Returning to the comfort of the Ryan Center, the women’s basketball team found the win column again on Tuesday against Hartford. PHOTO CREDIT: Matt Goralnick
The University of Rhode Island Women’s Basketball team suffered a three game losing streak on the road against Holy Cross and Buffalo before getting back on track with a blowout win at the Ryan Center against Hartford on Wednesday.
Rhody dropped the first of their three games this week on Thursday when they took on Holy Cross on the road.
The game started out positively for the Rams, as they opened the game with an 18-15 lead at the end of the first quarter. However, things went south from there.
The second quarter saw a tie game at 31-31 before a buzzer-beating layup by Holy Cross guard Avery Labrera put the Crusaders up by a basket at the break.
Similarly to their previous loss against Long Beach State, the third quarter was where it all slipped away for the Rams. Rhody started the second half by missing their first seven shots, giving way to a 7-0 run by the Crusaders.
Despite the offensive struggles, senior forward Emmanuelle Tahane was able to provide some scoring for the Rams, pulling the deficit to within five by scoring eight of her 25 points before the four minute mark in the third.
Unfortunately, the Rams’ run ended there, as back-to-back 3-pointers from Holy Cross’ Cara McCormick and Madison Demski extended the lead to 11 going into the fourth quarter.
Rhody countered with a few buckets from Tahane, which lowered the deficit to eight points, but that would be as close as they got as the Crusaders saw the game through for an end score of 66-54.
Turnovers were the problem yet again, as the Rams committed 17 after a 29-turnover performance against Long Beach State. The Rams also struggled from long range, hitting only four of their 20 attempts from behind the arch.
Tahane was the only Ram to finish in double figures, ending the night with 23 points and eight rebounds. She was helped out by teammates Dez Elmore and Marie-Paule Foppossi, who each contributed eight, and Chanell Williams scored seven points.
The Rams hoped to bounce back Sunday when they traveled to Buffalo to take on the 4-2 Bulls. Unfortunately, the Rams fell once again by a 69-55 score.
The first quarter was tightly contested with Rhody just trailing by three, but the game got away from them in the second quarter when the Bulls caught fire from the 3-point line, using a hyper efficient 9-for-15 from downtown to build an 11-point advantage going into the half.
Turnovers once again hurt the Rams in the third stanza as they gave the ball away six times, ultimately destroying any momentum they tried to build.
That would be the Rams’ downfall as, after a tightly contested fourth quarter, Buffalo came away victorious.
The Rams committed 19 more turnovers in this one, a substantial amount more than their 13 per game average during their seven-game win streak. Rhody struggled shooting the ball as well, shooting 3-for-10 from the free throw line and 6-for-21 from the 3-point line.
It was Tahane who led the Rams once again, scoring 12 points and adding 11 rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Dolly Cairns added 11 and Foppossi scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds.
The losing streak ended when the Rams returned home to take on Hartford, with the Rams winning by a score of 84-49 thanks to dominant play from Foppossi and Tahane.
Foppossi finished the night with 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists while Tahane finished with 25 points and 8 rebounds. Williams added 12 points on two of three from downtown. Rhode Island Women’s Basketball Coach Tammi Reiss was thrilled to snap the team’s losing streak.
“It was great to get back in the win column,” Reiss said. “When you lose three in a row, it can be very depressing, but our players worked hard all week and they needed this win.”
For Tahane, the 25 points wasn’t the headline, but rather the win.
“It just felt good to get the win and end the losing streak,” Tahane said.
The Rams next take on the University of Maine on the road on Sunday with tip-off set for 1 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.