Ostensibly, the only thing that’s changed for Rice basketball is the year on the calendar.
Rice will again replace an assortment of transferred talent, which includes guards Trey Murphy III (Virginia) and Drew Peterson (USC). But coaches are confident they can incorporate eight new players without the usual five-on-five scrimmages or full team workouts they missed this summer because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We think we can be better,” coach Scott Pera said. “We don’t need to be a ton better, but we need to be a little better, and if we had been a little better last year we might have won 18 or 19 (games).”
Rice transformed from a team that struggled to win consecutive games to one that threatened and occasionally upset better teams last year. Veteran contributors who asserted themselves in their senior seasons and young guards like Murphy were critical. They provided timely and reliable shooting which Rice lacked in recent years.
Pera is optimistic that players on his 2020-21 squad will coalesce in a similar way.
Junior Payton Moore will emerge from the shadow of former point guard Ako Adams, whom he developed behind for two years. Moore is expected to lead the Owls offense in an expanded role this season.
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RICE
Coach: Scott Pera (35-60 in three seasons at Rice).
Last season: 15-17, 7-11, 11th in C-USA.
Player to watch: Guard Travis Evee, a transfer from VMI where he was the Southern Conference freshman of the year.
Chris Mullins, a 2019-20 Conference USA All-Freshman team selection, has also matured. Coaches anticipate that he’ll shake a sophomore slump and evolve into a primary contributor again.
The team loses players like Murphy, Peterson and Josh Parrish (University of San Diego), who brought perimeter shooting, solid defense, or both. But in its newcomers, Rice adds depth and size down low.
Redshirt junior Malik Ondigo was a member of Texas Tech’s 2019 NCAA Tournament runner-up team. Sophomore Max Fiedler will be joined by freshman Mylyjael Poteat and Boise State transfer Riley Abercrombie, whose NCAA waiver was approved last month.
“We have more of an impact near the rim,” Pera said. “We have three legitimate five men now so we won’t have to double the post as much, we can play one-on-one. Hopefully we'll be able to really rebound and outlet the ball with those guys. The other thing is we'll be able to throw it into them on the block and get a bucket every now and then.”
The additional size and stoppers will be a huge boon to Rice, whose opponents sported the second highest field goal percentage in Conference USA last season.
Mullins has arguably been the team’s best defender each of the past two seasons. Pera has high expectations for graduate transfer guard Tre Clark’s (Furman) defensive ability, as well as that of freshmen Noah Hutchins and Cameron Sheffield.
Pera believes the maturity, versatility and chemistry his team added this offseason will yield a higher winning percentage. Even if the Owls can’t score another waiver for Virginia Military Institute transfer Travis Evee, Pera believes they’ll have the tools to be a new and improved team.
“Offensively, we know what we want to do and who we are,” Pera said. “As long as the guys are the players we think they are, I think it will work itself out quicker than (one might expect).”
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November 21, 2020 at 09:30PM
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