Rice Owls defeat Alcorn State 74-57
Posted: November 23, 2011
HOUSTON, TX (Tudor Fieldhouse) -- The Rice Owls won a physical, foul fest Wednesday night over Alcorn State 74-57 in front of an announced crowd of 324 fans. Forty-six fouls were called in the game. Thirty fouls were whistled on Alcorn State. As a result of all the whistles, the Owls shot a school-record 47 free throws and made 32.
Jessica Kuster scored a team-high 29 points (9 for 11, 11 for 16 free throws) for the Owls. Brianna Hypolite scored 14 (6 for 13) -- 12 in the second half, including 7 points in less than 1 minute. Jessica Goswitz added 11 points (2 for 8 from the field, 6 for 7 free throws).
Kuster added 12 rebounds and freshman teammate, Christal Porter, came off the bench and pulled down 10 rebounds in 29 minutes.
The Owls led 38-30 at halftime; and the second half was close for nearly 12 minutes. Leading 52-49, the Owls went on a 12-0 run. Ten of the points came from the foul line. The Owls held the Braves scoreless for nearly six minutes to put the game away.
Kuster was not surprised most of the game was close.
"Playing teams from the SWAC, they come out with a 'something to prove' attitude; and, they have a different style of play," Kuster said. "And, they're really athletic than most of the teams that we play; so, it wasn't really a surprise."
Owls Head Coach Greg Williams added, "(Assistant) Coach (Jae) Cross prepared the scout. We know this team (Alcorn State) was averaging forcing 25 turnovers a game against SMU, Mississippi State, and Texas. This was their fourth game on the road. We saw how physical they were; we saw how aggressive they were; how quick they were; and, how they applied pressure defense. We weren't surprised at all."
The Owls shot 38.5 percent (20 for 52) from the field for the game. Alcorn State shot 39.7 percent (23 for 58). The Owls committed 23 turnovers while the Braves turned the ball over 29 times.
Alcorn State's Kiara Ruffin was sensational Wednesday night. Ruffin, preseason player of the year in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, made her first six shots including a perfect 4-for-4 from behind the three point line in the first half. Ruffin's 16 first-half points kept the Braves close to the Owls throughout the half. Ruffin finished the game with a game-high 31 points (12 for 20, 6 for 7 on threes).
"I was proud of they we hung in there because that's a physical team," Coach Williams said. "I told them at halftime 'It's going to another 20 minutes. You can't back down. Stay tough and strong.'
"In the past, we struggled in games like this."
Rice improves to 4-2 on the season. Alcorn State's record falls to 0-4. The Owls next game his Saturday, November 26, versus Arkansas-Little Rock. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
