Saturday, February 5
El Paso, TX
2:00 P.M. CT
Rice University
-79,26 CUSA
72
at
69
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UTEP
-138,56 CUSA
1
2
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4
F
Rice
18
14
19
21
72
UTEP
14
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19
69
Photo by: Ruben R. Ramirez
Owls Win Nail-Biter at UTEP
2/5/2022 5:33:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Fisher scores season-high 20 points
EL PASO, Texas – The Rice Owls women's basketball team secured their first Conference USA road victory of the season on Saturday afternoon, defeating the UTEP Miners 72-69 in a seesaw battle that went down to the final seconds.
Rice (7-9, 2-6) received a season and career-high 20 points from freshman forward Malia Fisher, who made 7-of-14 shots from the field and a perfect 6-of-6 at the free throw line. Fisher was one of four Owls who scored in double figures, along with redshirt freshman Maya Bokunewicz (15 points), sophomore Destiny Jackson (14 points), and sophomore Ashlee Austin (13 points).
Bokunewicz set a career-high with five made three-pointers, two shy off the Rice single-game record as Rice shot 41 percent (7-of-17) from beyond the arc. Junior guard Haylee Swayze also came close to double figures with eight points and hit two massive three-pointers late in the contest.
The Owls outshot UTEP (13-8, 5-6) from the field, 49%-39%, and shot 17-of-21 (81%) from the charity stripe.
Rice led for 30 minutes in a game that saw 10 lead changes and 10 ties.
Postgame Reaction - Head Coach Lindsay Edmonds
"What a total team effort and team win! I'm so proud of how hard this team continues to compete and fight. We had a great balanced attack with four starters scoring in double digits and Haylee coming up huge with two late-game three-pointers. I thought we had some really big plays on both ends of the floor and I'm just so happy to see these young ladies rewarded for their efforts!"
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
The Owls got out to a quick start by outscoring the Miners 18-14 in the opening quarter behind a stellar beginning from Fisher, who scored eight points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 at the free throw line. Bokunewicz added the Owls' first three-pointer of the day and the Owls shot 58 percent from the floor.
Second Quarter
Neither team was able to gain much separation in a period won by UTEP 16-14, but the Owls managed to take a 32-30 halftime lead thanks to a last-second layup from Jackson. Bokunewicz and Fisher each scored six points in the quarter and the Owls shot 54 percent from the field but committed seven turnovers.
Third Quarter
The Miners took a 44-41 lead with 2:49 left in the quarter but the Owls got a momentum-killing old-fashioned three-point play from Austin in the closing seconds that gave Rice a 51-50 edge heading to the fourth. Austin led all players with seven points in the quarter, followed by six more from Bokunewicz on her fourth and fifth made three-pointers on the day.
Fourth Quarter
UTEP pulled even at 64-64 with 1:59 remaining but as was the case all game long, the Owls had an answer. Austin found Swayze open for the biggest shot of the game, a go-ahead three-pointer with 1:39 left. Jackson then took a charge and made a pair of free throws after drawing a foul to extend the lead to 69-64. The Miners were able to get as close as 69-67 after a made three-pointer with under a minute remaining but Jackson hit three clutch free throws in the final seconds.
UP NEXT
The Owls continue their road swing on Thursday, Feb. 17 when they travel to Denton to face the North Texas Mean Green at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
Rice (7-9, 2-6) received a season and career-high 20 points from freshman forward Malia Fisher, who made 7-of-14 shots from the field and a perfect 6-of-6 at the free throw line. Fisher was one of four Owls who scored in double figures, along with redshirt freshman Maya Bokunewicz (15 points), sophomore Destiny Jackson (14 points), and sophomore Ashlee Austin (13 points).
Bokunewicz set a career-high with five made three-pointers, two shy off the Rice single-game record as Rice shot 41 percent (7-of-17) from beyond the arc. Junior guard Haylee Swayze also came close to double figures with eight points and hit two massive three-pointers late in the contest.
The Owls outshot UTEP (13-8, 5-6) from the field, 49%-39%, and shot 17-of-21 (81%) from the charity stripe.
Rice led for 30 minutes in a game that saw 10 lead changes and 10 ties.
"What a total team effort and team win! I'm so proud of how hard this team continues to compete and fight. We had a great balanced attack with four starters scoring in double digits and Haylee coming up huge with two late-game three-pointers. I thought we had some really big plays on both ends of the floor and I'm just so happy to see these young ladies rewarded for their efforts!"
First Quarter
The Owls got out to a quick start by outscoring the Miners 18-14 in the opening quarter behind a stellar beginning from Fisher, who scored eight points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 at the free throw line. Bokunewicz added the Owls' first three-pointer of the day and the Owls shot 58 percent from the floor.
Second Quarter
Neither team was able to gain much separation in a period won by UTEP 16-14, but the Owls managed to take a 32-30 halftime lead thanks to a last-second layup from Jackson. Bokunewicz and Fisher each scored six points in the quarter and the Owls shot 54 percent from the field but committed seven turnovers.
Third Quarter
The Miners took a 44-41 lead with 2:49 left in the quarter but the Owls got a momentum-killing old-fashioned three-point play from Austin in the closing seconds that gave Rice a 51-50 edge heading to the fourth. Austin led all players with seven points in the quarter, followed by six more from Bokunewicz on her fourth and fifth made three-pointers on the day.
Fourth Quarter
UTEP pulled even at 64-64 with 1:59 remaining but as was the case all game long, the Owls had an answer. Austin found Swayze open for the biggest shot of the game, a go-ahead three-pointer with 1:39 left. Jackson then took a charge and made a pair of free throws after drawing a foul to extend the lead to 69-64. The Miners were able to get as close as 69-67 after a made three-pointer with under a minute remaining but Jackson hit three clutch free throws in the final seconds.
The Owls continue their road swing on Thursday, Feb. 17 when they travel to Denton to face the North Texas Mean Green at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
-RiceOwls.com-
Team Stats
Rice
UTEP
FG%
.490
.393
3FG%
.412
.269
FT%
.810
.824
RB
29
36
TO
20
16
STL
7
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
14
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
8
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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