Fresh off a come-from-behind win against the University of Hartford, the Boston University women’s basketball team will try to take another step up its metaphorical ladder Wednesday night when it takes on Binghamton University at Agganis Arena at 7 p.m.
The Terriers (10-9, 7-0 America East) have yet to lose in 2011, posting wins in seven straight AE games against seven different teams. Binghamton (13-7, 6-1 AE) is the only AE team they have not faced, and stands just one game behind BU in the AE standings.
“They’re the only team in the conference we haven’t played yet, so they’re going to know our stuff,” said sophomore guard Mo Moran.
The game likely will not be a blowout, as most of the games during the Terriers’ winning streak have been, but BU coach Kelly Greenberg believes in her team’s ability to handle it.
“I feel like we’ve been through a lot,” Greenberg said. “This team, with the non-conference schedule being tough, lost a few games that we were really upset about, but we keep moving forward. We don’t sit around and cry about it, we keep getting better, and I think our players are very comfortable with some things.”
Guard Andrea Holmes leads Binghamton offensively, entering the game averaging 14.2 points per game while playing 39.2 minutes. Holmes has been one of the leading Bearcat scorers since her collegiate debut during the 2008-09 season, and is a major reason why Greenberg expects this game to be dominated by the offense.
“They have some very good players and are very offensively oriented, so it’ll be a real shoot-out Wednesday night,” Greenberg said.
The Terriers should be able to hold their own, though. BU averages 62.7 points per game—best in AE—compared to Binghamton’s 59.1, and sophomore guard Chantell Alford and junior guard Alex Young rank third and fourth in AE with 14.2 and 13.8 ppg, respectively.
Wednesday night is the second of three home games this week for BU and, despite the busy playing schedule and the first full week of classes, neither Greenberg nor the team is worried about getting worn down.
“We had a crazy non-conference schedule with traveling while we were in school, and we handled it fine,” said senior center Kerry Cashman, who leads the team with 8.3 rebounds per game.
Greenberg also credits the non-conference schedule, as well as offseason workout regimens and a careful balance between practice and rest.
“We won’t do anything physical [Monday]. We’ll watch tape, so it’ll be a good day off, and we’ll get a lot of rest,” Greenberg said. “Kerry played 40 minutes [on Sunday], and Kerry and [junior forward Caroline Stewart] worked really hard in the offseason to be in great shape, and want to be on the court.”
This will also be the second of three straight games in which the Terriers get some air time: the game will air on Comcast Sports Network, as well as being available on ESPN3.com.
“Our players deserve it,” Greenberg said. “They deserve to be on TV. I always say I want people to see how hard they play and how they play with personality.”
Sophomore guard Mo Moran, who scored 19 points in Sunday’s game, is excited to be on TV again.
“You try not to think about it during the game, but it’s definitely exciting,” Moran said.
The recent success and season turnaround have been exciting for the team, but no one involved has any intentions of stopping anytime soon.
“It feels great,” Greenberg said. “We’re looking forward to finishing it off. I don’t think anyone on our team thinks we’re all that, and we have a lot to prove. We want to take it one game at a time and I think that’s character test time.”
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