The Boston University women’s basketball team went into Wednesday night’s matchup against conference rival Colgate University looking to even up the season series after losing a double-overtime thriller back in January.
This time, the Terriers (11-14, 9-5 Patriot league) got the better of the Raiders (8-17, 5-9 Patriot League) 65-51 at Case Gym to extend their winning streak to four games.
“I think we were ready for the game,” said BU head coach Katy Steding. “We came out fired up and ready to play. Colgate absolutely deserved to win that game [in January]. They out-toughed us especially in the end, but we wanted to win this game. We made it a focus.”
The Terriers claimed the lead early in the first quarter, and they never looked back. Sophomore guard Naiyah Thompson got the ball rolling, going 4-5 from the field in the first half for eight points while adding two steals.
As a team, BU went 16-37 from the field in the first half. Thompson finished the game with 12 points on 66.7 percent shooting.
“Usually I try to start with defense and try to get stops,” Thompson said. “If I can get early buckets, I’ve got to do it.”
Junior center Sophie Beaudry added 10 points of her own on 50 percent shooting while also contributing six rebounds in the first half. She was a big reason the Terriers out-rebounded the Raiders 30 to 14 in the first half. Beaudry finished the game with a double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 10 rebounds on even 50 percent from the field.
Beaudry was one of three Terriers to have double-digit rebounds. Freshman forward Nia Irving led the team with a career-high 13 rebounds, while senior guard Courtney Latham had 10 boards and junior forward Corrine Williams had nine.
The Terriers had an eight-point run to end the first quarter, which ended with BU leading 16-5. The Terriers added to this run by scoring an additional four unanswered points at the start of the second quarter. At the end of the first half, BU led 33-16.
In the third quarter the Terriers came out strong, scoring 20 points to cement their lead.
The bench made contributions as well, as senior forward Meghan Green scored points on two 3-point shots and a free throw. She also added four rebounds.
Irving came off the bench and had nine points and 12 rebounds, just missing out on a double-double. Even with Green and Irving’s strong showings, Colgate’s bench still outscored BU’s bench 29 to 18.
“They had more spark, and we stayed with our starting group longer than they did,” Steding said. “We have such a great bench, so I know they’re ready whenever I need to put them in.”
Reigning Patriot League Player of The Week senior guard Sarah Hope also scored 10 points in the contest, in addition to contributing in other areas. Hope ended the game with six assists and four rebounds to complement her scoring. However, she shot just 2-16 from the field. Though Hope only made two of her 13 3-point attempts of the night, she tied the school record with 244 career 3-pointers.
The Terriers struggled to start the fourth quarter, as the Raiders went on a 9-6 run to open the frame. Overall, BU was outscored 16 to 12 in the fourth quarter. Fortunately for the Terriers, their lead was large enough to withstand a fourth quarter surge from Colgate.
The Terriers will look to extend their current four-game winning streak against Patriot League-leading Bucknell University Saturday on the road. In the two teams’ previous meeting, the Terriers lost on Jan. 21 by a score of 66-50.
“I am excited to face Bucknell because I feel that we can get a really good road win,” Thompson said. “It’s going to be hard and will be a full 40 minutes, but I feel that it will be a really good game.”
