Finding ways to win

[randy]

Nov 24, 2006: Rice (2-1) @ Buffalo (1-3)


Tip off

4 turn overs in the last 3 mins almost squandered the lead we built, and made this a close game. Our most consistent offensive player is C Ruben Edgerson with 12 pts, 5-6 FG; we'll try to give him more shots in the 2nd half


Halftime, Up 34-33


Start of 2nd half

We increased our lead to 7 early in the half, as BUF had trouble keeping the ball. However, we got called for a string of consecutive fouls putting us in the penalty early, and BUF able to climb back.
12:35, Up 48-47

The calls not stopping, but we were able to hang on still with a slim margin.
7:43, Up 58-57

Both teams keeping close, not allowing any big runs. Both teams also in the penalty.
4:31, Up 68-67

We allowed an off rebound putback, and BUF back in the lead. SG Jevon Wilson answering with a 3.
3:02, Up 71-69

BUF makes 2 FTs on the 5th foul of SF Speedy Hancock. We turned it over, but BUF called for a charge on their fast break attempt. Timeout
2:27, Tied at 71

Teams trading misses. On the next play, we isolate SG Jevon Wilson. WIlson missed the jumper. We get the off rebound. One more try for Wilson, this time from 3. The 3PT shot is good!
1:27, Up 74-71

BUF missed. PF Damien Kosik drives, but got blocked. Timeout BUF
0:56, Up 74-71

BUF gets a basket on a penetration. Timeout
0:49, Up 74-73

C Ruben Edgerson got fouled. Perhaps a smart foul by BUF, as Edgarson is 4-7 FT today. But Edgarson made both. Nice. Timeout BUF
0:40, Up 76-73

Another foul on us. This time, it's BUF's C Jason Sowder to take 2 FTs. Missed both! Timeout
0:25, Up 76-73

BUF had to foul. PG Quyn Kante made both. Up 5. We got called also for a foul on the other end. BUF made both FT. I called my last timeout
0:13, Up 78-75

PG Quyn Kante fouled again. He needs to make just 1 FT. Kante made the 1st, missed the 2nd. We got the off rebound, and got fouled again. Game over. A close one


Final Score: Rice - 80, Buffalo - 75
Teams combined for 48 fouls, and 60 FT attempts


Box Scores
[INDENT]Edgerson 21, 5, 1, 3 tos
Wilson 19, 7, 2, 2 stls, 3-6 3PT (*)
Kante 13, 3, 2
Aylsworth 8, 4, 3
Sanders 6, 4, 0
Hancock 5, 0, 3, 3 stls, 3 tos, fouled out
Kosik 4, 2, 1
Smith 2, 1, 2
Ramsey 2, 0, 0
Tann 0, 1, 1
Woods 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 48-47%
REB: -4
TO: -3
Pts in paint: +10
2nd chance: -8
Fast break: -8
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Nov 28, 2006: Rice (3-1) @ Dartmouth (1-3)


Tip off

DART shot the ball well at 54% FG, but we were scorching form everywhere with 70% FG. SG Jevon Wilson with 20 pts, 8-11 FG.


Halftime, Up 50-36


Start of 2nd half

We managed to maintain our double-digit lead most of the 2nd half. SG Jevon WIlson continued his scoring ways, and got plenty of support from the other starters.


Final Score: Rice - 89, Dartmouth - 78


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 31, 5, 2, 3-6 3PT (*)
Edgerson 17, 7, 1, 3 tos, 8-9 FG
Kosik 16, 3, 0
Hancock 11, 5, 0
Smith 5, 2, 2, 3 tos
Aylsworth 3, 3, 1
Sanders 2, 4, 1
Woods 2, 1, 2
Kante 2, 0, 8, 2 stls, 3 tos
Ramsey 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 54-54%
REB: +8
TO: -6
Pts in paint: +10
2nd chance: +9
Fast break: +12
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 1, 2006: Rice (4-1) @ #11 Brigham Young (4-1)


Tip off

BYU's starting unit has an average height of 6-8, but we were able to box out well and not get beaten on rebounding. Low scoring game, with both teams shooting below 40% FG


Halftime, Tied at 29


Start of 2nd half

BYU hit 6 of their 7 shots, including a couple of 3s, and we had trouble keeping up with them.
13:49, Up 40-49

We tried to climb back up, but our early penalty has slowed down our momentum. We finally get some string of pts, and got within 5 pts, the closest we've gone after BYU built a good lead earlier in the 2nd half.
2:51, Down 60-65

We forced another BYU turn over, their 18th of the game. SG Jevon Wilson missed a 3, which could have gotten us to within 2 pts. On the other end, BYU got 2 offensive rebounds, and finally hit a shot on their 3rd try. We wasted some opportunities there.
1:41, Down 60-67

After a timeout, teams traded misses. We get another chance, and SF Speedy Hancock scores a FG.
0:52, Down 62-67

We get a steal in their back court. SG Jevon Wilson scores on a quick layup.
0:45, Down 64-67

Another foul on us. BYU scores 2 FTs. FT attempts disparity is 27 to 9, in favor of BYU. Timeout
0:36, Down 64-69

We went for shooting 3s. SG Daniel Aylsworth missed. We have to give up a foul. BYU splits. We hurriedly bring the ball, and SG Jevon Wilson sinking a quick 3. We give up another foul
0:06, Down 67-70

2 FTs by BYU. Missed the 1st. Missed the 2nd. Quick timeout. Not sure if we have enough time hoist a 3.
0:05, Down 67-70

SG Jevon Wilson quickly brings the ball. Wilson guarded well, and couldn't even make an attempt in time. We have all the settings needed for a quick shot. Very disappointing. But good effort by our team nonetheless


Final Score: Rice - 67, Brigham Young - 70
We gave ourselves a chance. We just lost focus in defense in the early part of the 2nd half


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 17, 1, 0, 2 stls, 3-7 3PT
Edgerson 16, 4, 0
Hancock 8, 7, 1 2 stls
Kosik 7, 4, 0
Sanders 4, 4, 0, 4 tos
Smith 4, 2, 3
Aylsworth 3, 4, 1
Kante 2, 1, 5, fouled out
Ramsey 2, 1, 1
Betts 2, 1, 1
Woods 2, 0, 3
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 45-46%
REB: -8
TO: -9
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: -3
Fast break: +3
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 6, 2006: Rice (4-2) @ St Peter's (3-3)


Tip off

STPET able to control the slow pace of the game. Our penalty situation also didn't helped in trying to speed up the game. SG Jevon Wilson only 1-7 FG; if not for SG Daniel Aylsworth 8 pts off the bench, we would have ourselves dug a bigger hole, shooting below 30% FG


Halftime, Down 29-34


Start of 2nd half

SG Jevon Wilson scored 5 straight pts to start an 8-0 run. But STPET's PG John Tonella answered by scoring 10 straight pts of his own. Tonella has been sensational today, 21 pts, 5-7 3PT.
15:08, Down 39-44

Our offense has suddenly become anemic, missing a lot of shots and throwing the ball away. We need to have some jolt of energy before its too late
10:12, Down 41-49

SG Jevon Wilson's 2 jumpers got us to within 4, but STPET hits a couple of 3s breaking any small momentum we were gaining
6:58, Down 48-59

We cut it down to 7, but we can't make enough stops as STPET restoring their double-digit advantage. Both teams then found it difficult to score for the past 3 mins.
2:42, Down 54-64

STPET hit a couple of jump shots, preventing ourselves from making any last-minute comeback


Final Score: Rice - 61, St Peter's - 69
We still don't have a reliable defense that we can rely upon for the whole 40 mins, in cases where our offense is not clicking.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Edgerson 15, 9, 1
Wilson 12, 4, 1
Hancock 9, 4, 0
Aylsworth 8, 0, 0
Kosik 6, 3, 1
Smith 5, 1, 3
Sanders 4, 4, 0
Kante 2, 6, 6
Ramsey 0, 2, 0
Tann 0, 1, 0
Woods 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 37-42%
REB: -6
TO: -2
Pts in paint: -6
2nd chance: +3
Fast break: +11
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 13, 2006: Rice (4-3) @ Tennessee (4-4)


Tip off

14 turn overs for TENN in the 1st half. We're also passing the ball well, with 13 asts, that led to our 71% FG shooting. SF Speedy Hancock led all scorers with 12 pts, while SG Daniel Aylsworth had 7 off the bench.


Halftime, Up 48-36
Despite our great shooting, our defense hasn't been been solid as TENN also doing good offensively with 52% FG


Start of 2nd half

SG Jevon Wilson took over the scoring in the 2nd half, with support coming from PG Quyn Kante. TENN continued to throw their possessions (23 turn overs) and their shooting dropped a little bit, but that was enough for us to take a 20 pt lead, and coasted along the remainder of the game.


Final Score: Rice - 83, Tennessee - 68


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 20, 4, 5, 4 stls (*)
Hancock 16, 3, 2, 2 stls
Kante 12, 0, 5, 2 stls, 4 tos
Edgerson 9, 4, 2
Aylsworth 9, 3, 2, 3 tos
Kosik 6, 6, 1, 2 stls
Ramsey 6, 1, 0
Sanders 3, 4, 0
Woods 2, 0, 5
Smith 0, 0, 0
Tann 0, 0, 0
Betts 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 61-47%
REB: +2
TO: -5
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +15 (21-6)
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 19, 2006: Long Island (3-7) @ Rice (5-3)


Tip off

SG Jevon Wilson got us to a good start, building up an 11 pt lead. LIU came back quickly, reducing our lead to 3. We had another run, but LIU had a good finishing kick to end the 1st half, particularly with their outside shooting

Halftime, Up 40-38


Start of 2nd half

We are using exclusively m2m defense in the 2nd half, to contain LIU's shooters. We haven't scored that much either, but our defense is holding up
13:31, Up 49-43

LIU's SG Jeff Baker (23 pts) wa sthe only one scoring for them at the start of the 2nd half. LIU made their move to get closer when the other players started to contribute. Bench players PG Brian Smith (10 pts) and SG Daniel Aylsworth (7 pts) saved us in more than a couple of occasions from relinquishing our lead.
6:43, Up 59-57

LIU eventually takeing the lead, for the 1st time in this game. Our deficit extended to 3, before we scored 4 unanswered. LIU split their last trip to the line
4:00, Tied at 63

We scored the next FG, but LIU converted a 3PT play opportunity. We missed on the next play. LIU turned the ball over. Timeout
2:49, Down 65-66

We missed again, and LIU made us pay with a dagger 3PT shot. Timeout
2:10, Down 65-69

Travelling on SG Jevon Wilson. Only our 8th turn over, but it came at a crucial time. LIU got 2 offensive rebounds. We got called for a foul, and LIU hits both FTs. Looking bleak now. Timeout
1:14, Down 65-71

We missed a 3. We have scored just 6 pts in almost 6 minutes. And on the defensive end, we allowed LIU's big man to drive to the lane uncontested for the easy basket. Down 8, less than a minute. We have no choice but to take 3s, and give up fouls. We hit 2 3PT shots during the last 15 secs, but it wasn't enough.

Tough home loss, on a game we had under control most of the time. We couldn't make shots, and failed to make stops, when we needed them


Final Score: Long Island - 76, Rice - 73


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 13, 2, 1, 4-9 3PT
Kante 12, 2, 6
Edgerson 11, 7, 1, 2 blks
Smith 10, 2, 2
Aylsworth 9, 1, 0
Hancock 5, 7, 0
Sanders 5, 4, 0
Kosik 4, 3, 3, fouled out
Ramsey 2, 2, 0
Woods 2, 2, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 41-44%
REB: -7
TO: -2
Pts in paint: +2
2nd chance: +2
Fast break: +4
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 26, 2006: Rice (5-4, 0-0) @ Houston (7-2, 0-0)


Tip off

Close game the entire 1st half. Both teams shot well at the start, but tapered off in the end. HOU beating us in the rebounding department, 24 to 18.

Halftime, Down 35-38


Start of 2nd half

Finally SG Jevon Wilson getting his 1st set of pts, hitting a 3. Our other players have stepped in to keep ourselves close, but eventually we need Wilson to start scoring more to have a chance here
12:09, Down 48-52

HOU gaining a little momentum, as they increased their lead to 8. We quickly regrouped, climbed our way back to take a 1 pt lead. The lead has changed hands a couple of times since
5:36, Up 63-62

We finally extend the lead to 4, as SG Jevon Wilson connected on his 3rd triple of the game (all in the 2nd half). We missed 2 chances to increase the lead further, and HOU eventually hit a 3 of their own. Timeout
2:18, Up 70-69

SF Speedy Hancock hits a 3! But HOU answers back also with a trifecta. Timeout
1:22, Up 73-72

C Ruben Edgerson shoots, missed, but got fouled. 2 FTs. Split. Up 2. HOU missed a 3, but they get the off rebound, and scores. What a wasted opportunity. That is HOU's 12th off rebound. Timeout
0:58, Tied at 74

SG Jevon Wilson has the ball. Wilson cant get a shot. Passed back to PG Brian Smith. Smith shoots, and scores! Smith has been huge off the bench, 13 pts, 6 asts. Timeout HOU
0:43, Up 76-74

A miss by HOU. C Ruben Edgarson gets a basket down low. Up 4. HOU called another timeout. HOU with another miss, and we hold on for this huge win.


Final Score: Rice - 80, Houston - 74


Box Scores
[INDENT]Edgerson 19, 10, 3
Smith 13, 4, 7
Kosik 12, 6, 0, 2 stls
Wilson 11, 2, 1, 3 tos, 3-4 3PT
Hancock 8, 5, 2
Aylsworth 5, 0, 0
Sanders 4, 5, 0
Kante 4, 0, 7
Tann 4, 0, 1
Ramsey 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 50-42%
REB: -9 (-8 off)
TO: -2
Pts in paint: -12
2nd chance: -11
Fast break: -12
[/INDENT]


CUSA Standings

1. Memphis, 1-0 (W1)
2. Central Florida, 1-0 (W1)
3. Marshall, 1-0 (W1)
4. Rice, 1-0 (W1)
5. Tulane, 1-0 (W1)
6. Tulsa 1-0 (W1)
7. Houston, 0-1 (L1)
8. Southern Methodist, 0-1 (L1)
9. East Carolina, 0-1 (L1)
10. Alabama-Birmingham, 0-1 (L1)
11. Southern Mississippi, 0-1 (L1)
12. Texas-El Paso, 0-1 (L1)

[randy]

Dec 29, 2006: Rice (6-4, 1-0) @ Alabama-Birmingham (2-8, 0-1)


Tip off

Both teams shooting just barely above 40% FG. SG Jevon Wilson (13 pts) was aggressive in driving to the basket late in the half, and earned himself several trips to the line.


Halftime, Up 37-30


Start of 2nd half

SG Jevon Wilson and C Ruben Edgerson carried our offense early in the 2nd half, as we raced to a 16 pt lead. Wilson got injured, and did not return to the game (found out later it wasn't serious, and he should be ready to play next game). We extended our lead further to 24, before our bench warmers finished off the game for us.


Final Score: Rice - 78, Alabama-Birmingham - 50


Box Scores
[INDENT]Edgerson 20, 2, 0, 9-12 FG (*)
Wilson 16, 3, 1
Smith 9, 0, 1
Sanders 8, 4, 1
Hancock 6, 9, 0, 2 stls
Kosik 6, 5, 1
Ramsey 4, 3, 0
Woods 4, 1, 4
Kante 2, 2, 1
Tann 2, 1, 1
Aylsworth 1, 2, 3, 2 stls
Betts 0, 3, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 51-32%
REB: +4
TO: -2
Pts in paint: +20
2nd chance: +1
Fast break: +8
[/INDENT]


CUSA Standings

1. Memphis, 2-0 (W2)
2. Tulsa 2-0 (W2)
3. Marshall, 2-0 (W2)
4. Rice, 2-0 (W2)
5. Central Florida, 1-1 (L1)
6. Southern Methodist, 1-1 (W1)
7. East Carolina, 1-1 (W1)
8. Tulane, 1-1 (L1)
9. Houston, 0-2 (L2)
10. Alabama-Birmingham, 0-2 (L2)
11. Southern Mississippi, 0-2 (L2)
12. Texas-El Paso, 0-2 (L2)

[randy]

Jan 2, 2007: Texas-El Paso (3-8, 0-2) @ Rice (7-4, 2-0)


Tip off

We came up with the better defense, in this low-scoring game so far. UTEP shot just 26% FG, and turning the ball over 10 times. SG David Aylsworth with 10 pts off the bench, and leads all scorers


Halftime, Up 26-19


Start of 2nd half

SG Jevon Wilson scored 7 quick pts as part of an early 11-3 run, increasing our lead to 15. We maintained to have a comfortable lead, until UTEP made an 8-0 run to cut our 17 pt advantage to just single digits.
7:46, Up 47-38

We got into penalty after a quick succession of fouls. UTEP cut our lead further to just 7. We were up by just 9, and then we scored 5 unanswered pts to go back up to 14 with about 4 mins left. 3 consecutive turn overs by UTEP sealed their fate, and our lead was big enough already to hold in this low-scoring affair


Final Score: Texas-El Paso - 46, Rice - 63


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 19, 4, 3, 3 stls (*)
Aylsworth 12, 3, 0
Hancock 10, 1, 1
Sanders 8, 9, 1
Smith 8, 1, 0
Edgerson 2, 11, 0, 3 blks
Kosik 2, 4, 2
Kante 2, 1, 2, fouled out
Woods 0, 2, 1
Ramsey 0, 1, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 38-30%
REB: -4
TO: -11
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: -4
Fast break: +6
[/INDENT]


CUSA Standings

1. Rice, 3-0 (W3)
2. Memphis, 3-0 (W3)
3. Tulsa 3-0 (W3)
4. Central Florida, 2-1 (W1)
5. Southern Methodist, 2-1 (W2)
6. Marshall, 2-1 (L1)
7. Tulane, 2-1 (W1)
8. East Carolina, 1-2 (L1)
9. Houston, 0-3 (L3)
10. Alabama-Birmingham, 0-3 (L3)
11. Southern Mississippi, 0-3 (L3)
12. Texas-El Paso, 0-3 (L3)

[randy]

Jan 5, 2007: Tulane (5-7, 2-1) @ Rice (8-4, 3-0)


Tip off

SG Jevon Wilson caught fire early, scoring 10 of our 1st 14 pts; Wilson finished with 17 pts in the 1st half. The other players then stepped in offensively, as we shot 56% FG in the 1st half. TUL also having a decent shooting performance, but they had 10 turn overs.


Halftime, Up 45-30


Start of 2nd half

TUL began the 2nd half with 4 consecutive turn overs, and we increased our lead to 22. TUL eventually settled in on their offense, and resumed making their outside shots, but they were simply trading baskets with us. We had a 24 pt lead with less than 9 mins remaining. Lead went up to as high as 32, and our key players got an early rest.


Final Score: Tulsa - 65, Rice - 87


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilson 22, 1, 1, 3 stls, 3-7 3PT (*)
Aylsworth 16, 2, 3
Edgerson 12, 5, 1
Hancock 10, 2, 0
Kosik 6, 5, 2, 3 stls
Smith 5, 0, 2, 3 tos
Sanders 4, 5, 1
Kante 4, 1, 1, 3 tos
Ramsey 2, 6, 1
Woods 2, 2, 10
Betts 2, 1, 0
Tann 2, 0, 0

[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 59-44%
REB: +5
TO: -7 (TUL: 20)
Pts in paint: +14
2nd chance: +9
Fast break: +9
[/INDENT]


CUSA Standings

1. Rice, 4-0 (W4)
2. Memphis, 4-0 (W4)
3. Tulsa 3-1 (L1)
4. Southern Methodist, 3-1 (W3)
5. Marshall, 3-1 (W1)
6. Tulane, 2-2 (L1)
7. Central Florida, 2-2 (L1)
8. Houston, 1-3 (W1)
9. East Carolina, 1-3 (L2)
10. Southern Mississippi, 1-3 (W1)
11. Texas-El Paso, 0-4 (L4)
12. Alabama-Birmingham, 0-4 (L4)