Men’s Basketball Begins Final Road Trip at Wichita State

HOUSTON — Rice begins its final road trip of the regular season this Saturday, March 2, when it travels to Wichita, Kan., to face Wichita State. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed by ESPN+.

Game 29
What: Rice (11-17, 5-10) at Wichita State (12-17, 4-12)
When: Saturday, March 2 at 6 p.m. CT
Where: Wichita, Kan.
Stadium: Charles Koch Arena (10,506)
Stream: ESPN+
Listen: RiceOwls.com
Live Stats: RiceOwls.com
Series Information: Series tied 1-1 (Wichita State leads 1-0 in Wichita)

Scouting Rice
• Rice enters Saturday night's game with an 11-17 record and 5-10 in the American Athletic Conference. The Owls are looking to get back into the win column after having their two-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday by Temple.
• Rice is led by fifth-year senior guard Travis Evee, who is scoring 16.1 points per game, good for seventh in the American. He's adding 3.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.1 steals while connecting on 2.2 three-pointers per game, tied for sixth in the league.
• Sophomore guard Mekhi Mason is second on the team with 13.9 points and 2.8 assists while placing third with 4.0 rebounds. In conference play, he is averaging 15.1 points per game and is fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.411).
• Fifth-year senior forward Max Fiedler is averaging 9.3 points while leading the league with 3.9 offensive rebounds, which is also seventh in the nation. He's second in the league in rebounds (9.4) and field goal percentage (.661), third in assists (5.2), and sixth with seven double-doubles.
• Senior guard Alem Huseinovic is recording 7.9 points per game and is connecting on 44.4% from the field and 41.0% from three, good for fifth in the AAC.
• Forward Keanu Dawes is scoring 6.9 points and is second on the team with 4.3 rebounds and graduate student guard Anthony Selden is adding 5.8 points.
• The Owls are scoring 72.8 points per game while allowing 75.2.
• Rice is connecting on 44.1% from the field and 33.7% from three. Its opponents are connecting on 44.8% from the field and 36.6% from beyond the arc.
• The Owls are outrebounding their opponents, 36.3-to-35.4.
• Head coach Scott Pera is in his seventh season leading the Rice men's basketball program.

Scouting Wichita State
• Wichita State enters Saturday's contest with a 12-17 record and 4-12 in the American Athletic Conference. The Shockers have won two of their last three games after defeating UAB on Wednesday, 74-66.
• Redshirt junior guard Colby Rogers leads the team and is eighth in the AAC with 15.8 points per game. He leads the league with 2.6 three-pointers per game and is seventh with a 39.2% three-point field goal percentage.
• Junior guard Xavier Bell is second on the team with 12.0 points, 2.2 assists and is adding 1.1 steals.
• Redshirt junior guard Harlond Beverly is averaging 10.4 points and 5.2 rebounds while leading the team with 3.2 assists.
• Junior forward Kenny Pohto is scoring 9.4 points per game while leading the Shockers with 6.4 rebounds per game.
• Junior center Quincy Ballard leads the league in field goal percentage, connecting on 71.3%, and is second with 2.0 blocks.
• Wichita State is scoring 72.2 points per game while allowing 72.9.
• The Shockers are connecting on 44.5% from the field and just 31.6% from three. Their opponents are being held to 41.7% from the field and 32.2% from three.
• WSU is outrebounding its opponents, 39.4-to-36.0.
• Head coach Paul Mills is in his first season leading the Wichita State men's basketball program, where he holds a 12-17 record. In seven years as a head coach, he is 118-101.

Rice-Wichita State Series History
• Rice and Wichita State will meet for just the third time and the first since 2018.
• The teams have split the first two meetings.
• Rice won the initial game, 72-66, on Dec. 28, 1949 in Houston.
• Wichita State then earned an 80-61 decision on Nov. 25, 2018 in Wichita.

Next Up
• Rice plays its final road game of the regular season next Wednesday, March 6, when it faces Charlotte. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed by ESPN+.

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