Western Kentucky’s Ivy Brown tallied her 30th career double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds and Tashia Brown added a game-high 23 points, but WKU could not overcome a strong fourth quarter from Rice in a 73-58 setback Saturday at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston.

The Lady Toppers (18-6, 9-2 Conference USA) had their six-game winning streak snapped with the defeat. WKU capitalized off 14 Rice (18-4, 8-2 C-USA) turnovers, scoring 19 points off the giveaways, but was unable to overcome shooting just 25 percent (8-of-32) from the field in the second half.

Tashia Brown, a C-USA Player of the Year candidate, finished 8-for-11 from the free-throw line and added four rebounds and a pair of assists. Ivy Brown pulled down 13 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end of the floor, and knocked down six of her 13 shots on the afternoon.

Erica Ogwumike led the way for Rice with a double-double of 19 points and 15 rebounds. Gabrielle Stanton (18 points) and Lauren Grigsby (12) joined her in double figures.

After the first six minutes of the game, Rice jumped out to a 10-6 lead behind six early points from Erica Ogwumike. Despite the early deficit, WKU fought back with 10 unanswered points to take its first lead of the day. A pair of 3-pointers from Dee Givens and Whitney Creech keyed the run for the Lady Toppers, and Ivy Brown’s layup with 1:26 on the clock put WKU ahead 16-10.

WKU maintained its edge through the end of the first quarter, but an 8-0 run that spanned into the second frame by the Owls erased the Lady Topper lead. Back-to-back triples from Olivia Ogwumike and Sydne Wiggins put Rice up 22-18 before Tashia Brown’s free throw with 8:39 remaining halted the run and pulled WKU back within one possession.

The Lady Toppers briefly retook a 23-22 lead just over one minute later, but Rice fired off another 8-0 run to build its largest lead of the day to that point. WKU was able to trim the lead back to two points with 3:46 left before halftime but was not able to get any closer as the Owls carried a 39-34 lead into the locker room.

Throughout the third quarter, the two sides remained within single digits of each other except for one occasion when Rice’s Grigsby put the Owls up 51-40 with 3:48 left. Ivy Brown immediately answered with a 3-pointer for the Lady Toppers, and WKU closed the gap to four points on Creech’s jumper with less than 30 seconds heading into the fourth quarter.

After Rice rebuilt an 11-point lead just under three minutes into the final frame, five quick points from Tashia Brown pulled WKU back within six points 60-54. WKU didn’t close the gap any further as Rice claimed the 73-58 win.

Following Saturday’s tilt, WKU will renew its rivalry with Middle Tennessee for the 72nd time in program history Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Earlier this season, WKU picked up a 57-43 win over the Blue Raiders in Bowling Green and has won each of the last four meetings in the series dating back to Feb. 25, 2016, despite a 41-30 Middle Tennessee lead in the series.