Rice recognized at NBA game Saturday night

The Rice Owls and Mississippi State Bulldogs football teams took some time off Saturday night to watch the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies play the Denver Nuggets on the Grizzlies’ home court at the downtown FedExForum.

At halftime Rice head football coach David Bailiff, Rice athletics director Joe Karlgaard, Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen and Bulldogs athletics director Scott Stricklin were recognized at center court. The Grizzlies offered best wishes to both teams in Tuesday’s AutoZone Liberty Bowl and presented the school officials with Grizzlies jerseys.

During a timeout in the second quarter of the basketball game, Owls freshman wide receiver Zach Wright and senior wide receiver Andre Gautreaux beat a pair of Bulldogs players in a game of 30-second two-ball. The Owls won the competition 14-7.

The Grizzlies capped the night off by beating the Nuggets 120-99.

See photographs and a video of the Grizzlies outing below.

The Rice Owls will play Mississippi State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at 3 p.m. Dec. 31. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. Rice News will be posting daily stories, videos and pictures of the Owls’ adventures in Memphis and game preparations on its Liberty Bowl Central page. A list of alumni watch parties across the country can be found here. If you tweet about the Owls during bowl week, please use the hash tag #RiceFight.