Ravaged by injuries, Davidson College marched into the Ryan Center on Saturday, prepared for an Atlantic 10 women’s basketball battle with the University of Rhode Island.
Rhode Island defeated Davidson 61-49, in a game where the third quarter proved crucial for the Rams.
A day prior to the matchup, the Wildcats added two walk-on players to their roster, hoping to fill out a full roster coming into Kingston.
“I have to give Davidson credit,” URI Head Coach Tammi Reiss said. “They’re very short handed. They’ve had five ACL’s [anterior cruciate ligament tears] this year.”
Davidson entered the Ryan Center with an 18-6 record, ripping off four straight victories before their matchup with the Rams.
On the other end of the spectrum, Rhody had slid in the standings, dropping three of their previous four contests.
The first quarter began with back-and-forth scoring, with neither team jumping out to a large lead. At the halfway point of the quarter, the Rams led 7-6, with all seven opening Ram points coming from the hands of fourth-year forward Mayé Toure. Once Touré got the Rams the lead, they never relinquished it, leading the Wildcats for the final 35:40 of the game.
“I thought our team did a really good job battling, from start to finish,” Reiss said. “That’s what this day represents.”
For URI it was Play 4 Kay Day, the annual game where the Rams fight for those who have lost their lives to cancer, while honoring the late Kay Yow. Yow is a former women’s basketball head coach who lost her life to cancer in 2009. Yow amassed over 700 wins and was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.
“We played for something bigger,” Reiss said. “Honoring all those who lost their lives to the big C [cancer], all those who are struggling, fighting and surviving while honoring the great late Kay Yow.”
While the second quarter of Saturday’s game saw an even score, 15 apiece from the two squads, the third quarter is where the Rams pulled away from the visitors.
Rhode Island outscored Davidson 20-9 in the third period of play, without shooting at a highly efficient rate, only scoring on six of their 14 shot attempts. The difference in the quarter was how the Wildcats shot from the field. URI held the visitors to below 19% shooting, without allowing a single shot from behind the arc to fall.
The Rams’ fifth-year Dee Dee Davis, who was averaging 10.1 points per game and 3.2 rebounds per game coming into the matchup, was the spark plug for Rhody. Davis scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, the Rams’ leader in both categories for the game.
“Her energy, her pace, everything she did today had a great purpose,” Reiss said. “I think she was playing for someone special today and it really meant a lot to her.”
Davis, alongside third-year guard Sophie Phillips, combined for 34 points to propel the Rams to victory. Phillips knocked down five three pointers against the Wildcats, tying her career high in a season with 77.
“We brought Sophie Phillips here to shoot, that’s what she does,” Reiss said. “Today she had a great groove, she used her screens well, she found shots and they were really good shots.”
Davidson outscored the Rams 11-9 in the final quarter, but it was not enough to mount a comeback, falling to Rhode Island 61-49.
The Rams improved 17-11 and 9-6 within the A-10, good for sixth in the conference. Rhode Island has a week long bye before their next matchup when they travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to take on Saint Joseph’s University at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The game is available to be streamed on ESPN+.