Friday, January 29
Houston, TX
2 p.m.
Rice University
-107,45 CUSA
74
vs
79
North Texas
-85,41 CUSA
1
2
F
North Texas
36
43
79
Rice
37
37
74
Photo by: Maria Lysaker
Turnovers Send Rice to 79-74 Defeat versus North Texas
1/29/2021 5:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HOUSTON — North Texas scored 23 points off 18 Rice turnovers as the Owls fell in the first game of a home-and-home series, 79-74, Friday afternoon at Tudor Fieldhouse.
The Story
The teams went back-and-forth through the first five minutes. Travis Evee hit a three to tie the game at 11, but a Javion Hamlet jumper gave UNT the lead. Jake Lieppert then hit two straight three-pointers as Rice scored eight straight. North Texas scored six of the next seven points, but an Evee three followed by a Quincy Olivari jumper and Cameron Sheffield free throw gave Rice its largest lead of the game, 26-19, with 9:01 to play in the half. The Mean Green scored eight of the next nine points to pull within one. The teams traded baskets before a layup by Thomas Bell and a James Reese three-pointer gave UNT a 36-35 lead. But a jumper by Evee sent Rice into halftime with a 37-36 lead.
Riley Abercrombie got things going for Rice with a jumper to start the second half. But the Mean Green answered with eight straight points to take a 44-39 lead. After trading three-pointers, Max Fiedler connected on a pair of free throws, but Javion Hamlet answered with a three-point play. Mylyjael Poteat then hit a pair from the charity stripe, but a Mardrez McBride three gave North Texas its largest lead of the game, 53-46, just over seven minutes into the second half. The Owls then went on a 7-0 run, capped off by a Payton Moore steal and layup, to tie the game at 53. However, UNT scored seven of the next eight points to push its lead back to six points. Sheffield hit his second three of the game and North Texas answered with a basket. Rice scored six of nine points before Rice cut the deficit to two. Zachary Simmons made a pair of free throws, but Olivari was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws to pull Rice within 69-68 with 3:27 to play. But over the next three minutes, Rice missed its next three shots and turned the ball over once as North Texas extended its lead to seven. Rice would get as close as three points the rest of the way.
The Stats
Rice connected on 52.2% from the field, 47.4% from three and 70.8% from the foul line. North Texas connected on 50.0% from the floor, 33.3% from three and 82.7% from the charity stripe. Rice was outrebounded, 31-to-26.
What Scott Pera Had to Say
"We just turned the ball over too much. We missed some free throws and we turned the ball over. (North Texas) made their free throws. 82.0% for them; 70.0% for us. In a tight, one possession game, sometimes that can be the difference. They played just a little better. I thought our guys battled. I thought our approach was terrific. We just couldn't get over the hump. We couldn't make the plays that we had to to win the game."
Notes
• Rice dropped to 10-7 on the year and 4-5 in Conference USA.
• The Owls fell to 8-18 against North Texas and 6-6 in Houston.
• Rice connected on 52.2% from the field, the fifth time this year it connected on at least 50.0% of its shots.
• Rice connected on a season-high 47.4% from three.
• Travis Evee led the Owls with 21 points, his fifth 20-point game of the year.
• Max Fiedler recorded 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
• Riley Abercrombie scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds.
• Quincy Olivari grabbed six rebounds
• Payton Moore tied a career-high with four assists.
Next Up
Rice looks to split the series with North Texas when it travels to Denton this Sunday, Jan. 31, for a 3 p.m. game that will be livestreamed at ESPN+.
The Story
The teams went back-and-forth through the first five minutes. Travis Evee hit a three to tie the game at 11, but a Javion Hamlet jumper gave UNT the lead. Jake Lieppert then hit two straight three-pointers as Rice scored eight straight. North Texas scored six of the next seven points, but an Evee three followed by a Quincy Olivari jumper and Cameron Sheffield free throw gave Rice its largest lead of the game, 26-19, with 9:01 to play in the half. The Mean Green scored eight of the next nine points to pull within one. The teams traded baskets before a layup by Thomas Bell and a James Reese three-pointer gave UNT a 36-35 lead. But a jumper by Evee sent Rice into halftime with a 37-36 lead.
Riley Abercrombie got things going for Rice with a jumper to start the second half. But the Mean Green answered with eight straight points to take a 44-39 lead. After trading three-pointers, Max Fiedler connected on a pair of free throws, but Javion Hamlet answered with a three-point play. Mylyjael Poteat then hit a pair from the charity stripe, but a Mardrez McBride three gave North Texas its largest lead of the game, 53-46, just over seven minutes into the second half. The Owls then went on a 7-0 run, capped off by a Payton Moore steal and layup, to tie the game at 53. However, UNT scored seven of the next eight points to push its lead back to six points. Sheffield hit his second three of the game and North Texas answered with a basket. Rice scored six of nine points before Rice cut the deficit to two. Zachary Simmons made a pair of free throws, but Olivari was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws to pull Rice within 69-68 with 3:27 to play. But over the next three minutes, Rice missed its next three shots and turned the ball over once as North Texas extended its lead to seven. Rice would get as close as three points the rest of the way.
The Stats
Rice connected on 52.2% from the field, 47.4% from three and 70.8% from the foul line. North Texas connected on 50.0% from the floor, 33.3% from three and 82.7% from the charity stripe. Rice was outrebounded, 31-to-26.
What Scott Pera Had to Say
"We just turned the ball over too much. We missed some free throws and we turned the ball over. (North Texas) made their free throws. 82.0% for them; 70.0% for us. In a tight, one possession game, sometimes that can be the difference. They played just a little better. I thought our guys battled. I thought our approach was terrific. We just couldn't get over the hump. We couldn't make the plays that we had to to win the game."
Notes
• Rice dropped to 10-7 on the year and 4-5 in Conference USA.
• The Owls fell to 8-18 against North Texas and 6-6 in Houston.
• Rice connected on 52.2% from the field, the fifth time this year it connected on at least 50.0% of its shots.
• Rice connected on a season-high 47.4% from three.
• Travis Evee led the Owls with 21 points, his fifth 20-point game of the year.
• Max Fiedler recorded 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
• Riley Abercrombie scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds.
• Quincy Olivari grabbed six rebounds
• Payton Moore tied a career-high with four assists.
Next Up
Rice looks to split the series with North Texas when it travels to Denton this Sunday, Jan. 31, for a 3 p.m. game that will be livestreamed at ESPN+.
Team Stats
UNT
RICE
FG%
.500
.522
3FG%
.333
.474
FT%
.824
.708
RB
31
26
TO
15
18
STL
9
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
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/ Men's BasketballG
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/ Men's Basketball
G/F
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