For the first time in years, Houston will meet crosstown rival Rice for a road matchup at a site other than Autry Court, but don’t expect Houston head coach Tom Penders to lament the change of venue.
Since taking over the Cougars’ program in 2004, Penders has dropped all three of his meetings with Rice at Autry Court. However, that’s only a small blip in the Cougars’ woes at their rival’s home – the team hasn’t won there since Jan. 13, 1996.
Houston’s effort at Autry Court last season might have been one of their worst ever. The Cougars led by as many as 24 points in that contest, but allowed the Owls to rally for a stunning 76-71 victory.
When Houston (13-3, 2-0 Conference USA) faces Rice at 7 p.m. tonight at Reliant Arena, Penders and Co. will attempt to put their past failures at Autry Court behind them and go for their third consecutive win.
"Autry, with its past set up, was kind of a weird gym and it gave (the Owls) a home court edge," Penders said. "It gave them a good 10 points."
Rice (3-14, 0-4) hasn’t played in Autry Court this season because the venue is undergoing renovations that won’t be completed until next year. Because of the renovations, the Rice volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball teams were forced to host games at different venues this year.
The Owls’ men’s basketball team has played its home contests at Reliant Arena, the Leonard E. Merrell Center and the Toyota Center. The moving has only served to make it a disappointing season for the Owls, who enter tonight’s matchup as losers of seven consecutive games and nine of their last 10.
The Owls lost the core of last season’s 16-16 team with the graduations of Morris Almond, Lorenzo Williams and Greg Killings. No loss was bigger than that of Almond, a first-round draft pick of the Utah Jazz, who was the nation’s third-leading scorer with 26.4 points per game last season.
This season’s team has been hobbled by a slew of injuries that has decimated its starting lineup and depth. The situation became so bad that Rice head coach Willis Wilson had to petition for the services of two football players – tight end Chance Talbert and receiver Pierre Beasley. A former player, guard Chris Szalay, agreed to return as a walk-on after receiving a phone call for help from forward Paulius Packevicius.
All things considered, Houston should have little trouble beating the hapless Owls.
Penders, however, doesn’t expect his team to take Rice for granted.
"We have five seniors on this team, so I don’t worry about overlooking anybody," Penders said. "We know that Rice gets up for us, and we have to come ready to play."
In addition to the seniors, Penders has also come to expect similar output from sophomore transfer guard Kelvin Lewis.
Lewis has consistently put up decent numbers since entering the rotation on Nov. 24. He’s scored in double figures in four of the last five games, including a season-high 17 points in Saturday’s 77-72 win over UTEP, and has played well on defense.
Lewis could be a huge factor in tonight’s outcome.
"He plays with such enthusiasm and all-out hustle that it gets to be contagious," Penders said. "Over the last four or five games, he’s been our most consistent player. He’s making the best of his opportunities and I’m very happy for him."
