The Boston University women’s basketball team will look to earn its third Patriot League victory Wednesday night in Hamilton, New York against Colgate University.
BU (5-18, 2-10 Patriot League) earned a 58-53 win over Colgate (4-19, 3-9 Patriot League) the last time the teams faced each other on Jan. 14, behind 22 points and seven rebounds from sophomore guard Sarah Hope.
“We had a tough battle with them last time,” said BU coach Katy Steding. “That was one we were lucky enough to come out on the positive end of.”
The Terriers will look to benefit from the increased play of junior guard Clodagh Scannell. Scannell added 14 points in a 48-40 loss to the United States Naval Academy on Feb. 4 and scored 10 points in BU’s last matchup with the Raiders.
BU comes into Wednesday’s game after a valuable Patriot League win against Lafayette College Saturday afternoon.
Senior forward Mollie McKendrick led the way for BU with a double-double, consisting of 16 points and 11 rebounds.
“Once we settled down in the game on Saturday, we did a much better job choosing our shots wisely,” Steding said. “That paid off in the shooting percentage and the win at the end. For this group in particular, the win helped a lot. They can see the stuff they’re working on in practice, the stuff we keep hammering home, is paying off.”
Despite limited practice time because of the snow, Steding said she feels confident that her team will be prepared to take on the Raiders.
“We’ve continued to perfect our offensive looks and work on some fundamentals and then just get some shots up,” Steding said. “A lot of times in practice, you don’t have time to just get shots up.”
Both BU and Colgate have struggled against Patriot League opponents this season. Colgate is coming off two consecutive losses against the College of the Holy Cross and American University. The Raiders did, however, defeat Bucknell University.
With that said, BU and Colgate are strikingly similar on paper. Both teams shoot 37.3 percent from the floor. Beyond the arc, BU shoots 29 percent, and Colgate shoots 29.5 percent.
“In watching film again and getting ready for them, we run a lot of similar looks,” Steding said. “It’s both easy to scout each other and tough. A lot of times, what you’re good at running, you’re not good at defending.”
Additionally, BU collects 39 rebounds and Colgate grabs just under 37 rebounds on average per game. And despite Colgate’s recent struggles, they top the Patriot League in offensive rebounds per game thanks to both senior Carole Harris and junior Randyll Butler, who average a combined 13.9 rebounds per contest.
Harris also leads the team with 11.5 points per game, while forward Josie Stockill joins her as the only Raider in double figures with 11 points per game.
Harris will have a tough matchup trying to rebound with sophomore forward Meghan Green present. Green is also in the top 10 for rebounding in the Patriot League, averaging 7.1 per game.
The Terriers will look to exploit Colgate’s 3-point defense, which is the worst in the league at 35.1 percent.
In preparing for a win that could potentially lift the Terriers from the bottom of Patriot League standings, Steding noted the game’s significance.
“The biggest thing for us is remembering that when we’ve got a lead, it’s not the time to relax,” she said. “It’s time to put the pedal down. They’re still getting good at that.”
I transferred to BU after playing a year of college hoops at Wesleyan University. Previous experience includes interning at the 7NBC-Boston (WHDH-TV) sports desk. I'm excited to cover women's soccer this fall for the Daily Free Press. Follow me here: @kfin2bu
