The Boston University women’s basketball team will look to earn its first win of the season on Wednesday when the State University of New York at Albany comes to Case Gym.
Despite their 77-44 loss to Northeastern University in the season opener, the Terriers (0-1) have reason to be optimistic as the season continues.
BU held the lead in the beginning of the game, and even after the Huskies (2-0) rallied before halftime, the Terriers only trailed by two points heading into the locker room.
If the Terriers can replicate their first-half defense that held Northeastern under 39 percent from the field, they can be competitive.
“We played really good in the first half,” BU coach Katy Steding said. “We came out and chose the style of play that we wanted. As much as we have returning [players], we’re still pretty young and we’re learning a new system. The takeaway is that when we’re on point, we’re quite good.”
Judging from the opener, the Terriers will most likely rely on upperclassmen to play a lot of minutes and score points for the predominantly young team.
Junior forward Meghan Green led the team with eight rebounds and scored eight points. It seems as though the leading rebounder and scorer from last year will continue to be the team’s anchor in the post and on the glass this season.
Senior guard Troi Melton made half her shots from the field and scored a team best — 12 points. Melton showed improvement from last year and she has the potential to become a viable offensive option if she keeps playing like she did against Northeastern.
Junior guard Courtney Latham logged a team-high 32 minutes in the opener, and added five steals. The Glastonbury, Connecticut native’s quickness was one of the few bright spots on the defensive side of the ball for BU.
The aforementioned trio, along with freshman guard Payton Hauck, will have to carry the load again Wednesday night.
The Terriers will need to bring their A-game if they want to upset Albany (1-0). They have won the last four America East Tournaments and they were picked to win the conference in this year’s preseason poll.
Like BU, Albany is reliant on experienced players. They have eight upperclassmen and lost in last year’s NCAA Tournament by just two points to a No. 4 seeded Duke University team.
Among those returning for Albany is Shereesha Richards, who averaged 21 points per game last season. In Albany’s Nov. 15 victory over Pepperdine University, Richards dropped 21 points to go along with seven rebounds.
Another veteran scorer for Albany is junior Imani Tate. She averaged 14.2 points per game last season. In the first game of the 2015-16 season, she was the Great Danes’ main catalyst, filling the stat sheet with 24 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Limiting Richards and Tate is paramount for BU’s ever-evolving team.
“We talked about several different ways that we can neutralize their touches, doing the best we can with ball pressure and adding some nuisances to our regular defense,” Steding said.
Regardless of the outcome, this game will be a chance to learn and gain experience for the Terriers. To erase the demons of last season, BU will first have to learn how to play among the NCAA’s best.
“The upside to playing a team like Albany is that they are really going to expose your weaknesses,” Steding said. “They’re going to show you what you need to work on. It gives you a chance to play against some really good players that play at an elite level, and that raises your competitiveness.”
