Preview: Owls Look to Stay Red-Hot; Host FIU/FAU

Rice Owls (20-3, 11-0 C-USA) vs. FIU (4-20, 1-10 C-USA)
Game 24 • Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019 • 7 p.m. (CT)
Houston, Texas • Tudor Fieldhouse
Buy Tickets: RiceOwls.com
Video: beIN Connect (televised on delay on beIN Sports starting at 8:30 p.m./)
Live Stats: Sidearm
Twitter Updates: @RiceWB B | @FIUWBB
Series Record: FIU leads, 5-4
Promotions: Triple Double Ticket Package; Receive two tickets to the final three remaining home games for just $10. Offer expires on Feb. 14. Click here to order.

Rice Owls vs. Florida Atlantic Owls (5-19, 2-9 C-USA)
Game 25 • Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019 • 2 p.m. (CT)
Houston, Texas • Tudor Fieldhouse
Buy Tickets: RiceOwls.com
Video Stream: CUSAtv
Live Stats: Sidearm
Twitter Updates: @RiceWB B | @FAU_WBB
Series Record: Rice leads, 3-2
Promotions: Fight Cancer Night; Be a part of a special event held inside Tudor Fieldhouse where we'll honor and recognize those affected by cancer and celebrate survivors in the Houston community. Click here for four complimentary ticket for survivors.

Owls Look to Keep Making History
Out to their best 23-game start in program history, the Rice Owls women's basketball team returns home this week as one of the nation's hottest teams in the country. Rice faces FIU on Saturday looking to add to their school record winning streak of 13 straight. The 13-game win streak is currently tied for the second-longest active streak in the nation.

Longest Rice Win Streaks             Longest Active NCAA Win Streak
2018-19: 13 straight (current)            1. Oregon - 16
2004-05: 12 straight                           2. Rice/Baylor/Missouri St. - 13
2003-04: 12 straight

Scouting FIU
The Panthers have lost 12 of their last 13 games and are 0-8 on the road this season. FIU is averaging 60.6 points per game while allowing 71.7 and opponents to shoot 38 percent from three-point territory.

Scouting FAU
Florida Atlantic is coming off an 86-70 C-USA victory over the UTSA Roadrunners, snapping a three-game losing streak. Myka Matthews leads the Owls in scoring (10.0 ppg) but FAU is averaging just 57.6 points as a team.

C-USA Dominance
The Owls are 11-0 in Conference USA play and are one of only five teams (Quinnipiac, Baylor, Oregon, Marquette) in the nation with at least an 11-0 record in conference play (as of Tuesday). Rice is winning by a margin of 15.3 points per game during league play and has led start-to-finish in six of the 11 games. A win on Thursday would give the Owls their most C-USA victories in a single-season since joining the conference in 2005. Only Houston (16-0; 2010-11) and UTEP (16-0; 2007-08) have completed perfect C-USA seasons in league history.

Doing it with Defense
Rice ranks 13th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 55.1 points per game on 36 percent shooting (36th in the nation). During league play the Owls have stepped up their defense even more, surrendering a league-low 49.3 points per game on 33 percent shooting. The Owls have held 13 straight opponents below 70 points and 16 straight opponents below 45 percent shooting.

20-20-20
The Owls have reached the 20-win plateau for a third straight season under head coach Tina Langley, marking just the second time in school history that Rice has reached 20 or more wins in three consecutive seasons. Rice has compiled 65 wins (22, 23, 20) over the last three seasons, the greatest stretch in program history. The Owls last accomplished the feat of three straight 20-win seasons from 1997-00.

Last Time Out
The Owls established a single-season program record by winning their 13th consecutive game, defeating Marshall 79-67 last Saturday at the Cam Henderson Center. Rice reached the 20-win milestone faster than any Owls team in program history and surpassed the 12-game win streaks accomplished by the 2003-04 and 2004-05 teams. The Owls' offense was at its best at Marshall, establishing a single-game school record by shooting 68.1 percent (32-of-47) from the field, the fifth-best shooting performance in the NCAA this season and the second-best shooting performance in C-USA history. Rice had four players score in double-figures, led by redshirt sophomore Nancy Mulkey's career-high 25 points on 12-of-14 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and five blocks in 34 minutes.

National Recognition
For a third straight week the Owls earned votes (6) in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, released on Monday. In addition, Rice has moved up to No. 31 in the latest RPI Rankings.

Ogwumike Co-C-USA Player of the Week
Rice junior guard Erica Ogwumike was selected the Conference USA Co-Player of the Week after helping lead the first place Owls to a pair of critical road victories last weekend, the conference office announced on Monday. Ogwumike, from Cypress, Texas, averaged 21.5 points on 59 percent shooting to go along with 11.5 rebounds for the week. In Rice's 68-46 win at WKU, Ogwumike scored a game-high 22 points to go along with 13 rebounds, helping the Owls earn their first-ever win at E.A. Diddle Arena. The C-USA Preseason Player of the Year recorded another double-double (13th of season) in Saturday's victory at Marshall, scoring 21 points and snagging 10 rebounds.

Home Sweet Home
Rice has started the season 10-0 at Tudor Fieldhouse and has a 23-1 record on their home floor over the last 1.5 seasons. Their 12-game home win streak dating back to last season is tied for the 13th-longest in the nation and tops in C-USA. Over the last three years under head coach Tina Langley, the Owls have a 37-6 record at Tudor Fieldhouse, which includes 16 straight wins over non-conference opponents.

Road Warriors
After starting the season 0-2 on the road, the Owls have reeled off nine consecutive true road victories away from Tudor Fieldhouse, which trails only Drexel (12) for the longest active road win streak in the country.

Wiggins Finding Her Groove
Rice sophomore guard Sydne Wiggins is coming off a career-high 15-point performance in the Owls win at Marshall last Saturday and has become one of the best long distance shooters in the league. The Powder Springs, Ga. native has the best three-point percentage (.533) during C-USA play, making 16-of-30 attempts from deep, including 11 of her last 20.

Up Next
The Owls play just one contest next week, a trip to Denton to face the North Texas Mean Green on Saturday, Feb. 23 at 3 p.m. on ESPN+.

-RiceOwls.com-

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