Friday, January 15
Norfolk, VA
5:30 P.M.
Rice University
77
at
66
Old Dominion
Photo by: Keith Lucas
Owls Pick Up Fifth Straight Win
1/15/2021 9:42:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Defeat ODU 77-66 in first game of series
NORFOLK, Va. – The Rice Owls women's basketball team ran their winning streak to five straight with an impressive 77-66 victory at Old Dominion on Friday evening. Rice (9-1, 5-0) won their 10th straight conference game dating back to last season by placing four players in double-figures and a 61 percent shooting performance from the floor.
Senior center Nancy Mulkey stuffed the box score for the Owls with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds while dishing out a season-high four assists and two block shots. Mulkey finished the evening making 10-of-13 shots from the field in just 26 minutes of action.
Junior guard Jasmine Smith tied her season-high with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field (4-of-5 at the free throw line) while sophomore wing Lauren Schwartz (12 points) and senior guard Sydne Wiggins (10 points) also scored in double-figures for the Owls.
The Owls scored 46 of their points in the paint and reached the 20-assist plateau for the fourth time this season.
ODU (5-4, 2-3) was led in scoring by forward Amari Young, who scored 19 points on 9-of-19 shooting.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
ODU won a tightly contested opening quarter, 20-17, but Mulkey gave the Owls a huge lift to start the game by scoring 10 points in the quarter, including the final four points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting. ODU's Victoria Morris scored seven of her 12 points on the night in the period. The Owls attacked the rim early and often by scoring 14 of their 17 points in the paint.
Second Quarter
After taking back some momentum to end the opening quarter, Rice scored the first seven points of the second period on a Mulkey jumper, Smith three-pointer, and Haylee Swayze three-point play to take a 25-20 lead. ODU eventually tied the game at 33-33 but the Owls ended the half on a 10-2 run over the final 2:49 behind a pair of three-point makes from Smith and Katelyn Crosthwait to take a 43-35 advantage at the break. The Owls shot a sizzling 79 percent (11-of-14) in the quarter.
Third Quarter
Rice maintained a 63-56 lead after 30 minutes of play after Smith scored 10 points in the third quarter alone. The junior guard made three field goals and was 4-of-5 at the charity stripe.
Fourth Quarter
The Owls' defense shined in the final period, holding ODU to just three made field goals on 18 attempts, including a goose egg from beyond the arc (0-for-8). Rice won the final quarter 14-10 with Schwartz scoring seven of those points. The Monarchs had closed to within 66-61 with 5:52 remaining but the Owls put the game away with a 7-0 run.
Up Next
The Owls wrap up their weekend series with the Monarchs tomorrow at 3 p.m. CT on ESPN+. Rice will be back at home Jan. 22-23 when they host UAB.
Senior center Nancy Mulkey stuffed the box score for the Owls with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds while dishing out a season-high four assists and two block shots. Mulkey finished the evening making 10-of-13 shots from the field in just 26 minutes of action.
Junior guard Jasmine Smith tied her season-high with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field (4-of-5 at the free throw line) while sophomore wing Lauren Schwartz (12 points) and senior guard Sydne Wiggins (10 points) also scored in double-figures for the Owls.
The Owls scored 46 of their points in the paint and reached the 20-assist plateau for the fourth time this season.
ODU (5-4, 2-3) was led in scoring by forward Amari Young, who scored 19 points on 9-of-19 shooting.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
ODU won a tightly contested opening quarter, 20-17, but Mulkey gave the Owls a huge lift to start the game by scoring 10 points in the quarter, including the final four points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting. ODU's Victoria Morris scored seven of her 12 points on the night in the period. The Owls attacked the rim early and often by scoring 14 of their 17 points in the paint.
Second Quarter
After taking back some momentum to end the opening quarter, Rice scored the first seven points of the second period on a Mulkey jumper, Smith three-pointer, and Haylee Swayze three-point play to take a 25-20 lead. ODU eventually tied the game at 33-33 but the Owls ended the half on a 10-2 run over the final 2:49 behind a pair of three-point makes from Smith and Katelyn Crosthwait to take a 43-35 advantage at the break. The Owls shot a sizzling 79 percent (11-of-14) in the quarter.
Third Quarter
Rice maintained a 63-56 lead after 30 minutes of play after Smith scored 10 points in the third quarter alone. The junior guard made three field goals and was 4-of-5 at the charity stripe.
Fourth Quarter
The Owls' defense shined in the final period, holding ODU to just three made field goals on 18 attempts, including a goose egg from beyond the arc (0-for-8). Rice won the final quarter 14-10 with Schwartz scoring seven of those points. The Monarchs had closed to within 66-61 with 5:52 remaining but the Owls put the game away with a 7-0 run.
The Owls wrap up their weekend series with the Monarchs tomorrow at 3 p.m. CT on ESPN+. Rice will be back at home Jan. 22-23 when they host UAB.
-RiceOwls.com-
Players Mentioned
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