The University of Rhode Island women’s basketball team was busy with a three-game week, taking its first loss of the season on the road but bouncing back with two home victories.
Rhode Island took a trip to Rutgers University on Thursday, Nov. 13, for a special 11 a.m. tipoff, falling 68-63 to the Scarlet Knights.
Facing their first Power Four conference opponent of the season, the Rams got as close as three points behind in the fourth quarter.
“I think we had a great opportunity in front of us to steal a win on the road against a quality opponent,” Rhode Island Head Coach Tammi Reiss said. “I give credit to Rutgers; I think their kids played extremely hard, and they committed to their game plan well.”
The Rams had to work back from a 40-31 deficit out of halftime after allowing an eight-point run to finish the second quarter.
Rutgers clung to its lead late in the fourth quarter with third-year forwards Janae Walker and Nene Ndiaye scoring the Scarlet Knights’ final six points.
Ndiaye finished with a game-high 24 points, going 8-10 from the field and 3-5 from distance. For Rhode Island, fourth-year guard Brooklyn Gray had her best performance yet with her new team, scoring 18 points to lead the Rams.
Back at the Ryan Center on Saturday, the Rams welcomed the University at Albany to their home for the first time since 2015, taking a 64-52 win.
After a back-and-forth first half, third-year guard Sophia Vital gave URI the lead with 4:12 to go in the third. The Rams didn’t look back, but the Great Danes gave them a fight throughout the fourth quarter.
“For two and a half quarters, they outplayed us,” Reiss said. “When we went small in the fourth quarter, I thought it changed the game, especially defensively.”
UAlbany got within one point of the lead early in the fourth, but the Rams strung together defensive stops and turned them into scores with their smaller lineup.
Fourth-year guard Ines Debroise took on a bigger role after the second-half adjustments, contributing all around with eight points, six rebounds, four steals and three assists.
“[Debroise] and [Vital] gave us that spark plug,” Reiss said. “[Debroise] was huge off the bench defensively for us.”
One of the biggest improvements between the halves was ball security. After 12 turnovers in the first half, the Rams had just three turnovers in the final two quarters. UAlbany packed the paint, forcing Rhode Island to look beyond the arc.
“Our players weren’t reading the coverage,” Reiss said. “They just wouldn’t make the adjustment quick enough; they were trying like a bull in a china shop, and it just wasn’t there.”
Tight defense inside opened up fifth-year Valentina Ojeda and first-year Vanessa Harris for more chances from three, with both finishing as part of the five players for Rhode Island to score eight or more points.
“It started to spread [the defense] out a little bit more,” Reiss said. “Then you get your postups that [Gray] and [second-year guard] Palmire [Mbu] were able to get toward the end of the game.”
URI outscored the Great Danes 17-8 in the final seven minutes to pull away for a 12-point victory.
Rhody saved their best for last, winning by their widest margin of the week on Wednesday over the College of the Holy Cross, 73-59.
Efficient shooting and domination down low led the way. As a team, Rhode Island shot 48% from the field with 42 points in the paint.
Trailing 15-14 after the first quarter, Rhode Island responded with a strong second to take a 31-23 lead into halftime.
Harris had her way in the second half, with eight points in a third quarter where the Rams pushed their lead past 20. She added seven more points to her night in the fourth, finishing with a career-high 19 points.
“She played against the best competition there was, day in and day out [before coming to Rhode Island],” Reiss said. “She’s fearless and very aggressive offensively.”
Rhode Island will have another chance to face a Power Four program on Sunday at 2 p.m. against North Carolina State University. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and available on the radio on The Varsity Network.
