Men’s Basketball Opens C-USA Tournament against Charlotte

HOUSTON — The West fifth-seed Rice men's basketball team begins the Heritage Landscape Supply Group Conference USA Tournament this Wednesday, Mar. 9, against East fourth-seed Charlotte. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT and will be streamed by ESPN+.

Game 31
What: Rice vs. Charlotte
When: Wednesday, March 9 at 5:30 p.m. CT
Where: Frisco, Texas
Arena: Ford Center at the Star
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: RiceOwls.com
Live Stats: RiceOwls.com
Series Information: Rice leads 8-6 (Charlotte leads 1-0 on neutral courts)

Scouting Rice
• Rice enters the Conference USA Tournament with a 15-15 record. The Owls dropped their regular season finale at UTSA, 82-71.
• Guard Carl Pierre leads the team and is seventh in C-USA with 15.4 points per game while pulling down 4.6 rebounds per game. He leads C-USA in three-point field goal percentage (42.1%), is second in three-pointers made per game (3.1), and seventh in field goal percentage (46.8%).
• Guard Travis Evee is second on the team with 14.1 points per game while adding 3.1 rebounds per game and 2.9 assists per game. Evee is third in the league in three-pointers made per game (2.8) and fifth in three-point field goal percentage (39.0%) while connecting on 44.0% from the field.
• Forward Max Fiedler is averaging 10.1 points per game and is third in the conference with 7.9 rebounds per game. He leads the team in field goal percentage, connecting on 58.6% from the field. He's also tied for third in the conference with nine double-doubles and is 10th in assists per game (3.6).
• Guard Chris Mullins is scoring 8.4 points per game while placing third on the team with 2.3 assists per game and forward Mylyjael Poteat is averaging 7.5 points and 3.9 rebounds while connecting on 60.2% from the floor.
• Rice is averaging 75.3 points per game while allowing 74.2.
• The Owls are connecting on 45.9% from the field and lead the conference in three-point field goal percentage (38.0%). They are allowing 45.2% from the floor and 34.2% from beyond the arc.
• Rice is outrebounding the opposition, 35.7-to-34.1.
• Rice leads the league in assists with 16.4 while placing second in three-pointers per game with 9.6.
• Head coach Scott Pera is in his fifth season leading the Rice men's basketball program. He holds a record of 65-88.

Scouting Charlotte
• Charlotte enters the Conference USA Tournament with a 17-13 record. The 49ers closed the regular season with a 70-67 victory at Southern Miss.
• Guard Jahmir Young is second in C-USA with 19.8 points per game while leading the team with 6.0 rebounds. He's also second in the league in free throw percentage (89.1%), fifth in field goal percentage (47.7%), and ninth in assists (3.7).
• Guard Austin Butler is second on the team with 12.5 points per game and 5.8 rebounds.
• Guard Clyde Trapp is third on the team with 8.9 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game and guard Robert Braswell is averaging 8.3 points and leads the squad in three-point field goal percentage (41.1%).
• Charlotte is averaging 70.3 points per game while allowing 71.2.
• The 49ers are connecting on 46.5% from the field, which is third in the league and 34.9% from three. They are allowing 45.9% from the floor but 36.6% from beyond the arc.
• Charlotte is being outrebounded 32.4-to-30.9 while leading the league in free throw percentage, connecting on 79.2% from the charity stripe.
• Head coach Ron Sanchez is in his fourth season at the helm of the Charlotte men's basketball program where he owns a 50-63 record.

Rice-Charlotte Series History
• Rice and Charlotte will meet for the second time this year and the 15th time overall.
• Rice holds an 8-6 advantage in the series, including a 4-3 record in Houston.
• The Owls have won six of the last eight meetings dating back to 2017.
• This is the second meeting between the teams in the Conference USA Tournament. Charlotte won the only other meeting, a 79-69 decision in the 2016 first round.
• The 49ers won the only meeting in the regular season this year, 67-64, on Jan. 22 in Houston.

Rice in the Conference USA Tournament
• Rice owns an all-time record of 8-15 in the C-USA Tournament since joining Conference USA prior to the 2005-06 season.
• The Owls made their only semifinals appearance in 2007.
• Rice will enter the tournament as the West Division fifth seed.

Next Up
• With a victory, Rice will face West Division top-seed North Texas in the quarterfinals of the Heritage Landscape Supply Group Conference USA Tournament tomorrow, Mar. 10. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. and the game will be televised by Stadium.

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