Feb. 4, 2007

Final Stats

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HOUSTON (AP) - Morris Almond scored 21 of his game-high 34 points in the second half to rally Rice to an 83-74 win over East Carolina on Saturday night.

Almond, who moved up two spots to become Rice's fifth all-time leading scorer, produced seven points in a pivotal 11-0 Owls run in the second half. That spree turned a 53-47 deficit into a 58-53 Owl lead that Rice never relinquished.

East Carolina (5-16, 0-8 Confernce USA) lost its eighth consecutive game and was beaten for the 15th time in its last 16 outings.

The Pirates closed the gap to 62-61 with 8:04 left on a basket by Cory Farmer, but the Owls scored nine of the next 10 points for a 71-62 cushion with 4:20 showing.

Rice (11-10, 5-3 Conference USA) made 11 consecutive free throws down the stretch to put the game away.

Owls' senior guard Lorenzo Williams added a season-high 20 points. East Carolina was led by Courtney Captain's 21 points while John Fields and Farmer each scored 15.

ECU built a nine-point first half lead and held a 42-37 halftime advantage, led by Captain's 13 first half points.

The Pirates shot a season-best 56.3 percent (27-of-48) from the field and made 9-of-17 3-point shots. However they also committed 21 turnovers and sent the Owls to the line 38 times, where they made 30 free throws.