Though the Boston University women’s basketball team was able to best Colgate University in many offensive categories in its Wednesday night matchup, the Terriers fell to the Raiders 72-63.
The Terriers (1-17, 1-6 Patriot League) had the edge in shots, shots from behind the 3-point line, steals and rebounds. When it came to points and shooting percentage, however, they were unsuccessful.
Colgate’s (4-13, 2-5 Patriot League) leading scorer, senior Josie Stockill got off to a good start with a clear layup just over a minute in, but that would end up being just one of two field goals she would convert on in the game.
BU, however, had its own problems with respect to putting the ball in the net. Despite having good looks, they were unable to convert on open, high-percentage shots. The first quarter alone featured missed layups from five different Terriers.
While sophomore guard Meghan Doogan was one of those five, she had an impressive showing. After being subbed in very early in the first quarter, she immediately got the Terriers their first points with a smooth 3-pointer. She ended up finishing just 1-for-8 from behind the arc, but she was one of four Terriers who finished with double digits in points, and she was consistently able to get open and find good looks.
“Doogan is an unsung hero for our team,” said BU head coach Katy Steding. “I was glad she came in and responded right away and did what she’s capable of doing. She gets really good looks … Meg’s got a good head for the game. She’s a really smart player and she knows what to do out there.”
While many of the Terriers’ shortcomings on offense can be attributed to their own errors, the Raiders’ offense was stifled by BU’s stingy defense. While they had some good looks, no Raider was left without heavy pressure for long, and when Colgate got shots off, BU did an excellent job of boxing out and scooping up anything that popped out — which just so happened to be a lot.
Sophomore forward Kara Sheftic collected rebounds on both sides of the ball. She had eight offensive rebounds — just two fewer than the entire Colgate team. Sheftic also finished with a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds.
While Steding said the offensive boards were a focal point at practice leading into Wednesday, she was disappointed with the lack of conversion once they were able to get those rebounds.
“We need to make more layups than we’re making,” Steding said. “Twenty-two offensive boards is an amazing accomplishment for this team, and it shows that when we put our mind to something, we really attack. We made it a real strong emphasis in yesterday’s practice and in today’s game that we were going to crash the offensive glass, but we need to convert those to make it helpful.”
While the Raiders were having trouble sinking good looks too, the misses on uncontested shots ended up being the difference for the Terriers. After going down 15-11 at the end of the first quarter, BU was unable to retake the lead for the rest of the game, tying just twice.
The second half started out with the Terriers looking good. Sophomore guard Corrine Williams sunk a mid-range jumper to tie it at 26 within the first minute of the half. Colgate responded with a 3-pointer from junior Katie Curtis — one of her four — and a conversion on a falling layup from Stockill.
Colgate’s 11-2 run to open the fourth quarter cemented the Raider victory. While BU was unable to come away with the victory despite four double-digit scorers and nearly two double-doubles, Wednesday’s was one of the Terriers’ most hard-fought games to date.
