Basketball, Sports

Terriers earn overtime victory in road contest against Red Foxes

Riding a three-game win streak into Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Saturday, the Boston University women’s basketball team (7–3) endured a hard-fought battle that ended in a 62–56 overtime victory over Marist College.

Leading all scorers was senior guard Mo Moran, who scored 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting and also added six assists and five rebounds.

The Terriers had four players in double figures Saturday night, as junior forward Rashidat Agboola, senior guard Chantell Alford and junior guard Danielle Callahan each played well offensively.

As time expired at the end of the second half, Alford got a shot off that would have served as the go-ahead score for the Terriers, but she missed and the game moved into overtime.

Held to just nine points in regulation, Alford, the Terriers’ leading scorer, made a critical layup in the overtime’s opening minutes and was fouled to give BU a 54–51 lead. With its next possession, Alford connected on a mid-range jumper to extend the Terrier lead to 56–51.

They would not let up, as they sank foul shots late in the game to solidify the victory.

Looking ahead to Monday night, the Terriers will host a surging Harvard University team in Case Gymnasium.

Also riding a four-game winning streak, the Crimson (7–2) have been gelling offensively of late and are averaging just fewer than 70 points per contest. On the strength of a strong back court, the Crimson currently have three players averaging 10 or more points per game.

Their leading scorer, guard Christine Clarke, is averaging 17.6 points per game and three assists.

“Every single year they’re a very good offensive team,” said BU coach Kelly Greenberg. “They always have very solid players who are well-skilled and can really shoot it.”

As a team, the Crimson are currently shooting 46 percent from the floor and 44 percent from beyond the arc. In their season opener, they hit nine 3-pointers in an 80–62 victory at the College of the Holy Cross.

Defensively, the Crimson are giving up just under 63 points per game, holding opponents to 40 percent shooting and forcing nine steals per game.

“We’re going to play our man-to-man like we have been,” Greenberg said. “We’re going to take it one possession at a time and just try to keep them to their weaknesses.”

The Terriers, meanwhile, will be looking to stay ahead in the turnover margin. They are currently averaging 15 takeaways per game for a plus-3 turnover margin.

They will also need to remain solid in their stout perimeter defense and help out their forwards down low if they are going to contain the high-powered Crimson offense.

One of the Terriers to look out for will be Agboola. Agboola is currently on a three-game double-double streak dating back to Dec. 1 when she dominated the St. John’s defense on BU’s way to a blowout victory.

Agboola has been able to consistently have her way in the paint, which has forced the opposing defense to focus on her, thus opening up the Terriers’ shooters who have been able to knock down open jump shots. In Saturday night’s contest, Agboola recorded 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting and pulled down 11 boards.

Along with Agboola, Moran will also play a major role if the Terriers are to come out victorious.

Leading the team in assists at over six per game, Moran will have to continue to be sharp with her decision-making and crisp with her passes against a team that averages nine steals per game.

This is BU’s third-to-last non-conference game before America East play starts Jan. 2.

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