The Boston University women’s basketball team will host Colgate University Wednesday night at Case Gym, and will look to get back in the win column as the second half of conference play continues.
The Terriers (8-13, 3-8 Patriot League) dropped their sixth straight on Saturday, falling to Lehigh University 65-56.
BU almost managed to complete a comeback, momentarily gaining the lead in the fourth quarter. However, the team was unable to secure the win.
Despite the loss, the Terriers put on a solid offensive display.
Sophomore forward Nia Irving, senior guard Corrine Williams and junior forward Naiyah Thompson all reached double digits in scoring. The team as a whole did a good job driving the lane, scoring 34 points from inside the paint.
“This has been a part of our regular offense in the past several weeks, just trying to open up some driving lanes,” BU head coach Katy Steding said after Saturday’s game. “We have some very athletic guards that can get to the rim. We’re working on finishing and trying to get those easy layups.”
Irving leads the BU offense, scoring an average of 11.8 points per game. The Fairfield, Maine native scored 17 against Lehigh and collected eight rebounds.
Since senior center Sophie Beaudry has seen limited action due to an ankle sprain, Steding has made some offensive changes, specifically in the paint.
“Nia’s been playing really, really well inside, so we’ve gone a little bit smaller,” Steding said. “But [Beaudry] is still a big part of what we do. In our offense you have to demand the ball and you have to want it in there, so we’re still looking for her.”
Other Terriers have stepped up lately for BU as well. Williams has heated up, scoring 13 points on Saturday and collecting five rebounds.
Another valuable asset to the Terriers has been junior guard Payton Hauck. While she only added four points in BU’s matchup against Lehigh, she currently has an impressive .508 field goal percentage.
One of BU’s struggles this season has been free-throw shooting. The Terriers are shooting 63.5 percent from the free-throw line, while their opponents are shooting 71.8 percent.
In its loss against Lehigh, BU only went 8-for-16 from the charity stripe, missing several opportunities.
In addition to missed opportunities came many fouls.
The Mountain Hawks (13-9, 7-4 Patriot League) got to the line 23 times, and Steding discussed the importance of maintaining an aggressive defense, while still playing careful and smart.
“The fundamentals still have to be present when you’re playing aggressively,” Steding said. “But a lot of our fouls were happening because we missed some box outs too … Most of the time we’re fouling, we’re not defending properly in the first place so then somebody has to rotate and that rotation is never clean the way you want it to look.”
Colgate (4-18, 0-11 Patriot League) is in the midst of a 14-game losing streak, and is coming off a 69-42 loss to the United States Naval Academy last Saturday. Sophomore forward Abby Schubiger scored nine points for the Raiders, while junior forward Summer King collected nine rebounds.
King leads Colgate’s offense with an average of 9.5 points per game. However, the Raiders’ offense has struggled as of late.
Second-leading scorer sophomore guard Rachel Thompson has been sidelined for most of the season after suffering a lower body injury in December.
In four of 11 Patriot League games, none of Colgate’s players have scored in the double digits.
It has been a difficult stretch for the Terriers as well, having not won a game since their last meeting with the Raiders on Jan. 11.
However, Steding is confident her team can continue to improve and get back to winning ways.
“There are things we’ve continued to hammer home,” Steding said, “Like being careful with the ball, being aggressive defensively, working on our rotations if it breaks down and then really attacking the paint.”
When BU faced off against Colgate on the road earlier this season, the team came away with a 62-49 victory. The Terriers will hope to repeat at home, continue to learn and start to gain some momentum as conference play progresses.
“We still have to put a strong emphasis on rebounding,” Steding said. “The two points of emphasis are cutting down fouls and making your fouls count and making more free-throw shots ourselves. We have to put the ball in the hole.”
