Rice Plays Host to Undefeated Lamar
11/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 24, 2008
Rice Game Notes
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HOUSTON - On the heals of playing three games in as many days and going 2-1 at the Basketball Travelers Invitational in Provo, Utah, the Rice Owls are back on the court Tuesday when they play host to Lamar.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Tudor Fieldhouse. The game will be broadcast locally in Houston on ESPN 97.5 The Ticket. Tuesday's game is actually the second of two contests in Tudor Fieldhouse as the women play host to Furman at noon.
Rice heads into the week at 2-2 and with a win Tuesday can move a game above .500 for the first time this season. Lamar is coming off a 61-48 win over Denver last Saturday and the Cardinals are off to a 3-0 start.
After shooting 37 percent from the field last season, the Owls are close to raising their field goal percentage by 100 points. Rice is shooting 46.6 percent from the field through the first four games of the year.
The return of junior guard Cory Pflieger can certainly be attributed to being a part of the improvement. Pflieger played in just five games before being sidelined by an injury for the remainder of the year. This season he is 17-of-32 fro the field, has knocked down 11 three-pointers and leads the team with a 13.0 scoring average. The Dickson, Tenn., native's 13 assists is second on the squad.
Senior guard Rodney Foster is the only other Rice player to be scoring in double figures, averaging 10.3 points an outing. Senior forward Aleks Perka leads the team with a 6.0 rebounding average to go along with contributing 8.3 points per game.
Lamar is led by senior guard Kenny Dawkins who is averaging 18.3 points per game. Dawkins scored 29 points in a 78-68 win over Louisiana-Lafayette last week. The returning Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year helped lead Lamar to an SLC East Division title and a 19-11 record last year.
Dawkins is part of a senior-laden team. Four seniors are all scoring in double figures this season. The foursome has combined to average 44.7 points per game and as a group are shooting 55 percent from the field.
Senior guard Brandon McThay is averaging 15 points an outing. Senior forwards Jay Brown and Tristan Worrell are also scoring in double figures and are the Cardinals' leading rebounders at 7.0 and 6.7 boards per game, respectively.
Following Tuesday's game, Rice travels to Texas on Sunday before returning home to play its next three games in Tudor Fieldhouse.
