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After slow start to C-USA play, Rice Women’s Basketball is back in gear

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It was a strenuous start to conference play for Rice women’s basketball, but a three-game win streak has the Owls back on track.

The first five conference games Lindsay Edmonds coached in with Rice women’s basketball did not go well. Managing a depleted roster bereft of depth and besieged by injuries contributed to an 0-5 start, culminating in a four-overtime defeat on the road against Charlotte.

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Rice Football 2022 Offensive Player of the Year: Luke McCaffrey

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First-year wide receiver Luke McCaffrey proved to be a game-changer at his new position and was a clear pick for our 2022 Rice Football Offensive Player of the Year.

More than a year ago, amidst introductions of another decorated 2022 Rice football recruiting class, head coach Mike Bloomgren dropped one not-so-subtle nugget regarding one of her current players. Luke McCaffrey, brought to campus to play quarterback, would be playing wide receiver going forward. “It was Luke’s idea,” Bloomgren shared

By the time spring practice came around a few months later, McCaffrey seemed to be taking to the new position like a fish to water. His route running was smooth. His cuts were crisp. And if all else failed, he could beat most every defensive back that lined up against him in a footrace.

“Quarterback was something I loved,” McCaffrey admitted. “But I’m so happy I made the switch.”

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Wide receivers coach Mike Kershaw was just as happy about the switch. It didn’t take more than a few practices in the spring to understand the possibilities McCaffrey as a receiver would bring to the Rice offense. “He’s that puzzle piece that has a lot of different prongs to it. The creativity you can come up with him is endless,” Kershaw said. “He will not stand in one spot.”

Kershaw’s prediction would come true in the months ahead. McCaffrey hauled in nine passes for 46 yards in his first two contests before exploding for 105 yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions in his third game playing the position. He followed that up with a seven-catch, 121-yard and one-touchdown game the week following against Houston.

As it weren’t clear enough at that moment, McCaffrey was proving to be even more lethal as a pass catcher in space than he was with the ball in his hands under center but even he would testify that his experience as a quarterback helped him fully understand this other side of the offense.

Offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo, who watched the entire development process unfold before his eyes, was amazed. “I do think he’s special,” he said of the Owls’ newfound pass-catching weapon.

McCaffrey would go into the bye week averaging 72.2 yards per game and just shy of a touchdown per contest, with a few near-misses scattered in between. No Rice receiver would average more yards per game during the season than McCaffrey did during that stretch, and it was just the beginning of his career as a wideout.

“He’s playing well and a lot of people will forget, this is his first year playing receiver,” Kershaw mentioned during the Owls’ bye week. “He’s played five games at the position. He’s still learning.”

After a quiet game for the Rice offense against Florida Atlantic, McCaffrey exploded the following weekend against Louisiana Tech. He amassed 202 all-purpose yards, catching 10 passes with two scores through the air and another on the ground. He was unstoppable. It was his third 100-yard receiving game in seven tries.

McCaffrey would score again the following week against Charlotte but left the next contest against UTEP early with an ankle injury. That would essentially sideline him for the remainder of the regular season, one single snap against Western Kentucky notwithstanding.

More: Rice Football Iron Man — Shea Baker

Through the first nine games that McCaffrey was able to start, Rice was 5-4. They would lose the final four contests, with McCaffrey playing in just the bowl game against Southern Miss. 100 percent or not, he still posted seven receptions (all other Rice receivers had eight combined) and 67 yards.

It would be hyperbole to call McCaffrey the silver bullet, but there was no denying he made the Rice football offense work. Three of the Owls’ five worse scoring outputs of the season came without him in the lineup (at WKU, vs UTSA, at North Texas).

The emergence of McCaffrey coincided with an offensive awakening that never seemed to be fully realized. Rice football is better with McCaffrey on the field and the Owls are fortunate he’s got more eligibility to spend catching footballs at South Main.

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Rice Basketball outplays North Texas in “program win”

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Rice basketball overcame a slow start, surging past North Texas to secure one of the more impactful wins of head coach Scott Pera’s tenure.

Rice basketball had defeated North Texas once in their last 11 meetings entering Thursday Night’s matchup at the Super Pit, losing by an average of 25 points per game over the past four contests. The Mean Green just simply had the Owls’ number and that appeared to be the case again early on with the home team roaring out to a 13-2 lead.

Down early, Rice swerved from their usual three-point heavy approach and took the ball inside, exploiting mismatches they had on the drive with their superior guard play from Quincy Olivari and Travis Evee.

Sure enough, that double-digit lead dwindled until Rice erased it entirely with a 9-0 run punctuated by another big drive and score from Olivari to take a 21-20 lead, the Owls’ only edge in the first half.

North Texas wasn’t particularly effective in close range, maintaining their advantage early in the second half primarily with three-pointers — they hit 10 of 27 threes — rather than attacking inside. But when those threes stopped, Rice took over.

The Mean Green hit their final three of the game with 11:29 remaining in the second half, putting them up by five points, 47-42. From that point onward, Rice outscored North Texas 30-13, including a devastating 11-0 run over a four-minute span to put the game away for good and secure head coach Scott Pera’s first career win at North Texas.

Spotlight | Pera’s plan

Rice basketball had two improbable firsts in its win over North Texas. First, Pera’s game plan was entirely bespoke. The Owls entered the game averaging 25.4 three-point attempts per game. They attempted just seven such shots on Thursday night, the fewest three-point attempts by a Pera-coached Rice squad, ever.

Equally surprising for a team that has traditionally relied on the long ball, the low number of deep shots led to a meager three successful three-point baskets. That’s the fewest three-pointers made in a Rice victory under Pera, ever.

For Pera to flip the script 180 degrees took guts. And it worked. A double-digit underdog in the betting markets, Pera’s squad left Denton with what is arguably the most impressive win of his tenure, a win Pera described as a true “program win.”

Final Box | Rice 72 – North Texas 60

Up Next | Full Schedule

Rice basketball returns home for a two-game set at Tudor Fieldhouse this weekend. They’ll host Charlotte on Thursday, Jan. 26 at 7:00 p.m. CT then play UAB at 2:00 p.m. to close out the homestand.

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Rice Women’s Basketball holds on, beats North Texas for third straight win

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Rice women’s basketball never trailed at home against North Texas, but still found themselves in a dogfight to the very end, holding on for the win.

Stifling defense was the theme early on in a Thursday night tilt between Rice women’s basketball and the North Texas Mean Green. The Owls held the visitors to one field goal before the opening media timeout and just 11 points in the first quarter. After struggling to get that aspect of their game going in recent weeks, they leaned on that end of the court heavily as their own shooting took some time to get in gear.

The shots started to fall in earnest in the second quarter. Rice shot 63.6 percent from the floor in the period and extended their lead to 13 points at the break.

While Rice controlled the game throughout the second half, the margins got too close for comfort on a few occasions. The Owls had themselves to blame for much of it, turning the ball over and wasting possessions. The rhythm they seemed to have on that side of the court in the first half seemed to take a lull in the third quarter allowing North Texas tied the game, but they were never able to take the lead.

After holding North Texas to 25 points combined in the first and second quarters, the Mean Green took over with 49 second points. Rice answered with a balanced attack, punctuated by a trio of three pointers from Dominque Ennis off the bench. The lead never again reached double digits, but the Owls were finally able to get some breathing room late and hold on for their third consecutive victory.

Spotlight | India Bellamy

Head coach Lindsay Edmonds is quick to compliment the depth of the roster this season whenever given the chance. Her memories of a thin bench in her inagular season are completely foreign to the myriad of options this team has at its disposal.

“If we have four or five in double digits, I feel really good about our chances,” she said tonight, following a game in which five Owls reached double digits. Many were the usual suspects: Ashlee Austin, Malia Fisher. One was India Bellamy, who delivered 12 points and two critical steals. Only Austin made more field goals (seven) than Bellamy (six).

“India coming off the bench that’s also scoring the ball really well,” Edmonds said. “Everybody stepping up at different times is what makes us so good.” That certainly was the right recipe on Thursday night.

Final Box | Rice 81 – North Texas 74

Up Next | Full Schedule

Rice women’s basketball hits the road for a quick two-game trip to the east, starting with a Thursday evening game against Charlotte on Jan. 26 at 5:00 p.m. CT. They’ll stop at Birmingham on the way back to Texas on Saturday to play UAB. That’s a 1:00 p.m. CT tip.

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Conference USA Basketball 2023: Mid-January Roundup

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Conference USA Basketball is in the thick of the conference slate. Here’s where each team stands in mid-January.

Team NET  KenPom Record
Charlotte 95 108 12-6 (3-4)
FAU 12 35 17-1 (7-0)
FIU 243 237 8-10 (2-5)
LA Tech 151 145 10-8 (3-4)
MTSU 125 128 11-7 (4-3)
North Texas 48 63 15-4 (6-2)
Rice 166 184 13-5 (4-3)
UAB 76 70 13-6 (4-4)
UTEP 180 187 10-8 (3-4)
UTSA 319 322 7-12 (1-7)
WKU 160 151 11-7 (3-4)
Kenpom, NET, and standings reflect games as of 1/17/2023

Key Storylines

Above the rest

At 17-1 and the only unbeaten team in conference play. Florida Atlantic deservedly checked in at No. 24 in the AP Poll this week. The Owls own two head-to-head victories over North Texas (6-0 in league games against non-FAU squads) and look to be the class of the conference by a sizable margin. How long that lasts will depend entirely upon their ability to endure the strain of the conference slate.

They’ve got a four-game lead on the middle of the pack, but there’s still plenty of basketball still to be played.

Last Minute Rice

Rice basketball has been anything but boring this season, particularly in the last fortnight which included two buzzer-beaters, three overtime games and a streak of six consecutive games that were within a three-point margin at the end of regulation. Oh, and Max Fiedler just recorded the second triple-double in school history along the way.

Divvying out the middle of the pack

As things currently stand, seven of the 11 teams in the Conference USA Basketball standings are within one game of .500. From Rice to UTEP, there’s a log jam of 3-4 to 4-3 teams with preseason frontrunner UAB smack dab in the middle at 4-4. We’re likely going to see some separation in the next few weeks, but it’s hard to say who will emerge from the chaos at this juncture.

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