For the Boston University women’s basketball team, with each passing game of the 2017-18 season, a new player steps up — whether it be sophomore forward Nia Irving, senior guard Corrine Williams or junior forward Naiyah Thompson.
However, in Saturday afternoon’s 67-57 loss to Bucknell University, it was the Terriers’ (8-12, 3-7 Patriot League) junior guard Payton Hauck who notched 14 points off the bench, after going 6-for-9 from the field.
BU’s bench combined for a total of 29 points during the game and outscored its starters for the third time in five games.
Freshman guard Katie Nelson tallied 14 of her own points, netting five field goals and four three pointers. Although Hauck and Nelson’s performances weren’t enough to get through the Bison’s (13-8, 7-3 Patriot League) stellar junior class that accounted for 57 of their overall points, and the Terriers went home with their fifth straight loss of the season.
BU head coach Katy Steding said she thought Hauck looked very healthy and with a “spring back in her step” after coming back from an ankle injury, which she sustained against the College of the Holy Cross on Jan. 13.
“…Whether you’ve had a dozen [ankle injuries] or it’s your first one, you’re still a little tentative,” Steding said. “Whether you can or can’t physically, there’s a mental hit in your giddy-up so she got it back last night definitely and she’s definitely 100 percent. I’m glad to have her back. I thought she played really, really hard. She makes us go faster and it’s really simple.”
Bucknell began the contest with a 7-0 lead after connecting on three of its four shots within the first three minutes of the quarter.
The Bison led for the remainder of the quarter and the matchup, but the Terriers were able to bring the score to 14-11 after an 11-2 run capped by a pair of free throws from senior center Sophie Beaudry.
BU was hindered by Bucknell’s stifling defense that ranks second in the Patriot League for scoring defense, limiting its opponent to 58.5 points per game. The Bison also lead the conference in rebounding offense and defense, and grabbed 32 rebounds against the Terriers.
Three points from both Bucknell’s leading scorer junior guard Kate Walker and junior guard Kyi English gave the Bison a 20-11 advantage at the end of the frame.
“I think Bucknell plays really, really disciplined [and] really, really hard,” Steding said. “We really hurt ourselves in the first quarter and after that it was a very even game … but you can’t put yourself in that kind of position, especially against a really good team like Bucknell and expect them to just cave in certain points.”
After not scoring any points in the opening quarter, Huack gave BU six points with three layups over three minutes. Irving and Williams added a combined seven points over the quarter, but Bucknell still led 35-25 at the half.
Huack and Irving trimmed the deficit to 35-29 with two layups early in the second half. However, the Terriers ended the third quarter trailing 48-39 after English provided the Bison with eight points.
In addition to English, Walker remained an offensive threat, knocking home eight points in the final quarter and finishing with a game-high 22 points.
While BU capitalized on Bucknell’s turnovers in the first quarter, the Bison collected points off of nine of the Terriers’ turnovers.
BU only had 14 turnovers against Bucknell and Steding noted that the team has won games in the past having turned over the ball more than 20 times.
“I think the thing is when we made turnovers [on Saturday],” Steding said, “They just felt like it was a stab in the kidneys or something…”
Nelson grabbed 11 points over the quarter, including going 3-for-4 behind the arc, but the Terriers were only able to get the score within seven points, leaving the final score 67-57.
BU will now have a week long break before it takes on Lehigh University on Saturday at home.
“I thought we got better last night so that was a start,” Steding said. “We’ll use it for some recuperation, but also we’ll work on some skill work, shooting and all the stuff that goes into everything else that we put out on the floor. It’s a good time for the girls to catch their breath and get ready for … those last eight games.”
Nick Miata contributed to the reporting of this article.
