Oftentimes, a rivalry has little to do with the players on the court or field. Rivalries are usually older than the players involved, with deep roots buried mostly in the distant past. They are driven by media members looking for a story and prideful supporters seeking to flex their ego-injected fanhood muscles.
Tuesday night, when the Boston University women’s basketball team travels southwest to continue its budding rivalry with the University of Hartford (7 p.m. on CSN), the rivalry won’t be about the fans. It won’t be about the media. It won’t even be about the history.
According to BU senior co-captain Jesyka Burks-Wiley, this rivalry is all about the players.
After the Terriers’ 76-65 victory over the Hawks at Case Gymnasium on Jan. 21, Burks-Wiley talked about the growing BU-Hartford rivalry.
‘It’s personal,’ Burks-Wiley said. ‘That’s the best way to put it. Me and [Hartford senior] Erica Beverly, we came in together and both of us were looked at for Rookie of the Year. [Senior] MaryLynne Schaefer is supposed to be one of the best shooters in the conference. [BU senior Kristi] Dini’s our best shooter. [Senior Lisa] Etienne is supposed to be so quick, you know, a great point guard. [BU senior co-captain Christine Kinneary], in my opinion, is way better.
‘It’s personal. Every time you step out there, you know it’s, ‘I don’t like you, and you don’t like me.’ There’s no need for words. Something like this, I mean, you look forward to games like this.’
The Terriers (18-6, 12-0 America East) and Hawks (16-9, 11-1) have met in three of the past four America East championship games, including a 61-45 Hartford victory in last season’s title bout. BU holds a 27-25 all-time advantage on the Hawks, including the win earlier this season.
The Jan. 21 showdown featured seven ties, eight lead changes and six double-digit scorers. Four Terriers scored in double figures, led by 19 points from senior Amarachi Umez-Eronini, and the Hawks were piloted by a 17-point, six-rebound performance by junior Diana Delva.
Until its final minutes, the game was extremely close. Hartford led the contest, 44-43, with 14 minutes left in the second half, but then BU opened up a 10-0 run headlined by treys from Dini and junior Aly Hinton.
Dini would finish the game with 16 points on 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range, making that contest just the latest in a string of clutch performances for the 5-foot-10 sharpshooter against the Hawks.
In a Jan. 5, 2008, contest at The Roof, Dini came off the bench in the opening seconds of the second half with the Hawks holding a 12-point lead. Dini fueled BU’s comeback with 19 second-stanza points and knocked down a half-court prayer as time expired to give the Terriers a 62-60 victory.
However, BU’s recent success against the Hawks has been limited strictly to Case Gym. BU has not beaten Hartford on the Hawks’ home floor since Feb. 7, 2004 ‘-‘- a string of seven consecutive losses that includes three dropped conference championship games.
Hartford is 64-3 at Chase Family Arena since the start of the 2004-05 season and has not lost a regular-season conference game at home since Feb. 19, 2005.
Beating the Hawks in their house would be more than just a mild accomplishment for the Terriers because, for the sixth time in seven seasons, the Hawks will host this year’s America East Tournament.
‘A lot of teams in our conference, I think, play better at home,’ BU coach Kelly Greenberg said. ‘Hartford is certainly one of them . . . We know that the difference between us last year and this year is we can win on the road.’
The key for BU, according to Burks-Wiley, will be to get to the Hawks early and quiet what should be a large and boisterous crowd. The Hawks’ average attendance in 2008-09 is 1,845, and with a top seed in the conference tournament potentially on the line, tomorrow night’s crowd should be even larger than normal.
‘Obviously, it’s a huge rivalry game for us,’ Burks-Wiley said when asked about the buzz surrounding the contest. ‘Everyone’s obviously really excited, and everyone’s ready to contribute. We just want to come home with the W.’
Game Notes: Umez-Eronini was awarded the America East Player of the Week award for the second time in two weeks yesterday. Umez-Eronini set a career high with 11 assists in BU’s 76-75 overtime victory over Binghamton University last Wednesday. ‘hellip; A Terrier has now garnered the award seven times this season, with Burks-Wiley having brought the hardware home five times. ‘hellip; Hinton scored 20 points and played 38 minutes in the Terriers’ win over Binghamton, indicating she may have turned the corner in her recovery from two off-season knee surgeries. ‘hellip; BU is one of just nine teams in the country still undefeated in its respective conference.2
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