Friday, March 22
Baton Rouge, LA
3 p.m.
Rice University
19-15,9-9AAC
60
at
70
LSU
29-5,13-3SEC
1
2
3
4
F
Rice
6
21
15
18
60
LSU
12
18
23
17
70
Rice’s Season Concludes in NCAA First Round
3/22/2024 8:10:00 PM | Women's Basketball
BATON ROUGE – The Rice women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 70-60 game against eighth-ranked LSU in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Rice entered the tournament as a 14 seed, while the Tigers were a three seed. The Owls' season concludes at 19-15 (9-9 AAC).
Destiny Jackson led the Owls with 15 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals, while Malia Fisher added 13 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists. Sussy Ngulefac finished with 10 points and three rebounds, while Emily Klaczek rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points, three rebounds and two steals.
Fisher reached 1,000 career points during the game, the second Owl to reach the milestone this season (Jackson).
As a team, Rice shot 23-of-65 (35.4%) from the floor and 8-of-27 (29.6%) from three-point range.
Postgame Reaction – Shelley Pennington and Friends Head Coach Lindsay Edmonds
"I'm incredibly proud to be their coach. We came in here, and we wanted to have the exact same mindset that we had in the conference tournament, and that was to come in and play our best brand of basketball and to not quit and to not give up, and be relentless and have the 95% mantra that we've been working on be at the forefront of everything we do. I'm incredibly proud. We came in here, and we fought for four quarters. We won two of those four quarters against the defending national champion. I thought we did a lot of great things, but the main thing that I'm proud of is that we never for one second quit or looked like we didn't believe that we belonged in this game."
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
The Tigers opened on a 7-0 run before Ngulefac got the Owls on the board. Jackson and Ngulefac continued the Rice run, getting the Owls within one point, but LSU closed the quarter strong to take a 12-6 lead.
Second Quarter
Back-to-back three-pointers from Maya Bokunewicz and Fisher tied the game to open the second, with the Tigers responding to take a 20-14 lead. Trailing by nine points, Klaczek drilled a three-pointer, with Fatou Samb following with a layup, as the Owls cut the deficit to four. Down six, Klaczek sank another triple, this one as time was expiring on the shot clock, as Rice trailed 30-27 at halftime.
Third Quarter
Fisher's basket cut the deficit to one in the opening seconds of the third quarter, as the two sides traded scores early. After LSU grabbed a five-point lead, Jackson hit a three-pointer to bring Rice within 40-38. The Tigers used a 13-4 run to close the quarter to take a 53-42 lead.
Fourth Quarter
Another Jackson's three brought the Owls within single digits. After trading scores, an LSU layup gave the Tigers a 62-51 lead with 3:23 remaining. Bokunewicz answered with a triple, with Ngulefac's layup making it a six-point game with 1:56 left. Rice wouldn't get any closer, though, as LSU held on for a 70-60 win.
TEAM NOTES
Destiny Jackson led the Owls with 15 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals, while Malia Fisher added 13 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists. Sussy Ngulefac finished with 10 points and three rebounds, while Emily Klaczek rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points, three rebounds and two steals.
Fisher reached 1,000 career points during the game, the second Owl to reach the milestone this season (Jackson).
As a team, Rice shot 23-of-65 (35.4%) from the floor and 8-of-27 (29.6%) from three-point range.
"I'm incredibly proud to be their coach. We came in here, and we wanted to have the exact same mindset that we had in the conference tournament, and that was to come in and play our best brand of basketball and to not quit and to not give up, and be relentless and have the 95% mantra that we've been working on be at the forefront of everything we do. I'm incredibly proud. We came in here, and we fought for four quarters. We won two of those four quarters against the defending national champion. I thought we did a lot of great things, but the main thing that I'm proud of is that we never for one second quit or looked like we didn't believe that we belonged in this game."
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
The Tigers opened on a 7-0 run before Ngulefac got the Owls on the board. Jackson and Ngulefac continued the Rice run, getting the Owls within one point, but LSU closed the quarter strong to take a 12-6 lead.
Second Quarter
Back-to-back three-pointers from Maya Bokunewicz and Fisher tied the game to open the second, with the Tigers responding to take a 20-14 lead. Trailing by nine points, Klaczek drilled a three-pointer, with Fatou Samb following with a layup, as the Owls cut the deficit to four. Down six, Klaczek sank another triple, this one as time was expiring on the shot clock, as Rice trailed 30-27 at halftime.
Third Quarter
Fisher's basket cut the deficit to one in the opening seconds of the third quarter, as the two sides traded scores early. After LSU grabbed a five-point lead, Jackson hit a three-pointer to bring Rice within 40-38. The Tigers used a 13-4 run to close the quarter to take a 53-42 lead.
Fourth Quarter
Another Jackson's three brought the Owls within single digits. After trading scores, an LSU layup gave the Tigers a 62-51 lead with 3:23 remaining. Bokunewicz answered with a triple, with Ngulefac's layup making it a six-point game with 1:56 left. Rice wouldn't get any closer, though, as LSU held on for a 70-60 win.
- LSU's 70 points were tied for the second-fewest points scored this season (tied with South Carolina during the regular season).
- Rice is now 1-5 all-time against the Tigers.
- Rice is 1-4 in NCAA Tournament games.
- Fisher became the 26th player in program history to surpass 1,000 career points.
Team Stats
Rice
LSU
FG%
.354
.429
3FG%
.296
.400
FT%
.750
.710
RB
29
42
TO
18
24
STL
10
14
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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