Terriers Down Rhode Island, 73-68
November 30, 2004 | Men's Basketball
B.U. (3-1) got revenge after an 80-52 Ram's win in the opening round of the post-season NIT last March. The win marked a 33-point turnaround from last year's game.
The Terriers, who came into the game shooting 42 percent from the free throw line, connected on 21-of-24 for the game, making their first 18 from the line.
Senior forward Rashad Bell (Queens, N.Y.) got the Terriers off on the right foot, scoring seven straight points, giving them a 13-8 lead at the 13:21 mark of the first half. Freshman guard Bryan Geffen (Bayside, N.Y.) knocked down a three-pointer to cap an 8-2 run to give B.U. a 21-13 edge with 9:36 remaining in the half.
With the Terriers up, 23-15, with just over six minutes to go in the half, Carr blocked a shot by Jon Lucky, who fell awkwardly onto the court under the basket and remained motionless for about 10 minutes. After Lucky was taken off the court on a stretcher, an emotional URI team went on a 13-2 run to take a short-lived 26-25 lead with 4:04 on the clock. It was to be the Rams' only lead of the game. A tough Carr jumper in the lane stopped the run, and B.U. took a slim 33-32 lead into the half.
Carr and sophomore forward Etienne Brower (West Hempstead, N.Y.) scored B.U.'s first 15 points in the second half, with Carr hitting one three-pointer and Brower making two straight treys to give the Terriers their largest lead of the game to that point at 48-39 4:50 into the second half.
A three-pointer by junior guard Shaun Wynn a minute and a half later extended the lead to 11 points at 53-42. A pair of Bell free throws with 2:07 to go pushed the lead back to 11 at 70-59. URI made one last charge as Will Daniels hit a three-pointer and Scott Hazelton made a left-wing jumper to cut the B.U. lead to five points with 19 seconds to go. A pair of Carr free throws with 17 second left sealed the victory.
Brower's 14-point effort was a career high. It was his second career-high game in a row. He scored a then-career-best 12 points in the Terriers' 71-55 win at Youngstown State on Nov. 27. Carr scored 16 of his 25 points in the second half, making 8-of-13 from the field and all seven of his free throws. He tied his career-high with a team-high six rebounds. Bell added 11 points for the Terriers. He also went 7-for-7 from the free throw line after coming into the game making only 9-of-17 in the team's first three games.
Daniels led the Rams with 17 points. Marcel Momplaisir had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Overall, the Terriers were outrebounded 33-18.
B.U. opens its America East slate with a game at New Hampshire on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 2 p.m.
