The University of Rhode Island women’s basketball team lost a pair of contests to the Saint Joseph’s University Hawks on Saturday and the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams on Wednesday.
The Rams were seeking revenge against the Hawks after suffering a 51-48 loss in their only matchup earlier this season on Jan. 21, and hoped to get the better of VCU for their first game this season.
Despite the return of fifth-year guard Teisha Hyman, who made her first appearance since Jan. 31 after nursing an ankle injury, URI would fall to SJU 72-67 before losing to VCU 69-59.
URI struggled to get past the Hawks’ defense early in the first quarter on Saturday, only scoring two free throws throughout nearly the first three minutes of play. With the activated bonus for Saint Joseph’s, resulting from five URI fouls occurring within the same quarter, Rhody would have to fight from behind as they headed into the second quarter down 18-13.
A quick Rhody steal followed shortly thereafter by an-and-one layup from fifth-year guard Dee Dee Davis started the quarter off on the right foot, but URI would allow the Hawks to score 11 unanswered points from there on out. With their lead as high as 16 in the second quarter, things looked bleak for the Rams.
After a third quarter that saw URI score 17 points compared to Saint Joseph’s 18, the Rams trailed heading into the fourth quarter 56-43.
Determined to change the narrative of the game, URI began to storm back in the fourth quarter. Trailing 66-54 with 3:47 left in the game, Davis buried a three-pointer to bring the game within nine points. Davis then drilled another three-pointer, followed by a steal-layup sequence from second-year forward Analle Dutat, and all of a sudden it became a two-possession game.
Dutat and second-year guard Ines Debroise each went 1-2 from the charity stripe, making the score 67-64 in favor of Saint Joseph’s. Two more Hawks free throws made the game a two-possession contest once again with 17 seconds left, until Davis came out of the teams timeout and drilled another three-pointer to make it a one-point game.
Strong scoring performances late in the game from Davis and Dutat helped the Rams have a chance, but, in the end, Saint Joseph’s was able to escape with their 25th win of the season.
Rhody would face another tough defensive opponent just days later, as the VCU Rams came to the Ryan Center on Wednesday touting the best defense in the A-10.
This matchup would also be URI’s Senior Night. The team honored fourth-year forward Mayé Touré, fifth-year guard Dee Dee Davis, fifth-year guard Teisha Hyman and fourth-year center Tenin Magassa.
This matchup saw URI struggle with one of their less common issues throughout the season; turnovers.
URI ranks second in overall turnover margin in the Atlantic 10, but while facing VCU this wasn’t the case. Through the first two quarters, Rhody handed the ball over on nine separate occasions, resulting in VCU taking a 39-25 lead heading into the break.
“Again, the three quarters of not showing up with the keys to the game, physicality, boxing out, and taking care of the basketball,” URI Head Coach Tammi Reiss said. “In order to beat a very good VCU team, you have to have that urgency.”
Highlighting the Rams first half performance was Dee Dee Davis, who accounted for 13 points, three rebounds and a steal.
Davis would finish the day with a game-leading 23 points, standing out as a bright spot in both the statistical category and the effort category, according to Reiss.
“I think Dee Dee has been playing the last couple weeks at a really high level for us,” Reiss said. “It’s harder to take her off the floor when she’s the one who’s really scoring for us.”
Throughout the course of the game, the Rams would have a hard time with their ability to create shots and capitalize on turnovers, shooting 7% from beyond the arc (1-15) and recording a turnover margin of -10. A late fourth quarter push saw Rhody claw back within 10 points, but that would be as far as they would make it with limited time as they ultimately fell 69-59. Despite the loss, Reiss was able to appreciate everything the seniors have done for the program, and expressed her gratitude to not only the players, but the Rhody fans. “When you’re not having a great year but they [the fans] show up to say goodbye to your four seniors, they show out, it’s much appreciated,” Reiss said. “And I want to thank our four seniors for their contributions to our program… a lot of them helped build this.”
The Rams play next at the University of Dayton for their regular season finale this Saturday at noon. The game is available to be streamed on ESPN+.