McGhee, Johnson lead men in exhibiton

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by John Fredland

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The teams combined to hit a mere 31 percent of their shots. Take away the contributions of Tommy McGhee, who scored 21 points, and Robert Johnson, who scored 13, and the Owls made only three of 31 shots from the floor.

Throw in a combined 29 turnovers -- including 17 by Rice -- and you have a score unseen since the days when they played without a shot clock.

However, Rice should get better. The Owls will gain some size and stability when Shaun Igo and Kevin Nanney return from injuries. They are expected to be ready for the team's first regular season game.

Because of their absences, Head Coach Willis Wilson was forced to use several unconventional lineup combinations. Only one true inside player, Scott Oliver, saw action -- everyone else was 6-5 or shorter.

"You should consider that, at any one time, we have four guys playing out of position, and we ask them to do things that they haven't done before," Wilson said.

"You have to realize that we haven't had many scrimmage opportunities. This is the first chance we've really had to shuttle guys in and out of combinations. The bottom line is, late in the game, they wanted to win."

The lack of an inside game hurt Rice. The Owls hit only seven baskets from inside the paint.

"There's no question about it, what we don't have now is an inside game," Wilson said.

"We are trying to create an inside game with perimeter players. You can play in and around the basket through dribble penetration and trying to slash guys to the basket, but the bottom line is that you have to finish in there."

Tommy McGhee provided a beacon of light in the middle of the offensive darkness. He hit nine of 14 shots, including three three-pointers. McGhee's three-pointer, with 9:10 to play, gave Rice a never-to-be relinquished 37-35 lead.

McGhee, however, was hampered by foul trouble and only played 26 minutes before fouling out.

Robert Johnson, who sat out last season as a redshirt, offered some support by providing inside scoring and rebounding.

Johnson also showed he could excel at the more mundane aspects of the game -- his two free throws, with 2.32 seconds to go, provided Rice with some breathing room.

"Robert Johnson showed some resiliency and poise, especially for a freshman," Wilson said.

"He had a couple of really good rebounds, a good put-back, and he stepped up and hit some big free throws at the end, something you don't see too many freshmen do."

The Owls started off as though they were going to run away from Cairns, who lost to Texas A&M Univeristy by 10 in the first game of its tour.

Rice scored the first six points of the game. After Troy Boundy countered with a basket, the Owls scored the next 11 points. Chad Michael's basket with 10:21 to play in the half gave Rice a 17-2 lead.

The Owls lost their early advantage in a stream of turnovers and poor shooting. Cairns capitalized with a 17-6 run to cut the gap to 23-19 late in the half.

After Rice expanded to a 32-24 lead with 17:04 to play in the game, Cairns responded with an 11-2 run to take its only lead of the night.

Rice hosts the Conoco Oilers tonight at 7:35 p.m.

This item appeared in the Sports section of the November 17, 1995 issue.

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