Tulane (11-6, 1-2 Conference USA) vs. Rice Owls (3-13, 0-3 C-USA)
Saturday, January 19th, 2008 5 pm
Fogelman Arena
Overview: Coming off an overtime win against Tulsa on the road, the Wave host the Rice Owls this Saturday. This will mark the first of a two game homestand for the Wave. The Wave are looking for their first conference victory at home this year, after a heartbreaking loss to UAB 62-61 in the opener. This is the first of two meetings between these two teams as Tulane will travel to Houston in two weeks.
Last Meeting: The Wave split their two games against Rice last season. The Owls defeated the Wave 75-70 in overtime in the first meeting, but Tulane was able to avenge the loss by blowing out Rice in Fogelman Arena 75-55.
Scouting Rice: To say that Rice has struggled so far is an understatement. The Owls are coming off of a 77-50 loss to #3 Memphis and haven't come close to winning a game thus far in conference play. The Owls have struggled without Morris Almond, who is now plying his trade for the Utah Jazz in the NBA. Couple that with 'home' games that are actually away from their campus due to renovations have led to their rapid fall. While their usually is a silver lining, their simply isn't one for the Owls, who have been blown out in most of their losses. Paulius Packevicius is the only player to average double figures in points with 10.4, and the Owls average just 55.4 points as a team.
Player to Watch: The team seems to go as Kevin Sims goes. Against a seemingly overmatched Rice squad, Sims will have to manage the Wave offense to avoid the upset. The Wave as a team, must also not overlook their opponent as they did against Alabama State in the first half.
Prediction: If the Wave plays like they should play, Wave in a rout 70-50.
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