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Rice Women’s Basketball surges late to take down Tulsa

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Rice Women’s Basketball overcame a sluggish start, peaking late to notch a conference win over Tulsa at Tudor Fieldhouse.

It was a slow start for both sides at Tudor Fieldhouse on Wednesday night as sloppy play and shooting droughts turned the contest into a grimy, low-scoring affair. Rice began the game 1-for-17 from three and couldn’t find the mark from deep, failing to take advantage of what truly was a stout defensive performance in the early goings.

The teams were tied at 17 apiece after one frame and combined to score just 12 points in the entirety of the second quarter with a total of five made field goals in that 10 minute span. Turnovers kept either side from getting into rhythm as both teams went into the locker room in need of an offensive spark which proved elusive.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

Dominque Ennis attempted to get Rice going with a three out of the break. Unfortunately, further shooting woes from both sides and a smattering of trips to the free throw line left the game still hanging in the balance well into the fourth quarter when the Owls’ bench stepped up.

Consecutive baskets from Hailey Adams and Kennedy Clifton stretched the Rice lead to eight, their largest of the game. Victoria Flores, who scored a career-best 26 points, delivered a backbreaking three with the shot clock running down to get the lead to double-digits. From there, Tulsa found themselves in too big of a whole to climb out of as Rice poured it on late with a 15-0 run to earn a rather hard-fought victory given the final score.

With the win, Rice women’s basketball improves to 19-0 all-time against Tulsa at Tudor Fieldhouse.

Final Box | Rice 64, Tulsa 45

Key takeaway | Finding an offensive solution

It was only a few days ago that Rice women’s basketball scored 84 points against Charlotte, finding ample success in the paint (40 points) and from three (36 points). The Owls success in the paint against Tulsa on Wednesday (36 points) proved to be just enough to get them over the hump. Nine points from three was underwhelming. That disparity was palpable from start to finish in this game.

“I’m just really proud of this group. I thought we came out and had a great defensive first half and the defense held us down while we had a little bit of offensive woes, but we were really, really tough and we found a way in the second half to get our offense going,” head coach Lindsay Edmonds said. “I think we proved how tough we can be on both sides of the ball tonight and we did it for 40 minutes.”

Ebbs and flows come with basketball. It’s a volatile sport where even the best miss half their shots. What Rice women’s basketball lacks right now is a high enough floor on that side of the ball. If they can play defense like this, even a slightly more consistent offensive output will help them win games. Figuring out how to orchestrate that growth is the most pressing issue facing this team as February arrives.

“I don’t think we need to necessarily tweak anything. We go the shots we wanted in the first half they just unfortunately didn’t fall,” Edmonds said. “but on nights when the shots aren’t falling you can always depend on your defense and your rebounding.”

Up Next: at FAU (Sat, 2/1)

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Dominque Ennis’ big day powers Rice Women’s Basketball past Charlotte

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Everything seemed to be falling for Dominque Ennis and Rice Women’s Basketball on Saturday, who blew past Charlotte on the road.

Separation was minimal in the opening quarter when Rice women’s basketball tipped off against Charlotte on the road. Neither side led by more than three points for longer than 20 seconds of the first frame but Rice would start to ramp up the pressure in the second quarter.

Malia Fisher opened the scoring with a jumper and Maya Bokunewicz delivered a three, the exclamation points minutes just later to cap a 12-2 run that put Rice women’s basketball in the driver’s seat. The margin would stick around double-digits for the remainder of the quarter with Rice taking a 10-point advantage into the break.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

Charlotte would threaten briefly with a 6-0 spurt early in the third quarter, but Rice took over the game from that point onward. A combination of Sussy Ngulefac on the insider and a barrage of three-pointers from Victoria Flores and Dominique Ennis turned a close game into a blowout.

Rice led by 17 after three quarters and stretched their lead to as many as 26 points midway through the fourth. They never let up, parading past the 49ers and never allowing any serious hopes of a comeback to spark.

Final Box | Rice 84, Charlotte 60

Key takeaway | Electric Ennis

A season best 24 points from Dominque Ennis is the biggest reason this game was never close in the second half, but the big day from one of the Owls’ best shooters further underscores how essential her presence is for this team. Including Saturday, Rice women’s basketball is 3-0 when Ennis makes at least four threes and 3-1 when Ennis attempts at least eight shots from downtown.

When Ennis is clicking the entire offense opens up. Her threat from the outside opens up everything else the Owls want to do. It’s not fair to put the burden entirely on her shoulders, but it should be a reminder to this team to risk getting her enough chances to impact the game. Even when the ball isn’t going in like it was today, the threat she provides makes this team better.

Up Next: vs Tulsa (Wed, 1/29)

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Rice Women’s Basketball falls to UAB in OT

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Rice Women’s Basketball went blow for blow with the UAB Blazers through four quarters before the shooting slumped for good in overtime.

Malia Fisher was the best show in town on Wednesday night as Rice Women’s Basketball slugged out a low-scoring affair in Birmingham against the UAB Blazers. Fisher’s season high 24-point fell just short of half the Owls’ game total and kept the team in the fight when everything else wasn’t going according to plan.

The teams combined for just 19 points in the first quarter, collectively before UAB took a 24-17 lead into halftime. A smatter of threes and free throws in the third quarter seemed to spark the visiting Owls who rallied from a seven point deficit to a three-point advantage, eventually entering the fourth with a two-point advantage.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

Neither side did much in the last frame of regulation with UAB outscoring Rice 11-9 to set the stage for a winner-take-all overtime session. Victoria Flores got things started with a bucket, but a 9-0 run from the Blazers put the Owls too far behind to mount a comeback.

Final Box | UAB 63, Rice 56

Key takeaway | Shooting struggles persist

The number of subpar shooting performances has started to snow pile. Rice women’s basketball had 45 minutes of hoops on Wednesday night but only managed to come away with 56 points. More often than not a total that low isn’t going to cut it and that was the case this time around.

Through seven AAC games, Rice ranks 11th in the conference in field goal percentage and 12th in scoring. The Owls’ inability to create on that side of the ball has been a weight dragging them down all season and costing them winnable games.

That they’ve managed to tread water around the .500 mark is a testament to a tremendous defensive effort — Rice ranks third in opponent field goal percentage and scoring per game — but it’s not translated to nearly as many wins as this team expected.

Winning with defense is possible and it’s something this program has done tremendously well in the not-so-distant past, but it’s going to take something more consistent on offense. For whatever the reason, this season’s team hasn’t cracked the code on that vital component just yet.

Up Next: at Charlotte (Sat, 1/25)

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Rice Women’s Basketball surges past Memphis

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Rice Women’s Basketball overcame a slow start to take down Memphis behind 10 blocks and a big double-double from Shelby Hayes.

The defensive effort was impressive from both sides of Sunday’s afternoon tilt between Rice Women’s basketball and Memphis, particularly in the first half. The two teams combined for 19 field goals before intermission, each shooting 30 percent from the floor and going a combined 2-for-18 from three.

It was Rice who dominated the glass from the start, but that advantage didn’t really start to create any separation until the third quarter when the Owls started to take charge. Rice shot 64 percent from the floor in the third quarter, effectively turning defense into offense with 10 blocks along the way, the most in a single game for the program since 2018.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

That helped the Owls build their first double-digit lead of the game and it would only grow as the fourth quarter prolonged. A layup from Shelby Hayes, who recorded her second career double-double in this game, put Rice up by 17 as the game clock ticked under six minutes to play. That proved to be not nearly enough time for the Tigers, even though they tried their best to make things interesting.

“We just did everything that coach asked us to do and performed really well.” Hayes said.

The win brings Rice women’s basketball back to .500 in league play and two games above .500 overall.

Final Box | Rice 70, Memphis 59

Key takeaway | Beat bad teams

The Owls’ struggles to close out resume-building opportunities this season has been well documented, but no such resume booster was on the table against a 3-11 Memphis squad on Sunday. Instead, this was the sort of game Rice women’s basketball couldn’t afford to lose, especially give the limited cushion they’d allowed themselves with those other missed chances.

Things looked dicey early on, but the Owls found that extra gear they needed, weathering a series of three pointers that got their opponents back within seven before Rice slammed the door with a run of six late free throws to put the game out of reach.

A lot hasn’t come easy for this program in recent weeks, but getting back in the win column and not having to sweat out another closer-than-expected finish could go a long way to rebuilding confidence lost along the way.

Not every game is going to be against the Memphis’ of the world. But when it is, you need to beat them. So far, so good.

Up Next: at North Texas (Wed, 1/15)

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Rice Women’s Basketball: 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

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It’s been an up-and-down year for Rice Women’s Basketball and head coach Lindsay Edmonds. Here’s where the Owls stand as American Conference play begins.

Sitting at 8-6 (1-1) with two league games under their belts, Rice women’s basketball is wrestling with unmet expectations and a long season still ahead. The Owls are finally healthy as they enter the heart of league play, posting perhaps their most impressive win of the season the last time they took the court.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

Can the Owls rebound from a tough schedule and rough start with another late-season rally? That’s the unknown staring back at this squad as they fight through the middle of the season. Here’s where the Owls stand at the halfway point, a few important milestones and notes from the journey to this point and a recalibration of expectations for the rest of the way.

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