Thursday, October 31
Houston, TX
7 p.m.
Rice University
-00,00 CUSA
83
vs
89
St. Edward's (Exhibition)
0-0,0-0Lone Star
1
2
F
St. Edward's
42
47
89
Rice
41
42
83
Photo by: Maria Lysaker - Rice Athletics
Rice Falls to St. Edward’s, 89-83, in Exhibition Action
10/31/2019 10:43:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HOUSTON — St. Edward's outscored Rice, 10-4, over the final 3:10 as the Owls fell, 89-83, in its lone exhibition of the season.
The Story
Rice came out of the gate strong, jumping out to an 18-8 lead. St. Edward's went on a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to three, but the Owls went on a 7-3 run to push their lead back to 27-20. However, seven straight SEU points tied the game at 27 with 7:20 to play in the half. After the teams traded baskets over the next two minutes, Trey Murphy III hit a three to give Rice a 35-32 lead. But, back-to-back Hilltopper three-pointers gave them their first lead of the game, 38-35, with 4:08 left. Rice came right back, getting threes from Murphy and Tommy McCarthy. But, Rice went scoreless in the final 2:44 and St. Edward's scored the final four points to take a 42-41 lead into halftime. Rice came out firing in the second half. Murphy hit three straight threes as Rice started the half on a 12-2 run. But, SEU began to chip away, trading three-pointers for twos to pull within five. After Rice pushed the lead to seven, the Owls missed seven of its next eight shots while committing four turnovers as the Hilltoppers went on a 14-2 run to take a 68-63 lead with 9:24 remaining. The teams went back-and-forth over the next six minutes. With St. Edward's leading 79-75, Ako Adams made a layup and Murphy hit a pair of free throws to tie the game with 3:10 to play. But, the Owls would score just one basket the rest of the game as the Hilltoppers pulled away.
The Stats
Rice connected on 46.4% from the field and 45.2% from three. St. Edward's shot 43.2% from the floor and 38.7% from three. Rice outrebounded the Hilltoppers, 38-36, but SEU scored 18 points off 18 Rice turnovers.
What Scott Pera Had to Say
"You have to give all the credit to St. Edward's. They are a very well-coached team. They played better and deserved to win. We made a good run, taking a nine-point lead. But, to their credit, they kept coming. They made plays when they had to, they made shots when they had to and got offensive rebounds when they had to. We played well in spurts. We looked good at times. But, this is what exhibitions are for. Here is what I know about our guys. They are going to come to work on Saturday. They are going to take the coaching and the teaching the way they need to take it. They'll have a good approach and they'll have the wherewithal to try to get better so that this doesn't happen on Tuesday night when they start keeping wins and losses."
Notes
• This was Rice's first exhibition loss since 2000, snapping an 11-game winning streak in exhibition games.
• Rice faced St. Edward's for the sixth straight year. However, the previous five meetings all came in the regular season.
• 11 players saw action for the Owls with nine playing at least 10 minutes.
• Rice shot 46.4% from the field and 45.2% from three.
• Rice also connected on 77.3% from the free throw line.
• Trey Murphy III led the Owls with 21 points, eight rebounds and three blocks while connecting on 6-of-10 from three.
• Robert Martin scored 20 points and connected on 4-of-5 from three.
Next Up
Rice begins the 2019-20 regular season next Tuesday, Nov. 5, when it travels to Fayetteville, Ark., to face former Southwest Conference foe Arkansas. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be livestreamed by SEC Network+.
The Story
Rice came out of the gate strong, jumping out to an 18-8 lead. St. Edward's went on a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to three, but the Owls went on a 7-3 run to push their lead back to 27-20. However, seven straight SEU points tied the game at 27 with 7:20 to play in the half. After the teams traded baskets over the next two minutes, Trey Murphy III hit a three to give Rice a 35-32 lead. But, back-to-back Hilltopper three-pointers gave them their first lead of the game, 38-35, with 4:08 left. Rice came right back, getting threes from Murphy and Tommy McCarthy. But, Rice went scoreless in the final 2:44 and St. Edward's scored the final four points to take a 42-41 lead into halftime. Rice came out firing in the second half. Murphy hit three straight threes as Rice started the half on a 12-2 run. But, SEU began to chip away, trading three-pointers for twos to pull within five. After Rice pushed the lead to seven, the Owls missed seven of its next eight shots while committing four turnovers as the Hilltoppers went on a 14-2 run to take a 68-63 lead with 9:24 remaining. The teams went back-and-forth over the next six minutes. With St. Edward's leading 79-75, Ako Adams made a layup and Murphy hit a pair of free throws to tie the game with 3:10 to play. But, the Owls would score just one basket the rest of the game as the Hilltoppers pulled away.
The Stats
Rice connected on 46.4% from the field and 45.2% from three. St. Edward's shot 43.2% from the floor and 38.7% from three. Rice outrebounded the Hilltoppers, 38-36, but SEU scored 18 points off 18 Rice turnovers.
What Scott Pera Had to Say
"You have to give all the credit to St. Edward's. They are a very well-coached team. They played better and deserved to win. We made a good run, taking a nine-point lead. But, to their credit, they kept coming. They made plays when they had to, they made shots when they had to and got offensive rebounds when they had to. We played well in spurts. We looked good at times. But, this is what exhibitions are for. Here is what I know about our guys. They are going to come to work on Saturday. They are going to take the coaching and the teaching the way they need to take it. They'll have a good approach and they'll have the wherewithal to try to get better so that this doesn't happen on Tuesday night when they start keeping wins and losses."
Notes
• This was Rice's first exhibition loss since 2000, snapping an 11-game winning streak in exhibition games.
• Rice faced St. Edward's for the sixth straight year. However, the previous five meetings all came in the regular season.
• 11 players saw action for the Owls with nine playing at least 10 minutes.
• Rice shot 46.4% from the field and 45.2% from three.
• Rice also connected on 77.3% from the free throw line.
• Trey Murphy III led the Owls with 21 points, eight rebounds and three blocks while connecting on 6-of-10 from three.
• Robert Martin scored 20 points and connected on 4-of-5 from three.
Next Up
Rice begins the 2019-20 regular season next Tuesday, Nov. 5, when it travels to Fayetteville, Ark., to face former Southwest Conference foe Arkansas. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be livestreamed by SEC Network+.
Team Stats
SE
Rice
FG%
.432
.464
3FG%
.387
.452
FT%
.867
.773
RB
36
38
TO
7
18
STL
12
2
Game Leaders
Pts
21
FGM
6
3FGM
6
FTM
3
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
G
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