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Rice Women’s Basketball 2021: Owls out-tough UTEP, move to 4-0

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Rice women’s basketball stayed perfect in conference play, sweeping their second weekend series with two hard-fought wins over UTEP.

It’s been hard for visiting teams to win at Tudor Fieldhouse. The Rice women’s basketball hasn’t dropped a conference game at home in nearly three years. The Owls have been tested, just as they were this past weekend, but they’ve always found a way to come out on top.

Rice opened their first couplet of home conference games on Friday, outlasting surges from the Miners with strong defense and opportunistic shooting. Lauren Schwartz led the team with 16 points including three triples. Nancy Mulkey contributed five rebounds and 15 points. Nine different players scored.

More: Rice Basketball earns hard-fought split with UTEP in the desert

Saturday was another tightly contested contest. Stingy defense on both sides led to just 39 combined points in the first half. Had it not been for the clock expiring on a last-second three, Rice could have found themselves trailing at the break for the first time this season. Instead, the Owls took a narrow two-point lead into halftime.

Their trademark lockdown third quarter was once more a difference maker. Rice outscored UTEP 15-7, stretching the lead to 10 points. That gave the Owls plenty of breathing room to secure a 4-0 start in conference play. UTEP was held to 43 points on 27.1% shooting.

After giving up 68 points on Friday, the defense responded with tenacity. “I still think we can continue to get better [in rebounding],” head coach Tina Langley said after the series, “but I like our toughness and our ability to stick to a philosophy that I feel works really well for our team.”

Player Spotlight | Sydne Wiggins

Wiggins has been one of the most reliable and versatile players on the court for the Owls over the past three seasons. The senior guard scores, rebounds and finds outlets for her teammates. Her aggressiveness against the UTEP zone gave Rice crucial opportunities when the offense was slow out of the gate. On defense, she stuck to her opponents like glue.

On Friday, Wiggins set up her teammates for success, tallying five assists to her seven points and seven rebounds. Saturday it was her turn, leading the team with 15 points. The ability to do both well, to facilitate and to score, makes her an invaluable asset to the team and someone Langley called “a very dangerous player” for the Owls on the court.

Stat Corner | Gallegos ghosts

The Rice defense was superb once again this weekend, but their work on UTEP’s star guard was particularly impressive. Katia Gallegos came into the weekend averaging 17.4 points per game. She led UTEP in scoring, assists, steals and was second in rebounds. She’d been held under 10 points once in her first seven games, scoring 20+ three times.

Rice held Gallegos to nine points on 3-for-15 from the field on Friday. Then they followed it up by limiting her to nine points on 4-of-9 shooting in the first three quarters on Saturday. She scored eight points in the fourth quarter, but that came after the Owls had secured a double-digit lead. Too little, too late.

For the weekend she shot 31.0 percent from the field compared to her typical 46.3 percent, roughly 50 percent worse than her average outing.

Up Next

Rice hits the road next weekend for what could be their toughest test yet in conference play. They’ll play a Friday/Saturday set against Old Dominion, who along with the Owls, were one of three teams to receive first place votes in the Conference USA preseason polls. The Monarchs swept Florida Atlantic on the road this weekend after dropping both games of their opening series at home to FIU.

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Rice Women’s Basketball 2021: Owls fly past UTSA with ease, twice

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Rice women’s basketball continued their winning ways in Conference USA play, beating UTSA twice in two days on the road.

For the fourth consecutive season, Rice women’s basketball opened conference play 2-0. This year, both of the Owls’ victories came against the same team in the same venue. As a part of Conference USA’s efforts to reduce travel, Rice opened their conference slate with back-to-back road games against UTSA.

Rice announced the arrival in San Antonio with authority, jumping out to a 16-3 lead in the opening quarter of the Friday affair. UTSA would hang around into the before a near-perfect third quarter shooting performance from the Owls, who made 10-of-13 shots to push their lead to 20 points. Lauren Schwartz and Nancy Mulkey led the team in scoring with 19 points apiece.

More: Men’s Basketball goes 2-0 against UTSA 

UTSA managed more than three points in the opening frame during the rematch on Saturday, but the result was the same. Rice held the roadrunner to 32.9 percent shooting and never let the Roadrunners get within striking distance after the Owls took the early lead. Sydne Wiggins had a season-high 14 points, but it was Mulkey, again, who led the team in scoring with 20 points.

Rice has now won 36 of their last 38 games against Conference USA opponents. Tina Langley’s squad has adapted as they’ve gone, developing complementary pieces to keep the Owls consistently ahead of their conference foes.

Player Spotlight | Katelyn Crosthwait

Crosthwait is making the most of her insertion into the starting lineup this season. She scored 20 points across the two games against UTSA, also contributing six assists and a pair of steals. She’s continued to develop as a shot maker and consistently provides the Owls another option on that side of the court. Crosthwait was third on the team in minutes played on the weekend.

Stat Corner | Shooters shoot and stoppers stop

Rice is No. 1 in Conference USA in field goal percentage, connecting on a staggering 50% of their shots through seven games. The Owls are also No. 1 on the defensive side, limiting their opponents to 31.6 percent shooting from the field.

Old Dominion is the only other team in the conference to rank in the top half of both metrics. The Monarchs rank fourth in shooting percentage and sixth in shooting defensive percentage.

The Owls have always hung their hat on suffocating defense. Adding an explosive offense that takes (and makes) high percentage shots will make this team hard to beat in conference play.

Up Next

Rice women’s basketball will open their home slate of Conference USA games next weekend against UTEP. Once again, it will be another Friday/Saturday double feature. The Miners are 5-2 this season. Like the Owls, they also swept their opening C-USA series. UTEP took both games against Southern Miss by final scores of 83-65 and 74-72, respectively.

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Rice Basketball: Early season men’s and women’s roundup

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Thanksgiving marked the beginning of Rice basketball. Here’s a quick check-in on how both teams are doing so far on the court.

Rice Basketball

The 2020-2021 season has gotten of to a great start for Rice basketball. The men’s team replaced more than half of their roster during the offseason and were limited compared to their typical offseason routine. It was going to take some time to work out the kinks.

“Look, we’re all trying to find our way. We’re trying to see who the gamers are,” head coach Scott Pera said following the Owls’ home opener against Houston Baptist. Rice is now 4-0 for the first time since 2011, something that bodes well for the future.

The start is encouraging, but to some extent, it’s more encouraging to see this team come together as quickly as they have. “It’s important to play good basketball,” Pera said, “So yeah, we’re happy to win.”

Results (4-0)

  • 68-53 (W) Incarnate Word
  • 103-64 (W) Our Lady of the Lake
  • 94-74 (W) Le Tourneau
  • 86-54 (W) Houston Baptist

Statistical leaders

What’s next?

Rice basketball get their biggest test of the season next Saturday at the Fertitta center against a ranked Houston team. The Owls traded blows with the Cougars from start to finish last season before Houston got hot down the stretch and won the game.

Beating Houston would put Rice decidedly ahead of their on-the-fly roster shakeup, but even without a win, the Owls can learn a lot about who they are and how far they have to go against Houston next weekend.

Rice Women's Basketball

Rice women’s basketball was only two games into their season when they encountered their first COVID-19 cancelation. The UT-Arlington game was scrapped at the last minute due to a pause with the Mavericks’ program. The Owls deserve credit for their quick response, adding a game with Texas Tech on the fly.

Not only did Rice beat Texas Tech, they won in dominant fashion. Rice hit 12 three-pointers, held Tech to 30.8 percent shooting from the field and never trailed from start to finish. The win marked the first for Rice over a Power 5 program since beating Texas A&M in 2006.

For head coach Tina Langley, getting back on the court is a welcome respite from the hectic offseason. “We’re just so grateful to everybody who’s put in so much work so that we could play,” she said. “It was such a joy to take the port together. And I’m so proud of these young women.”

Results (3-0)

  • 83-54 (W) Houston Baptist
  • 66-54 (W) Little Rock
  • 81-62 (W) Texas Tech

Statistical leaders

  • Scoring | Nancy Mulkey – 13.3 points per game
  • Rebounds | Nancy Mulkey – 10.0 per game
  • Assists | Sydne Wiggins – 4.7 per game
  • Steals | Jasmine Smith – 1.3 per game
  • Blocks | Nancy Mulkey – 2.7 per game

What’s next?

Rice women’s basketball will have two more home games (Dec. 11 against Texas Southern and Dec. 16 against Louisiana) before hitting the road for their most important game of the season. They visit Texas A&M at Reed Arena on Dec. 20.

Their battle with the Aggies came down to the final possession a year ago. Texas A&M lost Chennedy Carter to the WNBA draft while Rice lost Erica Ogwumike. This year’s game is going to look different without either of those guards on the court, but the impact of a Rice win remains just as significant.

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Rice Women’s Basketball: Owls fly past HBU to kick off 2020 season

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Rice Women’s Basketball prevailed over HBU in their season opener, providing some familiarity following an offseason of twists and turns.

2020 has been a strange year for all of us, which is why it was so encouraging to see regain some semblance of normalcy on Wednesday afternoon when the Rice Women’s Basketball team tipped off its season. The ever-reliable Owls took care of business against HBU, going on to a fairly comfortable victory before a crowd-less Tudor Fieldhouse.

Rice was led by a dominant effort by center Nancy Mulkey and the reliable facilitation of Sydne Wiggins and Jasmine Smith. 10 players saw action for the Owls, who outrebounded the Huskies 54-35 and led for more than 33 of the 40 minutes of action. In a year where so little has made sense, Rice delivered a familiar opening stanza to begin the season 1-0.

Head coach Tina Langley was proud of her team’s efforts. “I think everybody has really been working incredibly hard. From player to player we feel confident that we can put them in and they can give us good minutes right now,” she said.

Mulkey won the opening tip, setting up an easy lay-in for Katelyn Crosthwait. HBU would rally behind some early threes before Rice took the lead on a steal-and-score by sophomore Lauren Schwartz in the second quarter. From that point, it was all Owls who ran away from the Huskies to win by a final score of 83–54. The Owls topped their best point total from last season, an 82-59 win over UTEP.

As good as the Owls were in their opener, Langley knows the best is yet to come. “We still have a lot to learn,” she said, “I can’t wait to see who we’re going to become because you can see their commitment level and the way we’ve been practicing, we’re going to get a lot better all season.”

Final Stats

Player of the Game – Nancy Mulkey

It was a banner day for Mulkey, who delivered an exclamation point on the Owls’ win with her first career three-point shot (and make) in the third quarter. She’d worked on that aspect of her game during the offseason and was ready to take the shot when she finally had her moment.

Coach Langley was happy for Mulkey’s achievement, but said her senior center’s impact goes well beyond that singular attempt. “I think she’s doing a tremendous job of understanding her ability as an offensive weapon for us,” Langley said,”And she can shoot the three. She can take it off balance and she can score in the low post. She can just do so many things well. Nancy Mulkey’s a pro and she’s going to show that this season.”

That shot was one small part of a 23-point, 13-rebound performance — her fourth double-double of her Rice career.

Up Next

Rice women’s basketball won’t return to Tudor for another two weeks. In the meantime, they’ll travel to Arkansas for a 2 p.m. Saturday game against Little Rock. The short road trip concludes Dec. 2 at UT Arlington, tip off scheduled for 5 p.m. Both games are scheduled to air on ESPN+.

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2020-2021 Rice Women’s Basketball Season Preview

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The 2020-2021 Rice women’s basketball season is fast approaching. Here’s a rundown of the Owls’ squad aiming for a third-straight conference title.

It feels like so long ago since Tina Langley and the Rice women’s basketball team stood awkwardly on the court in Frisco, Tx prior to their Conference USA Conference Tournament game that never tipped off. The Owls had surged through the league for a second-consecutive regular-season title and were prepared to defend it, but the wave of COVID-19 cancelations stole that chance away.

Much has happened in the months that followed. Erica Ogwumike was selected in the WNBA Draft. And just this month, Rice signed a new class of freshmen. Finally, the longer than anticipated offseason is coming to an end.

The Coach – Tina Langley

There’s a reason Rice signed Tina Langley to a five-year contract extension prior to the beginning of last season. She’s built one of the most dominant programs across the breadth of Rice Athletics. She helped Rice earn its first-ever ranking in the AP Poll, led the team to an undefeated conference record two seasons ago continues to rewrite record books. As long as Langley is at South Main, this program is in good hands.

Last Season Snapshot

Rice saw a 30-game conference winning streak broken on the road against Old Dominion in overtime last February. The loss marked the first time the Owls had fallen to a conference opponent in longer than a calendar year.

Podcast: Erica Ogwumike talks Rice basketball career and abrupt ending

Undeterred, Rice would rally, setting up a winner-take-all matchup with those same Monarchs at Tudor Fieldhouse on the final day of the regular season. Rice beat Old Dominion that day, clinching the conference title and cutting down the nets on their home court. Rice finished the year 21-8 (16-2 C-USA).

Key Question

What does this team look like without Ogwumike? We saw a brief snippet of the team without their star guard on the floor last season and they faired well, but it’s one thing to make something work for a few games and another to be without such a potent scorer and ace rebounder for a full season. The sample we’ve seen suggests they’ll be just fine, but there could be an adjustment period as the team adapts.

The Schedule

Rice Women’s Basketball Marquee Games and Key Dates

Nov. 25, 2020 – Season opener vs Houston Baptist at Tudor Fieldhouse
Nov. 28, 2020 – First road game, at Little Rock
Dec. 20, 2020 – Owls visit Texas A&M at Reed Arena
Jan. 1, 2020 – Conference USA opener at UTSA
Jan. 8, 2020 – Conference USA home opener vs UTEP
Mar. 10, 2020 – Conference USA Tournament

You can find the complete 2020-2021 Rice women’s basketball schedule here.

Key Returners

Sydne Wiggins, Guard (Sr.)

Wiggins led Rice in minutes last season, starting all 29 games. She’s a dynamic shooter from the outside and a pesky defender. Her 1.7 steals per game ranked Top 10 in Conference USA. A senior, Wiggins will be a key leader for this team on and off the court, always playing with an infectious level of aggressiveness.

Jasmine Smith, Guard (Jr.)

Through two seasons, Smith has started every game of her Rice career. She’s a lockdown defender and a plus rebounder, frequently turning takeaways into easy opportunities for the Rice offense. Her enthusiasm and quickness on defense prevented even some of the conference’s best shooters from getting open looks from deep.

Nancy Mulkey, Center (Sr.)

When healthy, Mulkey is one of the most potent forces in women’s college basketball. When she’s on the court, she gives Rice an advantage that no other team in the conference can match. She’s improved on her touch inside and is really becoming a more well-rounded player as she enters her third season on South Main. She’s blocked 171 shots in 48 games in her Rice career.

Lauren Schwartz, Guard (So.)

Schwartz cracked the starting lineup for the Owls immediately upon her arrival at South Main last year. A member of the Conference USA All-Freshman team, her ability as a scorer and a facilitator on offense was crucial to the team’s success on that side of the court. She averaged 9.6 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. With Erica Ogwumike gone, Schwartz will be the primary ballhandler for Rice this season.

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Key names off the bench

Destiny Jackson, Guard (So.) – Saw the most playing time of the freshmen reserves last season. Shot .442 from the field and was a key contributed in the early parts of conference play.

Kendall Ellig, Center (Sr.) – Earned the backup center role and played well. She averaged 2.0 rebounds per game, playing at least 15 minutes in nine contests.

Haylee Swayze, Guard (Jr.) – Opened last season with 22 points off the bench against Nicholls St. Capable shooter off the bench that can rise to the occasion when her number is called.

Katelyn Crosthwait, Guard (So.) – Impactful interior scorer who helped Rice defeat Old Dominion with a season-high 21 minutes and 11 points. Trustworthy defender and rebounder.

More names to know

Sophomore forwards India Bellamy and Ashlee Austin saw a large portion of their action in non-conference play last season, but each had moments during the conference slate where they were asked to come off the bench and play roles here and there. They should be involved in similar situations again this season with room for their playing time to grow.

Arianna McCurry will see some run as a reserve behind Nancy Mulkey and Kendall Ellig at center. Newcomer Maya Bokunewicz can play multiple positions. The 6-foot freshman received rave reviews from coach Langley in the offseason and should see the floor in some capacity early on, especially given how committed the Owls were to getting a much larger freshman class playing experience last fall.

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