Rice Women’s Basketball lost a fourth quarter lead and the game, falling at home to preseason AAC favorite South Florida.
Rice women’s basketball came out of the gates slowly, falling behind 15-7 in the early moments of the first quarter before catching fire behind the sharp shooting of Victoria Flores — who led the team with 22 points on the day — put an exclamatory three-pointer on an 11-0 run. That shot put Rice in front by five near the end of the frame.
The game would stay close for some time after that, but Rice was able to maintain a three-point lead after one and a one-point lead at halftime. That advantage grew to as many as eight points in the third quarter, putting the Owls in a great position to notch a big conference win at Tudor Fieldhouse, but that would not come to pass.
More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview
South Florida caught fire late, shooting 53.8 percent from the field in the fourth quarter as the Rice offense went silent. The Bulls went to the line 12 times and were able to keep the Owls off balance as their lead turned into a deficit in a matter of minutes. Rice would score just eight points in the final quarter, falling by 10 points in a that was highly contested for nearly 35 minutes.
Final Box | South Florida 74, Rice 64
FINAL | USF 74, @RiceWBB 64 pic.twitter.com/2utMWJ2z8Q
— The Roost (@AtTheRoost) December 29, 2024
Key takeaway | Fourth quarter foibles
A disturbing pattern has emerged in many of Rice Women’s Basketball’s defeats this season. Outside of a drubbing at the hands of a Top 25 Georgia Tech squad, the Owls have more or less been no worse than evenly matched against the remainder of their opponents. In many of those matchups, like in this one, they even led late in the game. The commonality? An inability to finish.
Rice led South Florida by six to start the fourth quarter on Sunday afternoon. Playing even basketball down the stretch would have kept Rice in the game, at a minimum, instead, the Owls watched as the Bulls rattled off 13 straight points to open the frame, seizing a seven point lead. Before they could steady themselves, another 9-2 run essentially put the game out of reach.
The Owls made two field goals in the fourth quarter after shooting nearly 50 percent from the floor for most of the afternoon. A one-off poor quarter is understandable, but it’s hard not to notice a trend of winnable games this team has let get out of hand in the fourth quarter.
Entering the fourth quarter, Rice led South Dakota State by 13 points and lost. Rice trailed by two against Louisiana entering the fourth before losing by 10. They led Gonzaga entering the fourth and lost.
This team has the talent and the experience. Building that many fourth quarter leads isn’t possible without it. But finishing is a learned skill, and one the Owls had best figure out if they want to avoid more painful experiences like this one.
Up Next: at Tulane (Wed, 1/1)
