University of Memphis Athletics
University of Memphis
3-12,1-3AAC
Rice
9-7,2-2AAC
Tigers Drop Low-Scoring Affair at Rice
Jan 12, 2025 | Women's Basketball
HOUSTON – Memphis women's basketball fell in a rock-fight game to Rice on Sunday afternoon at Tudor Fieldhouse, dropping the conference bout, 71-59.
The teams played evenly through the first two quarters, with Rice holding a 24-23 lead, but the Rice offense turned in a big third quarter to take an 11-point lead that would prove to be enough. Tanyuel Welch paced the Tigers with 16 points, 14 of which came in the second half, five assists and three steals; Tilly Boler added 14 points and two steals.
Memphis' zone defense caused a turnover on the first possession of the game, but the Owls found buckets on three of their next four possessions and jumped out to an 8-2 lead. After scoring through Layken Cox on their first trip, the Tigers missed their next seven attempts before Boler broke the ice with a putback at the rim. Neither team could buy a long ball, missing all of their combined 11 three-pointers in the opening quarter. Memphis went on a 6-0 run late in the quarter before the bonus-aided Owls got to the line to make it 14-10.
Tamya Smith made an instant impact off the bench in the second stanza, checking in and getting to the free throw line immediately to end a 2:13 minute scoring drought. Both teams got their first three-pointer to go after 17 minutes, as Boler – who had seven points on 3-for-3 shooting in the period – drained a trey to make the score 24-21 just before halftime.
Rice turned their shooting struggles around after the break, going 3-for-3 from deep and 9-for-14 from the field to total 27 points in the period. Shelby Hayes was a force in the paint for the Owls, pouring in 10 points and three rebounds on her way to a career-high-tying 18 points.
A 7-1 Rice run to open the fourth quarter gave them a 17-point advantage, but Memphis responded with a 16-6 run across five minutes to cut the deficit to 64-57 with just under two minutes to go. The Owls did not make a field goal in the final four minutes of the game but converted at the line on enough opportunities to seal the victory.
Rice shot 41% from the field with the Tigers shooting 34%; the biggest discrepancy came at the free throw line, where the Owls took 16 more attempts, and the glass, where Memphis could only grab a season-low 26 boards to Rice's 48.
In addition to Hayes' 18 points, guard Victoria Flores also had a season-high 22 points to go with six rebounds and two assists. Hayes (14) and Malia Fisher (10) combined for exactly half of the Owls rebounds.
The Tigers will head home to prepare for UTSA, who are still undefeated in conference play. The game will tip at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 15, 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.
