The Rice Lady Owls held off Arkansas State to advance to the second round of the Womens National Invitation Tournament with a 59-52 win Thursday night at the Convocation Center.
Freshman Lauren Neaves scored her seventh double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Lindsey Maynard dropped in a team-high 15 points and Amber Cunningham added 11 to lead Rice.
Rice will play at UNLV Sunday afternoon. The Lady Owls second-round WNIT game can be heard in Houston on 91.7 FM (KTRU).
In other WAC WNIT action, Memphis Victoria Crawford sank two free throws with 1:25 remaining and the Lady Tigers held off Tulsa, 66-64.
In its first-ever postseason appearance, Tulsa trailed 66-64 with 0:12 remaining in the contest and had a chance to tie or take the lead on the games final possession. TU inbounded the ball to sophomore Kara Pongonis on the right side and the second-year guard dribbled to the left side past a double screen. However, Memphis defenders snuffed out the play and never gave Pongonis a good look at the basket, and her last second heave came never reached the rim.
Tulsa concluded the most successful season in school history with a 19-12 overall record, while Memphis advanced to the second round and improved to 21-9 on the year.