RUSTON – Louisiana Tech heads to Houston on Thursday to take on Rice at 7 p.m. inside Tudor Fieldhouse. With four league games remaining, the Bulldogs are tied for second in the West Division standings.
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Thursday, Feb. 24 | 7 p.m. CT
Location: Tudor Fieldhouse (Houston, Texas)
TV/Stream: Stadium (
HERE)
Radio: 107.5 FM | LA Tech Athletics app
Stats: LATechSports.com (
HERE)
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (19-7, 10-4 C-USA)
LA Tech led wire-to-wire this past Saturday against UTSA, jumping out to an early 21-3 lead and ultimately winning by a final score of 95-71. The Bulldogs exploded for 53 second-half points, building as much as a 28-point lead to pick up their 10th conference win (eighth time in the last 10 seasons with double-digit league victories. They also dished out a season-high 21 assists.
The 'Dogs made 13 three-pointers in the win over the Roadrunners, tied for the second most this season and the 11th time they have made at least 10 in a single game. They are currently averaging 9.36 made three-pointers per game during league play, the most of any team in the conference.
Keaston Willis went off for a season-high 30 points, going 8-of-12 from beyond the arc. He became just the third Bulldog in program history to make at least eight three-pointers in a single game. He also became the third Bulldog this season to record a 30-point game.
The shooting guard is averaging 12.3 points per game, having scored in double figures in nine of the last 10 games.
Kenneth Lofton, Jr. continues to pace the team in scoring at 16.8 points per game.
Amorie Archibald (13.2 ppg) and
Cobe Williams (11.1 ppg) are also averaging double figures.
ABOUT RICE (14-12, 6-8 C-USA)
Rice sits in fifth place in the West Division standings, having lost three in a row to North Texas, UAB and FIU. Most recently, they narrowly fell to the Panthers in Miami by a final score of 80-78.
The Owls are an offensive juggernaut at home in Tudor Fieldhous, averaging 77.8 points while shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 39.5 percent from three-point range. They are 9-4 at home this season, having scored 80+ points eight times.
They continue to be one of the nation's best three-point shooting teams. They are shooting 38.2 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks first in C-USA and 13th in the country. They average 9.6 made three-pointers per game, second most in the league, and have made 10+ threes in 14 games.
Rice is anchored offensively by the guard duo of Carl Pierre and Travis Evee who are averaging 14.6 and 14.5 points per game, respectively. They have combined to make 149 three-pointers this season.
THE SERIES
LA Tech is 19-7 all-time versus Rice, having won four straight including an 80-63 win in Ruston about a month ago. Since becoming C-USA opponents, the Bulldogs have won 12 of the 14 matchups. The two losses have been the last two meetings in Houston (2017 and 2019).
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