Tulane University
Rice
Rice Knocks Off Tulane, 61-52, in Women's Basketball
Jan 7, 2007 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 7, 2007
NEW ORLEANS - With 19 points and 19 rebounds from Valeriy Berezhynska, Rice handed the Tulane women's basketball team its second Conference USA loss, 61-52, Sunday at Fogelman Arena in a nationally televised game on CSTV. Senior guard Jami Montagnino led Tulane again with 19 points.
The Owls closed out the game with a 14-4 run in the final 6:06 after Tulane had erased an 10-point halftime deficit.
Junior forward Dominique Philpots followed up her first career double-double with another double-digit rebounding effort, finishing with 11 boards and a career-high tying four blocked shots.
Tulane falls to 12-4 overall, 1-2 in Conference USA while Rice improves to 8-8 overall and 1-2 in C-USA.
Berezhynska scored 19 points and owned the defensive glass with 15 defensive boards and 19 total rebounds. The Owls held Tulane to just 28.8 percent from the field (19-of-66)
Sophomore guard Ashley Langford chipped in five assists, while Montagnino added four helpers and four steals. Senior guard D'Aundra Henry added five steals and seven points, but struggled from the field.
The Owls jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the early going, before a reverse lay-up by Langford pulled the Wave to within 9-8. But Rice responded with a 9-0 run and maintained a 23-15 lead with 6:52 to go in the half.
Tulane recorded back-to-back turnovers and made a run, but a jumper by Maudess Fulton gave Rice a 31-21 lead at intermission. The Wave shot just 22.2 percent (8-of-36) in the first 20 minutes. Berezhynska paced Rice with 11 points in the first, while Montagnino led Tulane with 10 points and three steals.
The Wave erased the 10-point margin to two with a 17-5 spurt to start the second half, tying the game 36-36. A three-pointer by Nikki Luckhurst gave Tulane the lead, 39-38, with 15:03 to go.
The Owls responded by holding Tulane scoreless for 6:20, taking a 46-40 lead on a jumper by Berezhynska. But Tulane surged back with an 8-1 run, taking the lead on a lay-up by Megan Valicevic.
And `and-one' from Rice's Krystal Frazier gave the Owls a 55-49 lead with 3:05 remaining, and the Wave could only score three points the rest of the way.
Luckhurst finished with seven points and a pair of assists.
Tulane takes to the road for C-USA action at Tulsa (Friday, January 12, 7 p.m.) and at SMU (Sunday, January 14, 4 p.m.). The match-up with the SMU Mustangs will air live on ESPN2, Tulane's second national TV appearance in eight days.
