Saturday, March 6
Houston, TX
4 P.M.
Rice University
-163,122 CUSA
66
vs
75
North Texas
-136,104 CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
North Texas
16
22
15
22
75
Rice
9
13
21
23
66
Photo by: Rick Yeatts
North Texas Defeats Owls in Regular Season Finale
3/6/2021 7:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Owls will be No. 1 seed at C-USA Championships
HOUSTON – A valiant comeback effort by the Rice Owls women's basketball team came up just short in a 75-66 setback to the North Texas Mean Green on Saturday afternoon at Tudor Fieldhouse in the regular season finale.
Rice (16-3, 12-2) will still enter next week's Conference USA Championships in Frisco at the No. 1 overall seed and will face the winner of No. 4 FIU/No. 5 Southern Miss on Thursday at 11 a.m. on the Stadium network.
The Owls nearly erased a deficit a 17-point second quarter deficit, climbing to within four points on three separate occasions in the fourth quarter but North Texas (13-6, 10-4) ultimately held on to snap Rice's 20-game home winning streak.
Three Owls scored in double-figures in the loss, led by Jasmine Smith's team-high 18 points. The junior point guard scored 16 of those points in the second half and also contributed six rebounds and four assists. Senior center Nancy Mulkey (12 points) also scored in double-digits as did Lauren Schwartz (12 points).
North Texas was led in scoring by Quincy Noble, who contributed a game-high 27 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field and a 8-of-9 performance at the free throw line.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
The Mean Green outscored Rice 16-9 in the opening period, which ended on a 6-0 run and a layup by Noble to beat the quarter horn. Haylee Swayze scored four points off the bench for the Owls but as a team Rice made just 4-of-17 shots from the field.
Second Quarter
North Texas carried their momentum into the second quarter where they outscored the Owls 22-13 to take a 38-22 halftime lead. Schwartz scored five points in the quarter for the Owls but Rice found a lid on the basket for most of the period.
Third Quarter
Rice came out of the locker room on fire by going on a 14-2 run in less than four minutes to pull to within 40-36 with 6:22 remaining after a three-pointer by Smith. During that stretch, Mulkey scored six straight points to start the quarter and Smith followed with a personal 8-0 run of her own. However, the Mean Green answered back with a 12-2 run of their own to take back control and ultimately led 53-43 entering the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter
Smith poured in eight more points in the final period and a Katelyn Crosthwait made three-pointer with 1:59 left brought the Owls to within 66-62. North Texas though outscored Rice 9-4 the rest of the way to prevail for the victory.
Up Next
The Owls head to Frisco next week looking to win the automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament when they take part in the C-USA Championships, which will be held in Frisco, Texas.
Rice (16-3, 12-2) will still enter next week's Conference USA Championships in Frisco at the No. 1 overall seed and will face the winner of No. 4 FIU/No. 5 Southern Miss on Thursday at 11 a.m. on the Stadium network.
The Owls nearly erased a deficit a 17-point second quarter deficit, climbing to within four points on three separate occasions in the fourth quarter but North Texas (13-6, 10-4) ultimately held on to snap Rice's 20-game home winning streak.
Three Owls scored in double-figures in the loss, led by Jasmine Smith's team-high 18 points. The junior point guard scored 16 of those points in the second half and also contributed six rebounds and four assists. Senior center Nancy Mulkey (12 points) also scored in double-digits as did Lauren Schwartz (12 points).
North Texas was led in scoring by Quincy Noble, who contributed a game-high 27 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field and a 8-of-9 performance at the free throw line.
First Quarter
The Mean Green outscored Rice 16-9 in the opening period, which ended on a 6-0 run and a layup by Noble to beat the quarter horn. Haylee Swayze scored four points off the bench for the Owls but as a team Rice made just 4-of-17 shots from the field.
Second Quarter
North Texas carried their momentum into the second quarter where they outscored the Owls 22-13 to take a 38-22 halftime lead. Schwartz scored five points in the quarter for the Owls but Rice found a lid on the basket for most of the period.
Third Quarter
Rice came out of the locker room on fire by going on a 14-2 run in less than four minutes to pull to within 40-36 with 6:22 remaining after a three-pointer by Smith. During that stretch, Mulkey scored six straight points to start the quarter and Smith followed with a personal 8-0 run of her own. However, the Mean Green answered back with a 12-2 run of their own to take back control and ultimately led 53-43 entering the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter
Smith poured in eight more points in the final period and a Katelyn Crosthwait made three-pointer with 1:59 left brought the Owls to within 66-62. North Texas though outscored Rice 9-4 the rest of the way to prevail for the victory.
The Owls head to Frisco next week looking to win the automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament when they take part in the C-USA Championships, which will be held in Frisco, Texas.
-RiceOwls.com-
Team Stats
UNT
RICE
FG%
.441
.375
3FG%
.533
.200
FT%
.882
.813
RB
40
36
TO
16
16
STL
11
7
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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Wednesday, March 09