HOUSTON, TX --The Prairie View A&M women's basketball team got a 28-point performance from the bench, but fell 85-59 to the Rice Owls on the road Saturday.

The Panthers (3-5) had two players score in double figures, led by Ryann Payne, who had 12 points and two steals. Nyam Thornton added 10 points off the bench and Jada Roberson added six points and seven rebounds.

Gerlyn Smith pulled down three offensive rebounds to pace an offense that racked up second-chance opportunities for Prairie View A&M, grabbing 15 boards and turning them into 13 second-chance points.

Prairie View A&M did a great job disrupting Rice shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. Jessica Soders led the way individually for the Panthers with three rejections.

How It Happened

Prairie View A&M struggled out of the gate, falling behind 27-19 at the end of the first quarter.

The Panthers continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 46-28 halftime deficit.

Rice continued to increase its lead after halftime, building a 53-28 advantage before Prairie View A&M went on a 6-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Smith, to trim its deficit to 53-34 with 5:14 to go in the third. Rice countered and stretched its lead to 67-40 heading into the fourth. Prairie View A&M played well near the basket, scoring eight of its 12 points in the paint.

Rice kept widening its lead in the fourth, constructing a 76-43 advantage before Prairie View A&M went on an 11-0 run to shrink the deficit to 76-54 with 3:06 to go in the contest. Rice responded and outscored the Panthers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 85-59. Prairie View A&M got a boost from its bench in the period, with non-starters scoring 12 of its 19 total points.

Game Notes

» The Prairie View A&M bench made an impact by scoring 28 points to its scoring output.
» Ryann Payne and Nyam Thornton came off the bench to score 12 and 10 points, respectively.
» The Panthers were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording five blocks as a team.
» Prairie View A&M cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 15 offensive boards in the game.
» Ryann Payne led the Panthers with 12 points.
» Prairie View A&M got a team-high 7 rebounds from Jada Roberson.