Tigers Silence Owls in 73-66 Win

Saturday, January 27

Houston, Texas

2 p.m.

University of Memphis

7-12,3-5AAC

Rice

11-8,5-3AAC

Memphis

Rice

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Jan 27, 2024 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

HOUSTON, Texas – The University of Memphis women's basketball team got back on the court Saturday when they traveled south to take on Rice. An offensive onslaught from the Tigers in the second half gave them the 73-66 win over the Owls.

Following today's game, Memphis moves to 7-12 overall and 3-5 in AAC play.

After a back-and-forth first quarter that saw Rice take a 17-16 lead, the Memphis offense went off, stringing together an 11-4 run to take a 27-21 lead with 4:21 left in the half.

Kai Carter led the charge in the second frame, scoring six straight points for the Tigers while free throws from Raven Sims, Madison Griggs and Alasia Smith gave Memphis it's largest lead of the half at nine with just over a minute left on the clock.

Rice got to the free throw line one last time before halftime with the Tigers taking a 35-28 lead into the break.

The Tiger defense held Rice to no field goals for seven of the 10 minutes in the second quarter.

Memphis' offensive attack continued to start the third quarter; after a 6-0 run to open the half forced Rice to call a timeout, Sims added in back-to-back buckets to give the Tigers the 45-32 lead.

While the Owls cut their deficit to single-digits, Smith was a threat on both sides of the ball. A steal-and-score in the back court along with a bucket the next possession put Memphis up 49-39 with 3:35 remaining in the third quarter.

Aliyah Green scored the last five points of the quarter to extend the Tiger advantage to 56-41 heading into the final 10 minutes of play.

Rice attempted a comeback late in the fourth quarter, cutting their once double-digit deficit to as little as six with 26 seconds left in the game. A Ki'Ari Cain free throw with 10 seconds on the clock iced it for Memphis to give them the 73-66 win.

Alasia Smith led team with 15 points and 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season while Hannah Riddick came off the bench to chip in 11 points and 12 boards – nine of them coming on the offensive end. Kai Carter and Madison Griggs both reached double figure scoring with 12 and 11, respectively.

As a team, Memphis shot over 41% from the field while holding Rice to just nine second-chance points.

The Tigers will be back in action on Thursday, Feb. 1 when they host South Florida. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. in Elma Roane Fieldhouse. Coverage will be available on ESPN+.

How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.