Rice University
UAB
Riverin Paces Owls To 83-69 Win At UAB
2/24/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2006
Birmingham, Ala. - Kadie Riverin scored 18 of her career-high 25 points in the second half to lead Rice to an 83-69 win over UAB in a Conference USA women's basketball game here Friday night.
Riverin, a sophomore guard from Toronto, Ont., entered the game with a career-best of 18 points, but she equaled that total in the final 20 minutes alone to lead the Owls to their sixth consecutive win. The victory clinches no worse than a fourth-place finish in the C-USA regular season and a first-round bye in next week's league tournament in Dallas.
Rice (14-12, 10-5) led only 37-36 at halftime, but UAB (14-12, 7-8) pulled into a 46-all tie with 15:19 remaining in the game. Three-point plays by Diamond Rogers and Crystal McFadden created that tie, but Riverin and Lauren Neaves combined for 10 straight points for Rice. The Blazers couldn't get within nine points the rest of the way.
Neaves (22 points, 15 rebounds) had her sixth straight double-double for the Owls, and the junior just missed a triple-double with eight blocked shots. Valeriya Berezhynska was the only other Owl in double figures with 18, but she added seven rebounds.
The Owls held a 42-29 rebounding advantage and shot 49.1 percent from the field for the game.
UAB was led in scoring by Carmen Guzman with 24 and McFaden with 17. The Blazers kept it close by shooting six of nine from three-point range in the first half, but they missed all seven of their trey attempts in the second half.
Rice will now close the regular season Sunday at 2 pm (CST) at the University of Memphis. The Tigers fell 70-62 Friday night to Houston.
