Basketball, Sports

Women’s basketball rebounds with win over Vermont

Junior guard Clodagh Scannell scored 13 points in BU’s win over Vermont Saturday afternoon. PHOTO BY FALON MORAN/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Junior guard Clodagh Scannell scored 13 points in BU’s win over Vermont Saturday afternoon. PHOTO BY FALON MORAN/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF

The Boston University women’s basketball team bounced back from a tough loss against Boston College Thursday night, defeating the University of Vermont, 66-61, Saturday afternoon at Case Gym.

Sophomore forward Meghan Green again led the way for the Terriers, scoring 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Green has had three straight double-digit scoring games, as she teamed with redshirt junior guard Troi Melton to combine for the Terrier’s first 13 points in the contest.

“We know that we’re going to get scoring from Meg and defense and aggressiveness from Troi,” said BU coach Katy Steding. “I feel like we’ve got all the pieces to be successful, and it’s just about how well we can put it together.”

The Terriers (2-2) got off to a hot start, opening the game on a 13-6 run, punctuated by a 3-pointer from Green at 15:22.

The Catamounts (0-3) would not roll over as the first half progressed, as guard Kylie Butler hit a trey with 2:21 remaining and senior guard Tierra Shumpert hit a pair of free throws to cut into the Terriers’ lead.

The half ended with the Terriers leading 33-25, as the team shot 60 percent (3-of-5) from behind the 3-point line and 39.4 percent (13-of-33) from the field.

To start the second half, Green knocked down a jumper in the opening minutes to give the Terriers a 10-point lead at 37-27 with 18:22 on the clock.

Vermont would once again answer back, as forward Kayla Burchill tied the game at 44-44 with a 3-pointer at 11:51 left in the game. She then gave the Catamounts their first lead in the second half with a pair of free throws at 11:05 to make it a 46-44 contest.

The Terriers would not give in, as sophomore guard Courtney Latham knotted the game at 48 apiece with a jumper at 8:41, and junior guard Clodagh Scannell gave the Terriers the lead back at 50-48 with two free throws just over a minute later.

The Terriers would never lead for more than 5 points until 44 seconds remaining in the game, as the Catamounts continued to claw themselves back into the game.

“I keep trying to tell them, ‘We’ll manage the flow of the game at the end, but you can’t let the game separate from you. You can’t dig yourself a hole and then try to climb out of it,’” Steding said.

While the Catamounts kept the pressure on the Terriers, Latham was able to put the game away with a pair of free throws with 25 seconds remaining, giving the Terriers a 64-56 lead that they would not give up.

“We got a better start, which was really important to use tonight. We wanted to run more and get out, some adjustments that we made helped pay off in that department,” Steding said. “We’re really improving every day.”

The victory over Vermont seals a trying slate of contests that saw the Terriers play four games in eight days to open the 2014-15 campaign.

“It moves so fast that we have to celebrate, and then it’s back to work,” Steding said. “We’ve had this stretch of games where this is really tough for a young team with only 10 pairs of feet. I’m really thankful that no one got hurt during this stretch.”

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