Tigers can’t withstand Owls’ rally, fall 71-58

For the first time since Jan. 20, The University of Memphis Tigers returned to Elma Neal Roane Fieldhouse on Sunday looking to continue their four-game winning streak in Conference USA play.
The Rice Owls would have none of it.
The Tigers (18-7, 7-4 C-USA) started strong and jumped out to a 10-2 lead after a 3-pointer from senior Alex Winchell.  But Rice caught fire at the right time in the second half and outscored the Tigers 21-11 over the final eight minutes of the contest to win, 71-58.
"We really weren't committed to being a defensive team today," U of M coach Melissa McFerrin said.  "We knew coming in that their post players were their highlight players and we didn't do a good job on the defensive end today."
Memphis got a strong first half out of junior post player Jasmine Lee, who notched a double-double by halftime (15 points, 10 rebounds) and altered a number of Rice shots due to her presence in the lane. Rice got a boost from Morgan Mayse, who scored 10 of her 15 points in the first half.
The Tigers took a 31-28 advantage into the break.
Rice's scoring woes continued into the second half, and they didn't score until the 17:20 mark. Unfortunately, Memphis couldn't capitalize, and their then-six point lead would be its largest of the second half. Rice slowly began to whittle the lead down, trading possessions with the Tigers for much of the second half until a Jessica Kuster jumper with 9:14 left in the half gave the Owls their first lead of the second half.
The Tigers trailed by three, 50-47, with eight minutes to go when Rice's offense came alive. A three by Jessica Goswitz sparked the Owl offense, which got triples from five different Owls (15-10, 7-4 C-USA) on consecutive offensive trips to help chip away at the Tigers' lead.
"We just lost control of the (C-USA) race today with a home loss to Rice," said McFerrin.  "They're now in the driver's seat when it comes to tie-breakers with us. Over the next five games we need to understand that we have to play with a sense of urgency about how we play."
Lee finished the game with 19 points and 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season.  Before Sunday's game, Carter needed 15 points to reach 1,000 for her career. She finished with 11. Carter and Lee were the only Tigers in double figures.
Sunday marked the first time since Jan. 27 that fewer than three Tigers scored in double-digits.
The Tigers will regroup and head south for two road games this week beginning with Southern Miss on Thursday and then a televised game with Tulane on Sunday.