Men's basketball splits two-game weekend on the road
The Rice University men's basketball team played two games over Thanksgiving Break, losing to Rider University on Friday, Nov. 29 and winning against Santa Clara University on Saturday, Nov. 30. Both games were played in the 47th Cable Car Classic in Santa Clara, Calif.
On Friday, the Rice Owls lost to Rider 97-93 in overtime. The Owls shot 48 percent from the 3-point line and shot 53 percent from the field during the two games.
After Friday night's loss, the Rice Owls came back with a close win in their last game of the Cable Car Classic, defeating Santa Clara 67-66. Santa Clara took the lead late in the second half with only 6.9 seconds remaining, but sophomore guard Keith Washington closed the game out, driving down the length of the court to score a game-winning layup.
Washington said he took advantage of Santa Clara's defensive setup to give the Owls the one-point win.
"I knew they were in man coverage, and I'm fast enough to beat my man," Washington said. "And I also knew that when they put just one person on me, all I had to do was to just beat him, and the game would be ours."
Freshman forward Sean Obi said the team has come together both mentally and physically over the past few games. Obi said he feels he is finally in game shape, which will help him out as the season moves forward.
"I've gotten a lot stronger," Obi said. "I put on more muscle and burned a lot of body fat, which is something I worked on all summer. Secondly, I feel like I have toughened up mentally; this is not high school where you have to play against 6-foot, 4-inch centers."
Rice's current record is 3-4. The Owls return to action this Wednesday, Dec. 4 at Houston Baptist University. The Huskies play in the Southland Conference and are currently 2-5. So far this season, the Huskies have averaged 64.4 points per game, while their opponents have averaged 74.1 points against them. Sophomore guard Rob Lewis is the Huskies' leading scorer, averaging 13 points per game off 40 percent shooting, while sophomore forward Cody Joyce is averaging 9.7 points and four rebounds per game.
After playing against the Huskies on Wednesday, the Owls will play against the University of South Alabama at 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7 at Tudor Fieldhouse. The game was rescheduled due to the recent announcement that the Conference USA Football championship will be held at Rice on Saturday at 11 a.m.
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