The No. 5 University of Rhode Island women’s basketball team saw its season come to a close on Friday in the Atlantic 10 Championship quarterfinals with a 53-50 overtime loss to No. 4 Saint Joseph’s University.
Before the Rams’ defeat, revenge was on the menu in their 52-41 second-round win against No. 12 George Washington University.
URI ended its regular season on March 1 with a 54-46 loss to the Revolutionaries, handing Rhode Island its only conference loss at home this year.
The Rams put on a defensive display in the second-round rematch, pulling away as the game progressed.
“We win games when we defend and rebound,” URI Head Coach Tammi Reiss said postgame Thursday. “The difference [was] they did that; they stayed locked in.”
Rhody shot a season-low 21% from the field, but got the job done at the charity stripe. Rhode Island took 26 free throws, compared to George Washington’s 12.
“I thought going to the free throw line was a key for us [Thursday] offensively,” Reiss said. “That’s a stat that I love to see; as a coach, you love to see that.”
George Washington held an 18-16 lead after the first quarter, shooting over 50% from the field. The Revolutionaries were held to 21.6% for the rest of the game, and couldn’t break into the double digits in any of the final three quarters.
“They showed up ready to compete to win,” Reiss said. “As a coach, that’s the best gift you can get from your team.”
Reiss outlined her three goals entering Thursday: taking care of the basketball, securing offensive rebounds and holding GW under 50 points.
Rhode Island accomplished all three goals; turning the ball over just six times, a season low, taking in four more offensive rebounds than George Washington with 18 and allowing just 41 points.
“When we do two of three, we always win,” Reiss said. “When we do one of three, or zero of three like we did against GW last game, we don’t win basketball games.”
Fourth-year center Harsimran “Honey” Kaur led URI in scoring with 12 points, earning her ninth double-double of the season with 11 rebounds to move on to the quarterfinals against SJU.
After Rhode Island got the best of Saint Joseph’s in the team’s first meeting this season on Feb. 19, the Hawks got the win when it mattered most.
While free throws were what put the Rams over the edge the day before, they became part of what sank them against the Hawks.
The Rams entered the fourth quarter tied, but never trailed during the quarter and worked up to a six-point lead before going cold on offense.
URI was held scoreless for the final two and a half minutes of the fourth quarter; turning the ball over twice, missing three field goals and coming up empty on a trip to the free throw line.
“You got to close out games, and you got to do the little things,” Reiss said. “At the end of regulation we had a chance to do it, and we couldn’t get it done, but it wasn’t from a lack of effort, that’s for sure.”
Forced into overtime, Rhody allowed the Hawks to get out in front by two with a foul that sent fourth-year forward Talya Brugler to the line, where she made both free throws. Saint Joseph’s got another chance at the foul line on its next possession as third-year forward Laura Ziegler split her two shots.
Rhode Island responded with third-year forward Anaelle Dutat knocking down a jumper to get within one. The Rams were forced to foul with seven seconds left to have a chance at one more play. Brugler returned to the stripe, knocking down both shots to jump back to a three-point lead.
Coming out of a timeout needing three, Dutat looked to inbound and, after some consideration, found third-year Ines Debroise above the three-point line. Debroise dribbled shortly before giving Kaur the last shot; the prayer came up empty as it fell short of the hoop.
“The last play of the game was broken as soon as [Dutat] didn’t let it fly,” Reiss said. “We were looking for an over-the-top, and then a misdirection to get Sophie [Phillips] coming back to the ball.”
Saint Joseph’s dominated the boards, holding a 43-24 advantage in rebounding across the game. Rhode Island allowed the Hawks to secure 19 offensive rebounds while only being able to muster seven.
Second-year guard Sophia Vital gave a strong defensive effort for URI, picking up five steals to help contribute to the team’s 22 points off turnovers.
“[Vital] gave us all she had today from that respect,” Reiss said. “I’m really proud of how hard she played and how hard she competed.”
Rhody also did well to shut down Ziegler, an A-10 Player of the Year finalist, holding her to just seven points. The other two players who made up Saint Joseph’s ‘big three,’ Brugler and fourth-year guard Mackenzie Smith, stepped up with 16 and 15 points, respectively.
The Hawks moved on to upset No. 1 University of Richmond in the semifinals with a buzzer-beater bucket by Ziegler before falling to No. 2 George Mason University in the tournament’s championship on Sunday.
Rhode Island ends the season with a 17-16 record overall, and 11-7 in conference play. It marks the toughest season for Reiss since her first year with the program.
