Fresno State
Rice
Harris' Big Night Helps Rice Down Fresno State 76-68
2/21/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 21, 2005
FRESNO, Calif. - Michael Harris had 30 points, including 22 in the second half, to lift Rice to a 76-68 victory over Fresno State in a Western Athletic Conference game Monday.Harris had eight of the last 10 points for the Owls (14-10, 8-6), who moved into a tie for third place in the league standings with Louisiana Tech.
Fresno State (14-11, 8-7) dropped into fifth place, just one-half game ahead of sixth-place SMU.
Ahead 64-61 with 3 minutes left, Harris made a turnaround jumper from 13 feet to put the Owls up five. After Fresno State had cut the lead to 66-64, Harris converted a short jumper in the lane to increase Rice's advantage to four.
Harris also grabbed rebounds off missed one-and-one free throw opportunities in the final minute, both times converting the miss into a layup. The second rebound and putback came off his own missed free throw.
Rice shot 48.4 percent in the game, including 53.3 percent in the second half, compared to just 39.3 for the Bulldogs. The Owls finished the game on an 18-7 run.
Rice also outrebounded Fresno State 42-29 in the contest.
After Rice used a 12-2 run to jump out to an early 21-12 lead, Fresno State closed the first half by outscoring the Owls 24-13. The Bulldogs took a 36-34 lead into halftime.
The Owls outscored the Bulldogs 32-12 in the paint in the game. Mustafa Al-Sayyad and Donovan Morris scored 14 points apiece to lead Fresno State, which dropped to 14-11 (8-7 WAC). Al-Sayyad added nine rebounds, and Kevin Bell had nine assists.
Brock Gillespie had 15 points, and Jason McKrieth added 14 for the Owls. The game featured 17 lead changes and six ties as Rice topped Fresno State for the fourth straight time and sixth time in the team's past seven meetings.
