Saturday had the potential to be a great day for Boston University athletics, but success did not come to fruition. While the men’s hockey team dropped the Hockey East final at TD Garden, the women’s basketball team also suffered defeat, coming at the hands of Fordham University in the second round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament, by a score of 58-44.
“It was a disappointing game for us,” said BU coach Kelly Greenberg. “We did things we hadn’t done all year.”
Thursday night, the Terriers (24-6, 13-2 America East) bested Sacred Heart University at Case Gym, the team’s first postseason win since the 2009-10 season, and were riding high going into the Bronx.
At the outset of the game, BU came out with energy, and on the strength of senior guard Kristen Sims and junior forwards Whitney Turner and Rashidat Agboola, the Terriers took a 6-2 lead over the Rams (26-8), very similar to how the game against Sacred Heart (22-11) opened up.
However, things did not go as well for the Terriers as Thursday night. After Fordham forward Samantha Clark scored four points on back-to-back possessions, hitting two shots from the charity stripe and a layup, coupled with forward Marah Strickland’s 3-pointer on the following possession, the Rams took a 9-6 advantage on the board. They did not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game.
The Rams appeared to take advantage of almost all of the Terrier miscues, scoring 11 points off Terrier turnovers in the first half of play. Although Fordham only shot 33.3 percent from the field in the first half, the team got four key 3-point buckets from Strickland, guard Erin Rooney and guard Charlotte Stoddart. From the foul line, the Rams also went a perfect 6-for-6, helping them strengthen their lead.
“Just from the get-go, things went their way,” Greenberg said.
While Fordham took advantage of BU mistakes and built up a lead, BU had trouble answering back. In the first half, the Terriers shot an uncharacteristic 30.8 percent from the field, well below their season average of 40.6 percent.
Against Sacred Heart, BU found much of its offensive success from the 3-point line, but against Fordham, the 3-point shot was largely unsuccessful. In the first half of play the Terriers only hit two treys.
“We settled for outside shots too much,” Greenberg said. “We missed shots we normally make.”
Not only did the Terriers struggle from behind the arc, but the paint was troublesome for them as well.
Agboola has been a force all season long in the paint, both scoring and on the glass. However, in the first half of play, Fordham limited Agboola to only one basket, and BU as a whole to only four points inside the paint.
Despite the struggles for the Terriers offensively in the first, they only found themselves down by nine going into the break, 28-19.
In the opening minutes of the second half, BU cut into the deficit with buckets from Turner and senior guard Mo Moran, cutting the Fordham lead to five. However, Fordham quickly recovered with buckets and free throws from Strickland and Collins, and the Rams grabbed an 11-point lead three minutes after the Terries cut it to five.
Fordham’s offense improved in the final frame, shooting 39.1 percent from the field, leading to a game total of 36 percent. However, it was not just its field goals that gave it the win. Fordham continued to excel at the free throw line, as well, hitting 17 of its 22 free throw attempts in the game.
Leading the way for the Rams were Strickland and Collins, who had 14 and 12 points respectively, and were among the four Fordham players to have double digits for the game.
Collins only went 2-of-11 from the field, but her free throws were the game changer, as she shot a perfect 8-for-8 from the line.
While Fordham kept the train rolling, BU struggled to stay in the game. Although BU shot better from the field in the second half — 34.5 percent — it only took four foul shots in the half, hitting two.
Despite the BU offense not clicking as it usually does, senior guards Chantell Alford and Sim had strong efforts. In their final game with the Terriers, both notched 12 points, which led the team in scoring.
Although the two seniors played well in their last hurrah with the Terriers, Moran was quiet most of the night and notched only four points.
Fordham took the victory and moves on to the quarterfinals of the WNIT, while BU’s season comes to an end.
“We had such a wonderful year,” Greenberg said. “It’s the end of an era. The seniors had an unbelievable career. Everything is going to be so different next year.”
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