The Rice Thresher

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January 20, 2006 > Opinion > Letters to the editor

Letters to the editor

Rice basketball coach thankful for fans

To the editor:

First and foremost, I would like to thank all the students for the effort and energy they have displayed thus far this season. My staff and the Rice Owl players have truly appreciated the love and support you have shown for the men’s basketball program.

I know our team has faced some tough losses, but we have had some major wins thanks in large part to the one thing that has been a constant: your team spirit. Through good and bad, you have made this an incredible journey, especially for our seniors, J.R. Harrison and Jamal Moore, who have carried our program to new heights during their tenure at Rice.

I would love for the seniors to go out in good fashion, so I hope you can continue the outstanding effort for our team’s upcoming games. We felt the energy the student body displayed Jan. 11 at Autry Court against the University of Houston, which was a game to remember. That is what makes the college basketball atmosphere great for players, coaches and fans alike.

Please find the time to support our guys for the upcoming games at Autry Court: Jan. 28 against Tulane University, Feb. 2 against the University of Central Florida, Feb. 4 against the highly ranked University of Memphis and the final home game of the season, March 4 versus Southern Methodist University.

The team is playing with more confidence as we enter the first weeks of conference play. Our young guys are maturing and becoming more consistent as we head down the toughest stretch of the season. Also, remember that our recent success has been because of the tremendous play of juniors Morris Almond and Lorenzo Williams, and Harrison.

Sophomore Patrick Britton has had as good of an improvement in his play as anyone thus far this season. Freshmen Rodney Foster and Cory Pflieger have been models of consistency with their play off the bench. We can’t forget the tough minutes that Aleks Perka, Matt Hagen, Greg Killings and Paulius Packevicius have put in to make our interior play effective on both ends of the floor.

And don’t forget that we are doing this without the play of one of our most important players, Moore, who sustained a broken toe against the University of Arkansas back in December.

We want to make sure we give our team every advantage we can. The race for the Conference USA title is still a close one, and one in which any one of four or five teams can challenge. This brief letter is primarily to show our appreciation and secondly to ask that you continue the effort through the upcoming home games this season.

Let your team get the momentum it needs to go for the C-USA regular-season title and become a real contender for the C-USA tournament championship, as well as the NCAA tournament. Good luck to all of our students, student-athletes and staff in the upcoming weeks, and thank you again for your support of Rice Owl basketball.

Willis Wilson Will Rice ‘82 Head men’s basketball coach

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