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Rice Women’s Basketball comes up short against UTSA

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Rice Women’s Basketball got within a last-second shot of league-leading UTSA but couldn’t get it to fall, dropping a heartbreaker to the Roadrunners.

A pair of three-pointers in the closing minutes of the first quarter staved off what looked to be a rout inside the confines of Tudor Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon. Rice women’s basketball was hosting Senior Day and seemed to have been caught up in the festivities, sacrificing the opening minutes of a crucial game against top-seeded UTSA.

The Owls would eventually come to, though, playing the Roadrunners more or less even through the next two quarters. Rice runs would occasionally get the game back within seven or eight points, but UTSA would hold serve, keeping Rice at bay until things got interesting in the fourth quarter.

More: Rice Football: 2025 Recruiting Class Analysis — Defense

Rice opened that last segment with a scoring burst, but it was the Owls’ defense that made the biggest difference. The Roadrunners made three field goals in the quarter and just one in the final seven minutes, allowing the Owls to claw back into the contest and turn it into a competitive game once more.

Dominique Ennis hit a jumper to make it a three point game with 2:55 to play. Then Sussy Ngulefac cut the deficit to one and the defense forced a jump ball to get the Owls the ball back in time for a final shot. Ennis got the look, but it wouldn’t fall. After a foul and free throws, Rice got one last-second heave, but that shot went wide, too.

Final Box | UTSA 57, Rice 55

Key takeaway | 40 minutes

Saturday’s fourth quarter against UTSA made it clear Rice women’s basketball could challenge the best of the AAC. The Owls outscored the Roadrunners by six in the fourth quarter as well as by one point in the third and were even with them in the second. UTSA won the first quarter by nine. And therein lies the problem Rice women’s basketball has yet to solve this season, the 40 minute game.

Every game is 40 minutes and it’s hard to play at 100 percent for a full 40 minutes. But the best teams tend to get a lot closer to that level of consistency than those in the middle of the standings.

A two-point difference at the final buzzer made that abundantly clear. UTSA isn’t so much more talented than Rice to the point where the back-and-forth action of the game has been rendered moot. On the contrary, Rice has the talent and the ability to play with these teams. They just aren’t consistent enough to be anywhere near the top of the standings, something that has generated an understandable level of frustration.

Up Next: vs UAB (Tues, 2/25)

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Rice Women’s Basketball stumbles at Wichita State

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Rice Women’s Basketball came out strong but faltered late in another disappointing road loss to a team at the bottom of the AAC standings.

A pair of threes from Dominique Ennis and a stout presence inside from Sussy Ngulefac got Rice women’s basketball out to a strong start on the road against Wichita State on Saturday afternoon. The visiting Owls seemed to be in control of the contest before the offense evaporated in the second quarter.

Rice had been leading by six to that point but Wichita State would open the frame on a dominant 17-4 run, seizing the advantage and putting the Owls on notice that the hosting Shockers wouldn’t be going down without a fight.

More: Rice Football: 2025 Recruiting Class Analysis — Defense

The teams traded jabs in the third quarter and the early portions of the fourth before finding themselves all tied up at 50 points apiece with 2:07 to go. Wichita State would seize the moment, scoring twice in a row to put Rice on their heels.

The Owls would manage to cut the deficit to one on a three from Dominque Ennis with five seconds to play but went to the rim with one second left, running out of time and dropping their fourth game in a row.

Final Box | Wichita State 60, Rice 57

Key takeaway | Avoiding a repeat spring swoon

The enduring memory from the 2023-2024 Rice women’s basketball season will forever be a dominant run through the AAC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament berth that run subsequently earned. But that great March masked a terrible ending to the regular season with five consecutive conference losses that saw the Owls plummet in the standings.

One year late, Rice finds itself on a four-game losing streak, including defeats against Florida Atlantic and Wichita State, the current bottom dwellers in the league’s standings. The 2025 Owls have five more games, which—optimistically—could suggest a chance to right the ship. However, the current iteration of this team finds itself in a rut with not clear answers.

Wins are the most surefire cure. Starting that next Tuesday when they return to Tudor Fieldhouse for a three-game homestand is an absolute must if they want any chance of avoiding a repeat fall down the conference ranks.

Up Next: vs Florida Atlantic (Tues, 2/18)

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Rice Women’s Basketball runs out of stream vs Tulane

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Rice Women’s Basketball dipped back below .500 in AAC play, running out of stream late against Tulane at home.

Tulane struck first in a Wednesday night tilt at Tudor Fieldhouse but Rice women’s basketball would quickly fire back. Victoria Flores sparked a quick Rice rally with an 11-point first quarter, turning a deficit into a nine-point advantage for the home team which would prove difficult for the Owls to maintain.

By the end of the first quarter Tulane had pulled within one. The Green Wave led by 12 at halftime and survived a brief push by the Owls in the third, still maintaining a double-digit advantage by the time the fourth quarter arrived. That’s when the Owls’ offense finally ran out of stream.

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

Already staked to a significant lead, Tulane opened the final frame on a 12-2 run, taking a commanding 21 point lead midway through the quarter. Not even a banner day from a career-best showing from Malia Fisher (32 points, 6rebounds) would be enough to get the Owls back within striking range. Flores would finish with 11 points, all scored in that first with Ennis the only other Rice players in double figures — she scored her 11th point at the buzzer.

The loss marks a staggered stretch of back-and-forth for Rice women’s basketball in the win column. The Owls haven’t won more than two games in a row since November 7 through November 17, posting four straight wins over NC A&T, South Alabama, Houston and Sam Houston, respectively

Final Box | Tulane 78, Rice 67

Key takeaway | Offensive identity

Dominique Ennis had taken zero three point attempts at halftime. She finished with four shots from long range in a game the Owls were down by a large margin for the duration of the second half. That tally is well below her average of 6.5 three-point attempts per game. She took 12 threes last time out against FAU.

How many threes Ennis or anyone else attempts in a single game isn’t going to make or break this team in the long run, but Ennis’ inconsistent usage underscores a nagging issue Rice women’s basketball has had all season: a lack of true offensive identity.

Up until this game, the plan probably could have been described as an inside-out approach in which the Owls’ bigs win in the paint to provide open shots from distance for the likes of Ennis and others. That’s not what happened here.

It feels as if the Owls are banking on Malia Fisher to carry the load while banking on someone else to provide a meaningful supporting role. Sometimes that’s been Ennis. Other times Victoria Flores. But more often than not, it’s been a sluggish result on that side of the court that’s hampered this team’s upside.

Up Next: at USF (Wed, 2/12)

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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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Clutch Fourth Quarter powers Rice Women’s Basketball past Tulane

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Rice Women’s Basketball delivered a much-needed fourth quarter rally, dominating Tulane late for their first AAC win of the season.

Dominique Ennis hit the first shot of the game to give Rice an early 2-0 lead, but the Owls’ advantage wouldn’t last long on the road against the Tulane Green Wave. Their hosts delivered an 11-0 run to seize an advantage in the first quarter.

A defensive slugfest in the second quarter would keep the game around a one-point margin for a while until a 7-0 run from the Wave put Rice in trouble at the half, down eight after scoring just five points in that frame.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview

The game would largely hover around that level for the next quarter of action. Both sides traded baskets as the scoring picked up, but Tulane was able to maintain at least a two possession lead until Rice began to make their move in earnest at the beginning of the fourth period.

Ennis went three-for-three from deep in the fourth, supplemented by an 8-point, 4-rebound, 4-assist quarter from Malia Fisher, who delivered one of her most impactful performances of the season to date. That tandem, with timely contributions from Hailey Adams, Sussy Ngulefac and Victoria Flores, all of which played the entire quarter, propelled Rice to a come-from-behind victory.

The 33 points Rice scored in the fourth quarter made for the third-most points in a quarter in program history. Rice finished the game making 10 of their last 12 shots from the field. That’s quite an impressive way to ring in the New Year.

Final Box | Rice 72, Tulane 64

What They’re Saying

“Road wins are so tough in the conference. I’m really, really proud of our team’s effort and toughness. We dug a hole, but we rallied together and found a way to get a win on the road in conference play. I thought just our resiliency was incredible. Our fourth quarter performance was really, really tough and really special, and exactly what we needed.” – Rice Women’s Basketball Head Coach Lindsay Edmonds

Key takeaway | Resilient Rally

The fourth quarter has been the boogeyman for Rice Women’s basketball all season long, a refrain explored in detail just days prior in a loss to South Florida. For Rice to win this game against Tulane on the road in this manner was crucial. Not just to get the win and avoid an 0-2 start in league play, but to prove to themselves and those watching that clutch gene is in their somewhere.

Rice shot 71 percent from the field in the fourth quarter. Tulane shot 27 percent, but was only marginally better on the afternoon, shooting at a 33 percent clip from the floor. The Owls’ defense more or less held serve while the offense found that extra gear that had eluded them so many times this season.

This team isn’t going to shoot 71 percent in any quarter very often, but avoiding the deficit in the first place is something they’ve largely proven themselves capable of and there’s something to be said of the impact on the team’s psyche gained from finally getting over this hill. It’s just one win on the ledger, but it felt like much more.

Up Next: vs UTSA (Wed, 1/8)

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