Finding ways to win

[randy]

Nov 21, 2010: (5) San Diego (0-1) vs (4) Rice (2-0)


Tip off

Scoring 55 ots with C Curtis Harper contributing just 4, showed the abundance of offensive options we have. We shot 6-12 3PT, 4 coming from SG David Williams (14 pts). SF Andre McFadden with 9 pts off the bench.


Halftime, Up 55-33


Start of 2nd half

The final score didn't indicate that we had a sub par shooting performance in the 2nd half, because of those extra possessions we had on offensive rebounds. And also the steals generated by our pressure defense; the 1-2-2 press is working to perfection now after years of practicing it. SG David Williams is averaging more than 31 ppg in the 1st 3 games


Final Score: San Diego - 59, Rice - 93


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 33, 3, 1, 5 stls, 2 blks, 7-16 3PT (*)
Brown 14, 10, 3, 4 stls, 2 blks
McFadden 11, 8, 1
Tiggs 9, 4, 0, 2, stls
Harper 8, 8, 1, 3 blks
Fountain 8, 3, 0
Piatowski 6, 0, 1
Evans 2, 2, 3
Phillips 2, 2, 0
Barker 0, 1, 0
Johnson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 45-33%
REB: +2
TO: -12
Pts in paint: +36
2nd chance: +2
Fast break: +13
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Nov 22, 2010: (4) Rice (3-0) vs (1) #8 LSU (3-0)


Tip off

How we stayed with the lead despite having 19 turn overs in the 1st half is bewildering, but we can't be happy with the way we played so far. Everybody is just throwing the ball away. Of LSU's 10 FGs made in the 1st half, 6 were transition baskets because of our turn overs.


Halftime, Up 38-36


Start of 2nd half

SG David Williams (10 pts) hit 2 early 3s to kick start our 2nd half offense. We led by 10, but couldn't sustain it because we added 3 more turn overs, total of 22 for the game. I just wish the game would end right now, as this is painful to watch
12:47, Up 54-47

LSU able to close the gap to 3 pts. SG David Williams added another 3, and SF Andre McFadden scored our last 7 pts to keep us in the lead.
7:55, Up 64-56

We got into penalty, and SG David Williams has to sit with 4 fouls. LSU's 22-28 FT shooting would eventually bring them back in the game, and we're now tied.
4:45, Tied at 68

Our shooting has gone cold the past few 4+ mins. I have to bring back SG David Williams.
3:23, Tied at 70

LSU missed. Chance to get the lead. We go to PF Kevin Tiggs, who scores on the low post. Up 2. We get a steal on LSU's back court. SG David Williams with an easy layup. Up 4. We were called for a foul. LSU converted both FTs. Timeout
2:19, Up 74-72

SF Andre McFadden missed on his drive. LSU sets up a play. They try to take it inside. Block by C Curtis Harper. We get back the ball. McFadden with the jumper, missed, but there was a foul. McFadden hits both FTs. Up 4. Harper gets another block! We recovered the ball. SG David Williams with the 3! Williams gets the the steal.. Outlet to McFadden for the jam! Timeout LSU to stop our momentum, but it could be too late for them
0:50, Up 81-72

We slowed down the game and hang on. I was relieved not because we won, but the game is over. We were a little bit better in ball handling in the 2nd half, but 25 turn overs for the game is nothing to be proud of. LSU had 20 turn overs.


Final Score: Rice - 81, LSU - 73


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 20, 1, 0, 3 stls, 3 tos, 4-7 3PT, fouled out
McFadden 18, 3, 3, 3 stls (*)
Harper 12, 7, 0, 4 blks
Piatowski 10, 5, 0
Tiggs 6, 7, 1
Evans 4, 0, 4, 6 tos
Brown 3, 5, 1, 2 stls, 3 tos
Young 3, 0, 1, 3 tos
Richard 3, 0, 0
Fountain 2, 1, 0
Barker 0, 2, 4, 3 tos
Johnson 0, 1, 0, 3 tos
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 53-42%
REB: +10
TO: +5
Pts in paint: +10
2nd chance: +10
Fast break: +5
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Nov 23, 2010: (6) St Mary's (4-1) vs (4) Rice (4-0)


Tip off

SMC started the game hitting their outside shots. Trailing 14-15, SG David Williams scored 3 triples as part of a 13-2 run, and we steadily pulled away since then. In a complete reversal from our lastgame, we only commited 2 turn overs in the 1st half. SMC had a decent offensive performance, but they need some serious defending to do if they are still entertaining thoughts of a coming back; we shot 78% FG (!) in the 1st half. SG David Williams with 18 pts, 4-5 3PT, and 8 asts!


Halftime, Up 61-38


Start of 2nd half

"Evenly-matched" 2nd half, but game was practically over as early as the 1st half.

WS Midwest Invitational Champions!


Final Score: St Mary's - 66, Rice - 86


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 26, 1, 10, 3 stls, 6-13 FG (*)
Harper 14, 4, 0, fouled out
McFadden 13, 3, 1, 2 blks
Tiggs 10, 4, 0
Phillips 8, 1, 0
Brown 7, 5, 4, 3 stls
Piatowski 4, 1, 0
Barker 2, 2, 6
Evans 2, 0, 3
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 58-50%
REB: -5
TO: -13 (SMC: 21)
Pts in paint: +24
2nd chance: -1
Fast break: +13
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Nov 25, 2010: Wagner (1-2) @ Rice (5-0)


Tip off

SF Ross Brown has a sore arm, and will miss today's game (he should be ready on our next game)

Slow start on offense. And then SG David Williams scored our 1st 14 pts. Williams was again on fire, and I only took him out with 3 mins remaining in the 1st half, after he has scored 25 pts with 7 triples. SF Andre McFadden (12 pts) also giving out a good performance starting in place of SF Ross Brown


Halftime, Up 46-25


Start of 2nd half

We were playing zone defense majority of the 1st half, but switched to m2m when WAG began to hit their outside shots. SG David Williams added 2 more triples, for a total of 9 3PT shots in the game (33 pts), and kept WAG at a distance
11:27, Up 61-44

WAG with a serious come back here, as our defense begins to show some breakdown. WAG already with 35 pts in the 2nd half, with almost 7 mins to go
6:55, Up 68-60

WAG had a couple of chances to trim our lead down further, but they couldn't convert. SG David Williams makes triple #10, and we lead by 11 forcing WAG to call a timeout. We made some more stops, and WAG has not scored for almost 4 mins now
3:16, Up 71-60

We scored 4 more pts to make this game out of reach. We didn't get much production from our big men today, and had to rely mostly on SG David William's monster game


Final Score: Wagner - 65, Rice - 77


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 40, 4, 2, 10-22 3PT (*)
McFadden 16, 4, 2, 3 tos
Fountain 10, 2, 0
Tiggs 4, 4, 1
Evans 3, 3, 7
Harper 2, 13, 2, stls
Barker 2, 0, 2
Phillips 0, 1, 0
Piatowski 0, 0, 0
Young 0, 0, 0
Richard 0, 0, 0
Johnson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 45-45%
REB: +4
TO: -5
Pts in paint: +4
2nd chance: +2
Fast break: +2
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Nov 29, 2010: #21 Kansas St (3-1) @ #12 Rice (6-0)


Tip off

SG David Williams with a poor shooting start. We were able to get production from other players, but I wasn't pleased with the defense early on. KANST shooting more than 60% F midway into the 1st half. We got back by playing good defense and controlling the boards.

Trailing 30-32, SG David Williams finally hit a FG after going 0-12 FG. That must have got him going, as Williams picked up 2 steals in KANST's back court which he converted to easy baskets. We closed out the 1st half on a 14-0 run, with Williams getting another steal, before KANST hit a buzzer beating 3. We scored 20 2nd chance pts in the 1st half


Halftime, Up 44-33


Start of 2nd half

KANST with another good start. They cut the lead to 2, and then SG David Williams sinks his 1st 3 of the game get our lead back up to 5. KANST able to tie, before Williams hits another 3.
10:22, Up 56-53

KANST continues shoot well. PF Kevin Tiggs and C Scott Fountain managed to put up some pts helping us restore the lead several times after KANST ties the score.
5:30, Up 66-64

After a brief rest, David Williams scored 5 pts in an 8-2 run, including another triple. Williams, who was still scoreless 18 minutes into the game, all of a sudden has 23 pts.
3:24, Up 74-66

KANST scored on 3pt play. Up 5. C Scott Fountain hits 2 FTs. Up 7. Fountain all of his 6 pts in the 2nd half. A turn over by KANST. SG David Williams (25 pts) hits a jumper from the left side. Up 9. A steal by Williams, and he scores again!
1:47, Up 80-69

KANST got it down to 9 with less than a minute left, but C Scott Fountain comes away with another big basket down low to put this game beyond doubt. We had big finishes on both halves, which was the difference to beat this very good KANST team. We shot just 5-25 3PT (Williams 3-18), but found other ways to scores

C Curtis Harper with a strained abdominal, and will be out for a week


Final Score: Kansas St - 71, Rice - 82


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 27, 6, 3, 5 stls, 4 tos (*)
Harper 12, 10, 1, 7 blks
Tiggs 10, 1, 0
McFadden 8, 5, 2
Fountain 8, 3, 0, 2 stls
Brown 7, 5, 1, 2 stls, 3 tos
Piatowski 5, 5, 0
Evans 5, 1, 0
Barker 0, 0, 4
Phillips 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 44-48%
REB: +7
TO: -7
Pts in paint: +18
2nd chance: +10
Fast break: +5
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 2, 2010: Texas (3-3) @ #12 Rice (7-0)


Tip off

SG David Williams already had 6 triples midway into the 1st half. TEX called a couple of timeouts, but there was no cooling down Williams, who finished the 1st half with 24 pts (8-12 3PT). We scored 16 fast break pts, and TEX could hardly keep up


Halftime, Up 49-16


Start of 2nd half

SG David Williams scored 5 pts, just 20 secs into the 2nd half. We cruised to an easy win. We shot 16-25 from downtown today.


Final Score: Texas - 48, Rice - 89


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 42, 0, 1, 4 stls, 12-19 3PT (*)
Brown 11, 5, 2, 3 stls
Fountain 8, 7, 0
Piatowski 6, 5, 1
McFadden 6, 1, 2, 2 stls
johnson 6, 1, 1
Tiggs 4, 7, 0
Phillips 4, 4, 1
Evans 2, 0, 3
Barker 0, 1, 3
Young 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-34%
REB: +5
TO: -13 (TEX: 23)
Pts in paint: +22
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +22 (26-4)
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 6, 2010: #6 Rice (8-0) @ Niagara (1-4)


Tip off

NIAG's zone defense giving us open looks from the outside, and SG David Williams (22 pts) gladly took advantage making 6 3s. We are also controlling the offensive board, giving us 10 2nd chance pts


Halftime, Up 49-31


Start of 2nd half

We're now missing a lot of shots, dropping our FG% to 37%
13:31, Up 52-38

We have scored just 13 pts in the 2nd half, 9 of those were from 3 triples by SG David Williams. Our defense keeping us ahead by double digits
7:47, Up 62-49

NIAG able to cut their deficit to just 9. We had 2 off rebounds on the next play, and C Brent Phillips scoring on 2 FTs. NIAG answers with 3. We had 2 shots the ensuing play, and we missed both. NIAG with another FG. Timeout.
3:12, Up 67-61

SF Andre McFadden hits a running shot. Up 8. We played good interior defense the next play. SG David Williams buries another 3! Up 11. Just when we though we have the momentum already, NIAG scores 2 straight FGs. Timeout
1:28, Up 72-65

NIAG gave up 6 straight fouls to get to penalty. PG Brent Evans splits. Up 8. NIAG missed on their next play. SG David Williams sealing the win with 2 late 3s. Williams with back-to-back 40 pt games!


Final Score: Rice - 79, Niagara - 65


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 40, 4, 1, 12-29 3PT (*)
McFadden 12, 4, 1, 4 tos
Brown 9, 3, 0
Tiggs 6, 7, 0
Piatowski 4, 3, 0
Barker 3, 3, 3
Phillips 2, 14, 0, 2 blks
Fountain 2, 5, 0
Evans 1, 2, 10
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 37-43%
REB: +8 (+8 off)
TO: -5
Pts in paint: -2
2nd chance: +7
Fast break: +2
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 13, 2010: #8 Rice (9-0) @ Tennessee (2-6)


Tip off

We shot just 31% FG, but compensated it with 16 offensive rebounds. A late 13-2 run by TENN to close the 1st half almost evaporated our 17 pt lead. We're normally a good FT shooting team, but we made only 7-13 FT so far.


Halftime, Up 36-30


Start of 2nd half

A series of miscues by TENN got us a 19-6 run to start the 2nd half. TENN tried to rally from a 19 pt deficit, cutting our lead to 10. But we pulled away again with a 9-0 run, and our lead never got threatened again. TENN able to challenge our shots today, but our 21 offensive rebounds were just to much to overcome


Final Score: Rice - 81, Tennessee - 62


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 20, 2, 2, 2 stls
McFadden 15, 9, 1
Harper 14, 17, 0, 2 blks (*)
Brown 10, 6, 4
Tiggs 6, 4, 0, 3 stls
Evans 6, 0, 6
Piatowski 4, 4, 0
Fountain 4, 1, 0
Barker 2, 1, 3
Phillips 0, 1, 2
Johnson 0, 0, 2
Young 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 41-39%
REB: +12 (+16 off)
TO: -15 (TENN: 21)
Pts in paint: +36
2nd chance: +14
Fast break: +17
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 20, 2010: Alabama (2-7) @ #11 Rice (10-0)


Tip off

3 timeouts for BAMA in the 1st half wasn't enough to curtail our offensive onslaught, where we shot 64% FG, including 7-11 3PT. SG David Williams led our balanced attack with 21 pts, 5-6 3PT.


Halftime, Up 54-31


Start of 2nd half

A 6-0 start gave BAMA some hope, but it was short lived as SG David Williams resumed his scoring spree on the way to another excellent offensive performance.


Final Score: Alabama - 66, Rice - 103


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 33, 2, 1, 3 stls, 9-14 3PT (*)
McFadden 17, 2, 2
Harper 16, 5, 1, 3 blks
Brown 15, 8, 3
Piatowski 8, 4, 1
Johnson 6, 0, 2, 3 tos
Phillips 4, 3, 2
Fountain 2, 5, 0
Evans 2, 0, 5, 3 tos
Barker 0, 2, 4, 2 stls
Tiggs 0, 2, 1
Young 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 59-40%
REB: +9
TO: -8
Pts in paint: +34
2nd chance: +5
Fast break: Even
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Dec 27, 2010: #14 Rice (11-0, 0-0) @ Houston (6-4, 0-0)


Tip off

SG David Williams was the only one consistently scoring for us at the beginning, and the rest of the team was shooting poorly. Williams finished the 1st half with 22 pts, 6 3s. During the last 4 mins when Williams is resting on the bench, we started getting contributions from other players to pull away completely from HOU. HOU shot just 23% FG


Halftime, Up 44-20


Start of 2nd half

Better screening and ball movement, instead of just watching SG David Williams take his shots. We were leading by 33 halfway mark into the 2nd half, on our way to a big win to start conference play

PG Brent Evans out for a week with a sprained finger


Final Score: Rice - 82, Houston - 45


Box Scores
[INDENT]Williams 42, 2, 1, 2 stls, 10-16 3PT (*)
Harper 8, 10, 0, 2 blks
Brown 8, 8, 0
McFadden 8, 3, 1
Tiggs 7, 7, 2
Phillips 4, 4, 0
Evans 3, 1, 5
Piatowski 2, 5, 0
Fountain 0, 3, 0
Barker 0, 1, 6
Johnson 0, 1, 0
Young 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 41-30%
REB: +11 (+12 off)
TO: -11
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: +11
Fast break: +6
[/INDENT]


CUSA Standings

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