There were already too many red circles at Case Gymnasium on Thursday night.

There haven’t been this many red-tinted rings since communism was the cool thing. Knowing how that all turned out, you can’t blame freshman Nadia Bibbs for doing her best Joe McCarthy impression as she walked down the stairs from the Boston University women’s basketball team room with a newly-busted red paper circle.

Bibbs, following her 12-point effort in the Terriers’ 72-53 win over the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, took home the first link in the BU chain. One of 17 links in the newest brainchild of BU coach Margaret McKeon and her staff, a new link is to be broken after each Terrier conference win by the consensus player of the game. And Bibbs, along with fellow freshman Meredith Onson and sophomore Rachael Vanderwal, was the catalyst for the Terriers in putting down the Retrievers, in what is becoming sort of a trend for the Terriers, according to McKeon.

“Our staff kind of put our heads together,” McKeon said, “and we put 17 links together on this chain … We have 17 games remaining … We picked somebody who we thought was the game-winner, and she gets to do the ceremony. Hopefully we won’t have many remaining at the end [of the season].”

Bibbs’ being the first Lord of the Ring – as the Terriers lost their first game after the idea came into being to Binghamton University – came from much more than just her scoring. Her 12 was second to junior forward Becky Bonner’s 17 and right above senior Katie Terhune and Vanderwal’s 11 apiece.

The Terriers and Retrievers were in something of a dogfight in the second half, as BU could not seem to throw the stick far enough away to lose the Retrievers, who kept the game within 10 for the first 10 minutes of the second half. That is, until Bibbs stuck her hand out and stole the ball from UMBC’s Maria Brown. Both women toppled to the floor, as the orange sphere bounced near the red circle at center court.

Onson saw the loose ball. She picked it up, and with the poise of at least a sophomore, drove to the basket and laid the ball in, as two Retrievers mistook her body for the ball. The whistle blew, the shot dropped and the momentum shifted.

From that point on, the Terriers held all the momentum, keeping the lead close to 20 for the rest of the game. Though Bonner hit a few big shots, including a late three-pointer, Bibbs and Onson ran the show. Both were smoother than the School of Management floor. And just as money.

Bibbs showed the most tenacity she’s shown this season, at least since her 17-point effort against Fairleigh Dickinson University. Leaving high school in Illinois as one of the top 50 point guards in the nation, according to All-Star Girls Report, Bibbs showed flashes of her potential. She drove to the basket with the fury of a Boston driver at rush hour, and with twice the grace.

“I think I’m starting to feel a bit more comfortable,” she said. “In the beginning of the season, I was a little set back, as to making sure I’m running the play right. Now I’ve got the system, and coach gave me a little bit of freedom to just dribble-drive and try to create things.”

Onson, in her first collegiate start, scored all six of her points after her hoop-and-harm layup off the steal. In much the same way her season has gone, she came on strong later on, hitting a few jumpers, including one off a pass as she turned a corner. Just like the shot, Onson’s begun to come around the corner, according to her teammate.

“She’s really been opening up well,” Bibbs said. “In the beginning, she was kind of in her comfort zone. I think now she’s starting to come out of it, starting to open up and be more aggressive.”

Both freshmen, plus fellow freshman Erica Kovach and Vanderwal, played in a way that has begun to characterize the Terrier squad. On a team that can now go “nine or 10 deep,” the Terriers are able to get points from not only anywhere, but anyone, McKeon said.

“Our newcomers have really made a major impact the whole season,” she said. “This is not something that’s just new tonight – it’s been a constant. It’s really our veterans that are trying to fit in and become one.”

But, McKeon said, the other chips will fall in line with the currently hot blue chips. It’s just a matter of time, and she’s even seen the cards improving as the year goes on. The deck was good to begin with, she said. It’s just a matter of time.

And, she hopes, that time will be no more than a few days. They’ll look to break another chain link on Sunday, when they take on the University of Vermont.