Wednesday, November 16
Moraga, CA
10:00 P.M. CT
Rice University
-30,00 CUSA
77
at
64
Saint Mary's
2-1,0-0WCC
1
2
3
4
F
Rice
20
14
20
23
77
Saint Mary's (CA)
11
13
22
18
64
Photo by: Roger Steinman Photos
Balanced Attack Keys Owls Win Over St. Mary’s
11/17/2022 12:53:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Rice 77, St. Mary's 64
MORAGA, CA –Rice used a balanced offensive attack and a suffocating effort on the boards to down St. Mary's 77-64 at UCU Pavillion on Wednesday night.
Ashlee Austin led the way for the Owls with 13 points, while fellow starters Katelyn Crosthwait had 11 and Destiny Jackson 10 while Shelby Hayes (12) and Jazzy Owens-Barnett (10) led a 29-point night for the Owls' bench. Jackson grabbed eight rebounds, one of five Owls to collect at least five as Rice out-rebounded the host Gaels 46-24. Five of Jackson's rebounds came on the offensive end of the court as Rice held a 19-4 advantage in offensive rebounds and a 21-0 edge in second-chance points.
St. Mary's came into the game hitting 39% from three-point range, but Rice built a 10-point lead at the half by holding the Gaels to 1-14 shooting from beyond the arc. When they found their shooting touch in the third quarter and sliced the lead to five points twice late in the third, the resilient Owls responded to rebuild the lead to eight by the end of the third.
The 13-point margin of victory was the largest on the road for Rice since a 20-point win at Marshall on 2/20/21
Postgame Reaction - Head Coach Lindsay Edmonds
"First road trip of the season, and first road win of the season. I'm really proud of this group. We had a really balanced attack tonight (and) had five scoring in double figures and I just thought we came out and figured out a way to battle through adversity. Things didn't always go our way, but we stuck together, and we threw back punches and we figured out a way to get a win on the road against a very good ST Mary's team, so I'm really proud of this young group."
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
After the Gaels took an early 6-4 lead, Rice outscored them 16-5 over the six minutes, holding St. Mary's to 0-8 three-point shooting. Shelby Hayes came off the bench to score eight points while Destiny Jackson grabbed three rebounds and handed out three assists.
Second Quarter
Rice extended the lead to 17 points before St. Mary's whittled it down to 10 with a 7-0 lead while holding the Owls scoreless for four minutes. Crosthwait nailed a three-pointer with 1:39 left to end the drought and the Owls went to the locker room with a 10-point lead (34-24).
Third Quarter
The Gaels found their long-distance shooting touch in the third, but a buzzer-beating layup by Destiny Jackson gave Rice a 54-46 lead at the end of the quarter. After the teams traded early baskets, a pair of Jazzy Owens-Barnett jumpers pushed the lead back to 14 before a St Mary's 7-0 run cut the advantage in half as the Gaels began to heat up three-point territory led by Taycee Wedin, who hit three in the quarter. St. Mary's twice closed to within five but Jackson's late score gave the Owls a chance to rebuild their advantage to eight.
Fourth Quarter
Kennedy Clifton three-pointer to open the final stanza highlighted an 8-0 run that moved the Owls back to a double-digit lead. A pair of Hayes layups moved the Owls out to a 67-52 lead with 5:30 left and the Gaels could never move closer than 11 points over the final quarter.
UP NEXT
Rice (3-0) wraps up its two-game trip to California on Friday when they face Pacific (2-1) at 5 p.m.
Ashlee Austin led the way for the Owls with 13 points, while fellow starters Katelyn Crosthwait had 11 and Destiny Jackson 10 while Shelby Hayes (12) and Jazzy Owens-Barnett (10) led a 29-point night for the Owls' bench. Jackson grabbed eight rebounds, one of five Owls to collect at least five as Rice out-rebounded the host Gaels 46-24. Five of Jackson's rebounds came on the offensive end of the court as Rice held a 19-4 advantage in offensive rebounds and a 21-0 edge in second-chance points.
St. Mary's came into the game hitting 39% from three-point range, but Rice built a 10-point lead at the half by holding the Gaels to 1-14 shooting from beyond the arc. When they found their shooting touch in the third quarter and sliced the lead to five points twice late in the third, the resilient Owls responded to rebuild the lead to eight by the end of the third.
The 13-point margin of victory was the largest on the road for Rice since a 20-point win at Marshall on 2/20/21
"First road trip of the season, and first road win of the season. I'm really proud of this group. We had a really balanced attack tonight (and) had five scoring in double figures and I just thought we came out and figured out a way to battle through adversity. Things didn't always go our way, but we stuck together, and we threw back punches and we figured out a way to get a win on the road against a very good ST Mary's team, so I'm really proud of this young group."
First Quarter
After the Gaels took an early 6-4 lead, Rice outscored them 16-5 over the six minutes, holding St. Mary's to 0-8 three-point shooting. Shelby Hayes came off the bench to score eight points while Destiny Jackson grabbed three rebounds and handed out three assists.
Second Quarter
Rice extended the lead to 17 points before St. Mary's whittled it down to 10 with a 7-0 lead while holding the Owls scoreless for four minutes. Crosthwait nailed a three-pointer with 1:39 left to end the drought and the Owls went to the locker room with a 10-point lead (34-24).
Third Quarter
The Gaels found their long-distance shooting touch in the third, but a buzzer-beating layup by Destiny Jackson gave Rice a 54-46 lead at the end of the quarter. After the teams traded early baskets, a pair of Jazzy Owens-Barnett jumpers pushed the lead back to 14 before a St Mary's 7-0 run cut the advantage in half as the Gaels began to heat up three-point territory led by Taycee Wedin, who hit three in the quarter. St. Mary's twice closed to within five but Jackson's late score gave the Owls a chance to rebuild their advantage to eight.
Fourth Quarter
Kennedy Clifton three-pointer to open the final stanza highlighted an 8-0 run that moved the Owls back to a double-digit lead. A pair of Hayes layups moved the Owls out to a 67-52 lead with 5:30 left and the Gaels could never move closer than 11 points over the final quarter.
Rice (3-0) wraps up its two-game trip to California on Friday when they face Pacific (2-1) at 5 p.m.
Team Stats
Rice
SMC
FG%
.419
.431
3FG%
.263
.250
FT%
.769
.737
RB
46
24
TO
12
13
STL
4
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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