WBB falls at home to Rice at buzzer

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From SMUMustangs.com:

SMU Falls To Rice At The Buzzer

DALLAS (SMU)- The SMU women's basketball team fell to Rice 65-63 on Sunday afternoon in Moody Coliseum.

Amirah Abdur-Rahim led SMU (7-7; 1-2 AAC) with a career-high 24 points. The senior forward grabbed seven rebounds, blocked four shots, and passed out three assists. Reagan Bradley scored 12 points and added four assists, three steals, and a rebound. Tiara Young tallied double-digit points for the 12th time in 14 games with 12 points. Young grabbed three rebounds and finished with a season-high three steals and two blocks.

Tamia Jones scored three points, grabbed a season-high seven boards, and dished out six assists. Jiya Perry added five points, three rebounds, and an assist, and Maya Chandler finished with four points, two rebounds, and an assist. TK Pitts chipped in three points, two boards, and an assist.

Abdur-Rahim finished in traffic to start the fourth. Rice extended its lead back to eight before another Abdur-Rahim bucket kept SMU within striking distance. The Mustangs used six unanswered to cut their deficit to two with 5:17 remaining in the game and force a Rice timeout. Young and Abdur-Rahim knocked down back-to-back buckets out of the pause to extend the run to 10-0 and give SMU a two-point lead. Bradley drilled one from behind the arc to force a Rice timeout with the Mustangs leading 58-57. Abur-Rahim tied the game up at 63 apiece with 46 seconds remaining. Rice's Destiny Jackson hit a layup as time expired to seal the win.

SMU started the second half scoring six straight points, beginning with a Young finish in transition off a steal from Abdur-Rahim. SMU scored five field goals on as many possessions, highlighted by three buckets from Abdur-Rahim, a three-pointer from Bradley, and a finish from Perry to head into the media timeout tied at 39 apiece. The Owls hit two triples out of the break to extend their lead to six. Abdur-Rahim rolled off a screen and finished an and-one layup to bring the Mustangs back within two with a minute and a half left in the quarter. Rice took a six-point lead into the fourth.

Bradley dished to a cutting Jones, who finished a layup to halt a 6-0 Rice run midway through the second. The Owls continued their run to take a 29-17 lead. A pair of free throws from Bradley and a bucket from Abdur-Rahim cut the deficit to eight points. SMU trailed 31-23 at the half. Rice scored seven unanswered after Abdur-Rahim made a layup to start the game. A finish from Abdur-Rahim, a three from Perry, and a pull-up jumper from Bradley gave SMU seven straight points that tied the game at 11. The Owls scored the final four points of the frame to lead 15-11 entering the second.

NEXT GAME
at Memphis– Thursday, Jan. 11 – 7 p.m. CT- Moody Coliseum
TV: ESPN+

NOTES
Starters vs Rice: #0 Tamia Jones, #13 Reagan Bradley, #1 Tiara Young, #10 Maya Chandler, #23 Amirah Abdur-Rahim
Second time with this starting lineup, 1-1 record with this lineup
SMU recorded more assists than its opponent for the ninth time this season
SMU recorded more blocks than its opponent for the ninth time this season
SMU outshot its opponent from the field for the 10th time this season. The Mustangs entered the afternoon shooting 45% from the field, which ranked second in the American and 59th nationally
SMU had fewer turnovers than its opponent for the seventh time this season
SMU scored more points in the paint than its opponent for the eighth time this season
SMU recorded more steals than its opponent for the ninth time this season
SMU is 7-4 in Moody Coliseum

SERIES HISTORY
Sunday was the 72nd meeting between the two programs. The series is tied 36-36

MILESTONE ALERT
Reagan Bradley moved to No. 5 on SMU's all-time assists list. She needed one entering the night
SMU Career Assists
489 Suzanne McAnally 1989-92
481 Kendall Shead 2003-06
462 Karen Blair 1995-99
435 Brittany Gilliam 2006-10
372 Reagan Bradley 2019-24
368 Missy Parker 1990-93
327 Tomi Hollis 1983-86
319 Alisha Filmore 2009-13

ADDITIONAL INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Tamia Jones (#0, Sr., G)
3 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists
Season-high seven rebounds
Passed out five plus assists for the seventh time this season
Tiara Young (#1 Gr., G)
12 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks
Scored double-digit points for the 12th time in 14 games
Season-high three steals
Season-high two blocks
Reagan Bradley (#13, Gr., G)
12 points, 4 assists, 3 steals, 1rebound
Moved to No. 5 on SMU's all-time assists list. Needed one entering the night. Tied No. 5 with seven assists on Thursday against Florida Atlantic
Season-high three steals
Scored double-digit points for the seventh time this season and second consecutive game
Amirah Abdur-Rahim (#23, Sr., F)
24 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks, 3 assists, 1 steal
Scored a career-high 24 points
Scored double-digit points for the 10th time this season and seventh game in a row
Tied career-high with 3 assists
Fifth game with three plus blocks
Maya Chandler (#10, Sr., G)
4 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Jiya Perry (#4, So. G)
5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist
TK Pitts (#2, So., G)
3 points, 2 rebounds, 1assist, 1 steal