Jan. 25, 2007

Box Score

Houston, Texas - The SMU women's basketball team could not contain the Rice Owls as the Mustangs dropped an 80-69 decision to those Owls Thursday night at Autry Court in Houston, Texas. SMU posted its third straight loss and now records a mark of 11-8 overall (3-4 C-USA) while Rice improves to 11-9 (4-3 C-USA).

SMU got off to a quick start, posting a six-point lead (10-4) very early on. Rice took its first lead at the 15:43 mark (11-10) in the midst of an Owl 12-0 run. The Mustangs were cold shooting the perimeter while the Owls seemed to make every shot they attempted. Before long, Rice extended its lead to six points. SMU chiseled away at that lead and regained it to as many as six points (34-28) at the 2:26 mark. Two jumpers by Rice's Lauren Neaves and a trey by Krystal Frazier gave the lead back to Rice. SMU went into halftime down by one, 35-34. SMU shot a mere 30.6% from the field compared to Rice's 43.3% shooting.

In the second half, Rice maintained the lead throughout the half, building the lead to as many as 12 points (62-50) at the 8:38 mark. SMU siginificantly improved its shooting (43.3%) but the Owls went to the free throw line 13 times more than the Mustangs. In fact, Rice's last 13 points of the game all came from the free throw line. The Owls' final field goal of the game came at the 6:34 mark. SMU made a run at that lead but could not catch up to the Owls.

SMU's Janielle Dodds recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Jillian Samuels added 16 points, including four three-pointers. All five Rice starters scored in double figures, led by Krystal Frazier with 18 points while Lauren Neaves turned in another double-double with 17 points and 15 rebounds in 25 minutes of play.

SMU closes out its three-game roadswing with a contest at Houston Saturday afternoon (2:00 p.m. tip-off). The Cougars (6-11, 3-4 C-USA) lost to Tulsa Thursday night by the score of 70-54.