Sometimes a team makes it harder than it should be.
But if it’s lucky, that team has the experience to pull it out in the end.
The Boston University men’s basketball team is that kind of team, and proved it on Saturday afternoon at ‘The Roof.’ The Terriers (15-8, 10-2 America East) gave the University of Hartford (11-12, 6-6) every chance to get back in the game, but down the stretch, the Hawks blew their opportunities and the Terriers converted enough of theirs to snag in a 65-59 overtime win.
‘I think every team has its own personality,’ said BU coach Dennis Wolff. ‘I think we still need to win games like this to see what we’re made of. We’ve got nice kids on this team, this group has been together three or four years, and most nights you’re going to get a real good effort from them.’
That real good effort came with some real clutch shots especially from the charity stripe. The Terriers hit 10 of 11 free throws in overtime, while Hartford went zero for four in the extra frame.
‘Our free throw shooting has been terrific all year,’ Wolff said. ‘[Senior guard] Paul Seymour is shooting almost 90 percent, [sophomore forward] Rashad [Bell] is shooting something ungodly as well. So it’s been one of the strengths of the team the entire year.’
The Terriers had a chance to win in regulation, holding the ball with just over 32 seconds left on the clock and the game tied at 53. With the game tied and a two-second difference on the shot clock and game clock, sophomore guard Chaz Carr held the ball at the top of the key waiting for the last shot. Unfortunately for the Terriers, the play broke down and the best shot they could get was an off-balance three-pointer from junior Ryan Butt as the shot clock expired.
Eerily reminiscent of the three by Stijn Dhondt that won the America East semifinal game against Hartford last season due to time and location on the floor, Butt’s shot did not fall. Bell came out of nowhere through the lane and put back the miss, but short-armed the layup, and clanked the game-winner off the rim.
‘Whatever it was, it didn’t look real good to me,’ Wolff said of the plan on the final play of regulation. ‘We wanted to get the last shot, we were trying to get a post up for Butt and the play broke down and he ended up drifting out to the wing.’
Down the stretch in the second half, the Terriers were more than helped out by Hartford miscues from the floor and the charity stripe. Senior center Pierre Johnson was the biggest culprit for Hartford, shooting 1-5 from the free throw line for the game. But Johnson’s biggest gaffe came in the final minutes, just as Hartford looked to be making a final push for the lead.
After running down much of the 35-second clock, and down three points, Johnson made a perfect backdoor cut along the baseline. Receiving the pass right on target and with room to spare, Johnson went up for an easy dunk to cut the BU lead to one. Just before throwing it down, Johnson looked to fire up the Hartford bench by putting some extra authority into his slam.
He proceeded to slam it off the back of the rim.
While Hartford was able to tie the game and send it into overtime, BU took advantage of the miss to fend off the feisty Hawks for the fourth straight time. In their last four meetings, the Terriers and Hawks have decided games by four, three, one and six points.
‘I think both programs respect each other, you know it’s going to be a hard-fought game,’ Wolff said. ‘Both programs try to get their guys to guard you. You have got to have an appreciation for how difficult it was to play in that game today because you are not getting anything easy.’
Down by seven points on two occasions in the first, the Terriers clawed back to within one late in the half thanks to a 7-1 run, cutting the Hartford lead to 24-23. A three-pointer by Hartford guard Aaron Cook, followed by a Terrier field goal, gave the Hawks a two-point lead at the half.
After a slow start for both teams in the second half, a three by BU senior forward Billy Collins started the scoring for the Terriers. In a half that included eight lead changes, the Terriers were the ones who ended up with the ball and a chance for the win.
While unable to nail it down in regulation, BU proved its experience and poise by pulling away in overtime.
BU had four players finish in double figures. The two senior starters, Seymour and Collins, tallied 12 and 14, respectively, while Butt and Bell led the way with 16 each.
‘Ryan Butt has had four or five straight terrific games, and I thought he carried us,’ Wolff said. ‘He was very hard for them to guard in the lane.’
Bell continued his ‘ungodly’ free throw shooting, going eight for eight from the line, while Butt was four of five. Collins was, as usual, unconscious from the three-point arc, draining four of five as he accounted for all of his field goal attempts from three-point land.
‘Billy Collins, I need to single him out, he made some big shots,’ Wolff said. ‘And I thought he did a very good job of guarding [Hartford guard Jerell] Parker, and he’s very difficult to guard down the stretch.’
Parker, who lit up the Terriers for 18 points in their first meeting, scored 18 again on Saturday, but it seemed to be a much more quiet 18. He was quiet down the stretch and when it mattered. A testament to the Terrier defensive effort centered upon him.
The Terriers now have a two-game advantage on the University of Vermont in the race for number one after Vermont was upset by Northeastern University on Saturday. With just four games remaining the Terriers are in the driver’s seat for homecourt advantage in the tournament title game, and an easier road to that ever-elusive NCAA Tournament bid.