Ogwumike, Langley Sweep C-USA’s Top Honors
3/13/2019 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Ogwumike earns program’s first Player of Year award
DALLAS – The Rice Owls women's basketball program earned two of the league's top individual honors on Wednesday as Erica Ogwumike was named the Conference USA Player of the Year and Tina Langley was selected the Conference USA Coach of the Year, the league office announced.
Ogwumike becomes the first player in program history to be named Player of the Year while Langley is the second coach in Rice history to win Coach of the Year honors and the first in the C-USA era. Cristy McKinney was the WAC Coach of the Year following the 2004-05 season.
Ogwumike backed up her C-USA Preseason Player of the Year accolades by becoming the only player in C-USA to rank in the top-10 in the league in scoring (6th-15.9), rebounding (1st-10.8) and steals (8th-1.7). Last year's C-USA Newcomer of the Year, Ogwumike leads all C-USA players and ranks 17th in the nation with 16 double-doubles.
The Cypress, Texas native ranks 11th in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (8.0), the second-best average by a guard in the country. Ogwumike was twice named C-USA Player of the Week and played a major role in guiding the Owls to their first-ever C-USA regular season title.
In her fourth season at the helm, Langley has helped guide the Owls to one of the most successful seasons in program history. Rice won their first-ever C-USA regular season title, becoming just the third team in league history to complete a 16-0 record in conference play. The Owls have set a single-season school record with 25 wins and are in the midst of an 18-game win streak, the longest in school history and currently the third-longest in the NCAA. In addition, the Owls entered the AP Top-25 Poll for the first time in program history and are currently ranked No. 24.
The Owls completed just the second undefeated record at home (13-0) in program history and ended the regular season with the longest active road win streak (11) in the nation. Under Langley's tutelage the Owls recorded their third straight 20-win season and have won 70 games over the last three seasons, the greatest stretch in program history.
Under Langley's coaching efforts the Owls placed three players (Ogwumike-1st, Nancy Mulkey-1st, Nicole Iademarco-2nd) on All-Conference Teams. In addition, Mulkey was selected the league's Defensive Player of the Year (and All-Defensive Team) while Lauren Grigsby earned the Sixth Player of the Year.
Ogwumike, Mulkey, and Iademarco will lead the Owls into this week's C-USA Tournament at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas as the No. 1 seed. No. 24 Rice (25-3, 16-0) is set to take on the winner of Wednesday's Southern Miss-North Texas matchup on Thursday at 11 a.m. (CT).
-RiceOwls.com-
Ogwumike becomes the first player in program history to be named Player of the Year while Langley is the second coach in Rice history to win Coach of the Year honors and the first in the C-USA era. Cristy McKinney was the WAC Coach of the Year following the 2004-05 season.
Ogwumike backed up her C-USA Preseason Player of the Year accolades by becoming the only player in C-USA to rank in the top-10 in the league in scoring (6th-15.9), rebounding (1st-10.8) and steals (8th-1.7). Last year's C-USA Newcomer of the Year, Ogwumike leads all C-USA players and ranks 17th in the nation with 16 double-doubles.
The Cypress, Texas native ranks 11th in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (8.0), the second-best average by a guard in the country. Ogwumike was twice named C-USA Player of the Week and played a major role in guiding the Owls to their first-ever C-USA regular season title.
In her fourth season at the helm, Langley has helped guide the Owls to one of the most successful seasons in program history. Rice won their first-ever C-USA regular season title, becoming just the third team in league history to complete a 16-0 record in conference play. The Owls have set a single-season school record with 25 wins and are in the midst of an 18-game win streak, the longest in school history and currently the third-longest in the NCAA. In addition, the Owls entered the AP Top-25 Poll for the first time in program history and are currently ranked No. 24.
The Owls completed just the second undefeated record at home (13-0) in program history and ended the regular season with the longest active road win streak (11) in the nation. Under Langley's tutelage the Owls recorded their third straight 20-win season and have won 70 games over the last three seasons, the greatest stretch in program history.
Under Langley's coaching efforts the Owls placed three players (Ogwumike-1st, Nancy Mulkey-1st, Nicole Iademarco-2nd) on All-Conference Teams. In addition, Mulkey was selected the league's Defensive Player of the Year (and All-Defensive Team) while Lauren Grigsby earned the Sixth Player of the Year.
Ogwumike, Mulkey, and Iademarco will lead the Owls into this week's C-USA Tournament at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas as the No. 1 seed. No. 24 Rice (25-3, 16-0) is set to take on the winner of Wednesday's Southern Miss-North Texas matchup on Thursday at 11 a.m. (CT).
-RiceOwls.com-
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