Jan. 22, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Sophomore Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.) posted her eighth double-double of the season with 15 points and 17 rebounds as UCF (6-12, 4-1 C-USA) returned home in dominating fashion, building a 21-point second half lead and cruising to a 77-52 victory over visiting Rice (5-13, 0-5 C-USA) Thursday night at UCF Arena. Sophomore Chelsie Wiley (Riviera Beach, Fla.) led all scorers with 19 points on the night.
The 25-point win was the Knights' highest margin of victory in a Conference USA game. With its fourth league win, UCF surpasses its Conference USA win total from each of the previous two seasons and maintains its spot in a tie for first place in the league standings.
After Rice cut an early 15-6 UCF lead to six, the Knights used stifling defense and a balanced offensive attack to rattle off a 17-2 run and lead 32-11 with 7:12 remaining in the opening half. Five different UCF players scored during the spurt, including seven from sophomore D'Nay Daniels (Atlanta, Ga.) off the bench.
The opening 20 minutes saw six different UCF players score at least six points, with Cannon, Daniels and sophomore Marshay White (Rochester, N.Y.) scoring seven apiece as the hosts led 41-20 at the break. While the 41 first-half points were a season high, it was the Knights' defense that was more impressive. The visiting Owls shot just 9-for-31 from the field en route to 20 points, a season low for a UCF foe.
Scoring the first nine points, UCF ensured the outcome of the game early in the second half and led 50-20 with 16:44 on the clock. The Knights' lead would reach as many as 34 (60-26) in the half, and Rice would get no closer than 21 the rest of the game.
Wiley did the majority of her damage in the second half to post her 10th-straight scoring effort in double figures. She hit 5-of-10 shots in the second half and scored 13 of her game-high 19 points after halftime.
For Cannon, it was a bounce back game after registering just eight points and six rebounds in UCF's loss at Southern Miss Sunday. The 6-foot-2 forward had seven points and 11 rebounds by the break, and added eight points and six more rebounds in the second. It was the fourth time this season Cannon has had at least 15 points and 15 rebounds in a game.
Freshman Aisha Patrick (Rockledge, Fla.) added 10 points, four rebounds and four steals for UCF while White finished with nine points. Sophomore Amber Kirkpatrick added eight points and a season-high nine rebounds for UCF, who held a 56-33 edge on the glass.
Senior Maudess Fulton finished with 19 points to lead Rice, who shot just 32.2 percent (19-59) for the game. UCF hit 10 more field goals than the Owls, knocking down 29-of-72 attempts from the field. The Knights connected on 17 of their 23 shots from the foul line.
UCF returns to the road Sunday, traveling to play at Houston at 3 p.m. eastern time. Houston fell to 11-6 overall Thursday night and 3-2 in league play with a 74-65 loss at Southern Miss. The game will be televised live in Orlando on Bright House Sports Network.
Season tickets for the UCF women's basketball program are currently on sale through the UCF ticket sales office. For more information about the arena's premium seating options, including club seats, group discounts, courtside tables and suites, contact the UCF ticket sales office at (407) UCF-1000 or visit the women's basketball ticket page at UCFAthletics.cstv.com/tickets/w-baskbl-tickets.html.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Newspaper Box Score
RICE vs UCF
1/22/09 7 p.m. at UCF Arena (Orlando, Fla.)
At UCF Arena (Orlando, Fla.)
UCF 77, RICE 52
RICE (5-13, 0-5 C-USA)
FULTON, Maudess 8-12 2-5 19; HYPOLITE, Brianna 2-3 3-6 8; HORNE, Shyrelle 2-4 2-4 6; ELLIOTT, Megan 1-15 2-2 5; CARTER, Emery 2-4 0-0 4; McKINNEY, Amenemope 2-4 0-0 4; WITTMAYER, Melissa 1-1 2-2 4; MAYSE, Morgan 1-7 0-0 2; ASHFORD, Candace 0-3 0-0 0; WATTS, Tara 0-6 0-0 0. Totals 19-59 11-19 52.
UCF (6-12, 4-1 C-USA)
Wiley, Chelsie 8-17 2-2 19; Cannon, Emma 6-12 3-5 15; Patrick, Aisha 3-8 4-5 10; White, Marshay 2-6 5-6 9; Kirkpatrick, Amber 3-5 2-2 8; Daniels, D'Nay 3-5 0-0 7; Mealing, Angelica 2-10 0-0 4; Stovall, Jasmine 1-1 1-2 3; Caldwell, Jelisa 1-6 0-0 2; Paige, Leah 0-0 0-0 0; Davis, Racine 0-0 0-1 0; Kelly, Ashia 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 29-72 17-23 77.
RICE........................... 20 32 - 52
UCF............................ 41 36 - 77
3-point goals--RICE 3-14 (ELLIOTT, Megan 1-5; HYPOLITE, Brianna 1-2; FULTON, Maudess 1-1; McKINNEY, Amenemope 0-1; MAYSE, Morgan 0-2; WATTS, Tara 0-3), UCF 2-8 (Wiley, Chelsie 1-4; Daniels, D'Nay 1-1; White, Marshay 0-1; Caldwell, Jelisa 0-2). Fouled out--RICE-None, UCF-None. Rebounds--RICE 33 (ELLIOTT, Megan 7), UCF 56 (Cannon, Emma 17). Assists--RICE 5 (HORNE, Shyrelle 2), UCF 9 (White, Marshay 2; Mealing, Angelica 2). Total fouls--RICE 17, UCF 16. Technical fouls--RICE-None, UCF-None. A-629