in the second half to take down Abilene Christian, opening the season 2-0 at Tudor Fieldhouse.

Maya Bokunewicz got the scoring going with a jumper, but that proved to be just the first points in another back-and-forth affair at Tudor Fieldhouse. There were five ties in the first quarter and three more in the third, with the vast majority of the first half being played within a four-point margin to either side.

Jazzy Owens-Barnett gave Rice a six-point lead on the final shot of the first quarter, but that advantage was quickly erased in the first minute or so of the second frame. ACU then closed that quarter out on a run of their own, taking a seven-point advantage into halftime courtesy of back-to-back threes.

Down at halftime, the Owls resolved to keep fighting. “We challenged them and I thought they stepped up and showed who they can really be in that third quarter,” head coach Lindsay Edmonds said.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball Season Preview

Rice went on the offensive in the third quarter, quickly erasing the halftime deficit and creating a new lead of their own. The Owls outscored ACU 24-11 in the third with Ashlee Austin leading the way. Up by six entering the final quarter, Rice was able to withstand ACU’s final push and secure their second-straight win to open the season.

“I thought we showed up a little unfocused and not ready and our defense showed that,” Edmonds said after the final buzzer. “And then I think the second half I think we showed up and showed how we can be the defensive team that we can be. We rebounded the basketball and because of our defense and our rebounding we were able to create easier offensive opportunities for us.”

Five Owls reached double-digits, Austin’s 10 points coming entirely in the second half. The team shot 50 percent from the floor after halftime, turning a seven-point deficit into a 16 point victory.

Player Spotlight | Ashlee Austin

This season Rice women’s basketball boasts one of the deepest rosters it has had in some time. Given that influx of young talent, coach Edmonds has been able to spread the ball around, getting contributions from several different players early in the season.

On Sunday though, trailing by seven at half to ACU, Rice needed someone to take charge and seize control. As she’s done time and time again, Ashlee Austin rose to the occasion.

“Our main message coming out of halftime was just to be us,” Austin said. “Especially as a senior, I personally felt a need to be as perfect as possible and try and do everything I can.”

Austin finished with 10 points and seven rebounds, a modest line by her standards, but it was when that production came that mattered most. Austin tallied eight of those points and four of those rebounds in the third quarter, leading the comeback charge and putting the Owls ahead for good.

Final Box | Rice 85 – ACU 69

Up Next | Full Schedule

Rice women’s basketball won’t be back in Tudor Fieldhouse until early December, playing their next four games away from home. That road trip begins on Wednesday at Saint Mary’s — a late tip scheduled for 10:00 p.m. CT — then at Pacific on Friday. Both games will be streamed on WCC Sports.

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Rice Women’s Basketball outlasts SFA to win season opener

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It took all four quarters, but Rice women’s basketball was able to outlast SFA in their season opener with superior depth and Malia Fisher’s big game.

On Monday night, Rice women’s basketball was waiting for their season to begin. Meanwhile SFA, the Owls’ first opponent, was notching a season-opening victory over fellow C-USA member UTSA. That was notice enough for the Owls to be ready to battle with the Lady Lumberjacks from tip, and that’s exactly how things transpired at Tudor Fieldhouse on Thursday.

Rice came out ready, scoring eight quick points before SFA was able to battle back and get on the board. From there the game was tied at 10, tied at 12 and tied at 20, all before the first quarter was through. The SFA press made Rice work for every possession.

Malia Fisher hit a floater at the buzzer to close out the first quarter to give Rice some breathing room. The Owls followed with a composed second quarter, slightly lengthening that one-possession lead to a six-point halftime advantage.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball Season Preview

The Owls knocked down several foul shots in the process. The lead might have been longer had they been more effective from the charity stripe, converting just 10-of-18 (56 percent) from the line in the first half and 25-of-35 (71 percent) free throws in the game, thanks to a perfect 11-of-11 day at the line from Destiny Jackson.

It was the freshmen who provided the second-half spark. Already buoyed by a strong shooting performance from distance by Dominque Ennis, the Owls got big baskets from Shelby Hayes and Jazzy Owens-Barnett, extending their third-quarter lead to as many as 10 before SFA cut it down to two to start the fourth.

Every time SFA would go on a run, Rice had an answer. And it was usually a different face making the next shot. After working most of last season with eight healthy players, Rice played 10 different players against SFA, eventually outlasting the Lumberjacks thanks to that depth, outscoring SFA 34-19 in bench points.

“That’s a really good basketball team that we just played and they’re gonna win a lot of basketball games,” head coach Lindsay Edmonds said in the aftermath. “But I think it just goes to show how talented we are, how deep we are and how good I think we can be this season.”

Player Spotlight | Malia Fisher

It took less than two quarters for Malia Fisher to notch her first double-double of the season and the ninth of her young career. Fisher led Rice and all Conference USA freshmen in double-doubles last season and is already on pace to do so again.

That wasn’t the only milestone Fisher reached on Thursday night. She became the sixth Owl to reach 20 rebounds in a single game, a number she wasn’t even aware she’d reached until after the game.

“I’ll take that every single night,” Edmonds said in jest as a smile beamed across her face, a fitting end to a hard-fought night that ended just like it was supposed to: with a Rice win.

Final Box | Rice 89 – SFA 77

Up Next | Full Schedule

Rice women’s basketball has one more game at Tudor Fieldhouse before they hit the road for the first time this season. On Sunday, the Owls will host Abilene Christian. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. That game will be streamed on CUSAtv.

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Rice Basketball rolls past Saint Thomas in home opener

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Rice basketball notched their first win of the 2022-2023 season on Thursday night, rolling past Saint Thomas in their home opener.

Rice basketball couldn’t get back on the court soon enough after their season-opening debacle against Pepperdine on Monday. The team that took the court that evening wasn’t hitting shots and had no answer for a team that was. The Owls looked much more resilient in their home opener against Saint Thomas, taking an early lead and holding it for the duration. In 40 minutes of action, Rice never trailed.

Travis Evee got the scoring started with a layup, then got the ball right back with a nice defensive play on the baseline on the ensuing defensive possession. It was one of three turnovers the Owls forced in the first three minutes of play, sparking an early 14-3 run.

More: Rice Basketball Season Preview

Saint Thomas responded shortly afterward with a 9-0 run of their own, scoring from all three levels as they tested a Rice defense that was briefly without Max Fiedler, who left the game for a brief time but was able to return and started the second half.

Leading by 12 at the break, Rice held serve in the second half. The Owls gradually grew their lead, cycling in a host of players as they secured their first win of the 2022-2023 season on their home court. 11 different players saw action. Quincy Olivari led the team with 12 rebounds and Travis Evee topped the scoring with 27 points.

Between the Pepperdine loss and Thursday’s big win, Rice was able to get a lot of different players on the court, something head coach Scott Pera noted as a big plus in the team’s young season. “Those guys are going to start settling in,” he said. “Hopefully Tuesday night at Middle [Tennessee] won’t be so much a deer-in-the-headlights. We’ll say ‘we know what this is like. We know we need to do. Let’s go.”

Player Spotlight | Travis Evee

While Rice didn’t shoot particularly well from distance as a team on Thursday, Travis Evee was the exception. The junior guard drained seven three-pointers on just 10 attempts, a 70-percent clip from distance. That barrage from downtown was one shy of the school record, eight, matched most recently by Carl Pierre at Marshall last season.

“He was on fire,” Pera said, adding that he left Evee in the game just long enough to get the potential record-tying shot, which missed.

Aside from Evee, the team as a whole shot .368 from three, .250 if you exclude Evee’s contributions. Rice basketball is going to need a lot from Evee this year to get to where they want to go. Thursday served as a not-so-subtle reminder that he’s more than capable of being the sparkplug the Owls need.

Final Box | Rice 85 – St. Thomas 48

Up Next | Full Schedule

In an odd scheduling quirk, Rice basketball actually plays their first conference game in less than a week. The next time they take the court will be on Tuesday, Nov. 15 at Middle Tennessee with tipoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. After that, they’re back in Houston to how the Owl Invitational, playing three games next weekend: Fri. (vs Georgia Southern), Sat. (vs Western Michigan) and Sun. (vs HCU)

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Rice Basketball fall to sharp shooting Pepperdine in opener

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Rice basketball was unable to keep pace with a torrid Pepperdine shooting barrage, falling to the Waves on the road to begin their 2022-2023 season.

Pepperdine visited Houston to open last season, with the Owls winning in commanding fashion. On Monday, the two squads reversed roles. Rice flew to California, put up an early fight, but eventually fell in lopsided fashion to the home squad.

Although the game ended with a one-sided result, it didn’t start out that way, The Waves got the first bucket, a layup to open the scoring before the Owls battled back. There were brief runs through the remainder of the first half, but neither side ever led by more than six points until the final minutes before the break when Pepperdine hit a triple at the buzzer to go up eight.

At that point, there weren’t any signs of panic. Despite the deficit, Rice had seemingly kept pace on both ends of the court with Pepperdine through the first 20 minutes. The Owls’ were aggressive, showcased by quick production from freshman Mekhi Mason who had clearly been given the green light to attack the rim. His first bucket gave Rice a 4-2 lead in the first 90 seconds of play.

More: Rice Basketball Season Preview

Unfortunately for the Owls, that late three to close the first half proved to be a harbinger of things to come. Pepperdine connected on its first four threes in the second half, finishing the game 15-of-30 from long range and a staggering 62.9 percent from the floor, rendering the Owls’ most earnest comeback attempts moot. They simply could not slow down the Waves’ attack.

“Their good shooters didn’t miss shots. Sometimes it’s a make-or-miss game,” Rice basketball head coach Scott Pera said in the aftermath. And as if that wasn’t direct enough, Pera made sure to circle back and own the Owls’ own shortcomings too. “Our defense was obviously less than stellar, horrendous at times.”

The Owls’ own shooting woes only exacerbated the issue. Rice shot just 38.1 percent from the field, struggling to get into a rhythm. Rice defended extremely well against Pepperdine in their season opener last season. That wasn’t the case on Monday resulting in a crushing opening game loss.

“This is something we can’t forget,” Pera said. “This is something that cannot happen. This is [not a] kind of loss this program should be taking.”

Rice will only have a few days to look at the film and move forward, with their home opener coming later this week.

Player Spotlight | Quincy Olivari

Olivari was missed last season, so seeing him back on the court was an encouraging sign in itself. He led Rice in scoring with 15 points, converting 4-of-11 opportunities from three. Olivari had three rebounds and added six assists, tying a career-high.

Final Box | Pepperdine 106 – Rice 67

Up Next | Full Schedule

Rice basketball returns home for their first game at Tudor Fieldhouse later this week where they’ll host St. Thomas in a double-header of Owls’ hoops contests. The women open their season later that evening, also at Tudor. Both games will be available to watch on CUSAtv.

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2022-2023 Rice Women’s Basketball Season Preview

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The 2022-2023 Rice women’s basketball season is around the corner and the team can’t wait to build on last season’s successes.

The most common word Rice women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Edmonds would use to describe last season was whirlwind. Coming in as a first-time head coach in the midst of a program in transition with a minimal roster and the lingering challenges of COVID-19 was never going to be easy. Edmonds and her team persevered.

One year later the program seems poised to continue its ascent. For one, they have more bodies. Edmonds added the No. 1 recruiting class in Conference USA to supplement a much more experienced roster than they had at this point last season.

Edmonds joked that one of the biggest differences from last year’s squad to this one is readily apparent when you walk into the gym. “Last year we took half of a court to stretch,” she laughed. “[This year] we take up an entire sideline!”

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