‘ After a dominating defensive performance in its home opener, the Boston University women’s basketball team takes to the road again, looking to string together a few wins.
After allowing 171 points through the first two games, BU (1-2) was able to keep a weak-scoring URI team away from the basket for the majority of the game. Second-half struggles continued, however, as the Rams outscored, outrebounded and outplayed the Terriers in the closing minutes, making the game seem much closer than it was.
‘We have to keep playing hard,’ junior guard Krystyn McIntyre said of the second-stanza setbacks. ‘Even if it’s a win, there are a lot of things we need to improve in. We have a very tough schedule coming up so we just want to play our best and keep improving every day.’
McIntyre has emerged as a vocal leader on this young Terrier team. The recently-appointed captain made the first 3-pointer of her career in the last game and helped urge her teammates on even after the game had been put away.
It will take a 40-minute effort to defeat a high-octane St. John’s team. The Red Storm (2-0) averaged 85.5 points in their two road victories over Stony Brook University and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
BU will be looking for marked improvement in its rebound ratio after pulling in only 30 boards to URI’s 53 in the last game. Up next, the biggest threat on the glass will be St. John’s senior Joy McCorvey, a six-foot-one-inch forward who has averaged 10 rebounds per game so far this season.
A bright spot from the last game was the reduction in turnovers. BU committed only 15 turnovers against Rhode Island after giving the ball up 52 times to the University of Kentucky and UMass.
An impressive freshmen class will look to continue its solid play on the court for BU. BU coach Kelly Greenberg has counted on freshmen Caitlynn Moran, Kristen Sims and Chantell Alford to produce the bulk of the scoring. Moran, in particular, has been impressive, pacing the team with 12.7 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game.
‘I came in with a lot of [other] freshmen so that has just made me more comfortable on the team,’ Moran said on her success.
Just three games into the season, injury concerns have already reared their ugly head for the Terriers. 11 minutes into the Rhode Island game, Alford’s night ended after receiving an elbow to the face during a loose ball play. She joined Sims, who played poorly, on the sidelines for the rest of the game. It is not known whether these two will recover in time for this weekend’s tilt.
In the last meeting between the teams, St. John’s was able to pull away with a 74-66 victory in a close game at Case Gym.
Returnees from that game include sophomore Da’Shena Stevens and juniors Lindsay Sky and Centhya Hart. Stevens, the 2009 Big East freshman of the year, has started the season strong with 39 points through two games. Holding these three off the scoreboard will be key if the Terriers are to even their record this weekend.
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