Boston University
VCU
Terriers Fall to Host VCU in Championship Game, 76-65
December 28, 2007 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 28, 2007
RICHMOND, Va. - Junior Jesyka Burks-Wiley paced the Boston University women's basketball team with 20 points, however, the Terriers fell to host-school VCU, 76-65, in the championship game of the VCU SportsCenter Holiday Classic on Thursday evening. BU falls to 7-5 overall, while the Rams improve to 10-1 on the season.
Burks-Wiley was 9-for-18 and pulled down nine boards to earn all-tournament team honors, while junior Christine Kinneary was named to the team after dishing out 17 assists over two games. Kinneary put in another 40 minutes against VCU and posted seven points and five rebounds. Senior Cheri Raffo and junior Amarachi Umez-Eronini each posted 11 points, while Umez-Eronini handed out six assists.
BU shot 50 percent in the second half and 46.9 percent for the game. BU out-shot VCU, 28-20, in the paint and posted 16 second-chance points and 22 off turnovers. The Rams held the advantage, 45-35, in rebounding.
The Terriers and Rams went end-to-end to start the game, and with an up-tempo pace remained within one point of each other through the first 4:30, while the Rams held the slim 7-6 advantage at 15:38. Jean knotted the score at nine on a trey at 13:46 and each team responded with jumpers.
The Rams took a nine-point advantage on a jumper by Lakea Jones at 6:35 to move the score to 22-13. Raffo stopped VCU's 8-0 run with a jumper at 5:36, which ended the Terriers' five-minute scoring drought and brought the score to 22-15. However, VCU came right back and posted back-to-back field goals to up its lead to the largest of the half, 27-15.
VCU ended the first half with its largest lead of the game - 14 points - to bring the score to 34-20. The Rams shot 48.3 percent for the game and brought down 28 rebounds to BU's 17. The Terriers were 9-for-35 from the field, led by Burks-Wiley's eight points and seven rebounds.
To begin the second half, BU cut the lead to 11 backed by a trey from Burks-Wiley and two free throws from Umez-Eronini. Raffo again made it 11 points, after VCU upped its lead to 14, at 12:15 and Kinneary cut the lead to 10 when she drew a foul at the arc and nailed two from the charity stripe with 10 minutes remaining.
Raffo cut the deficit to single digits for the first time since late in the second half with a three-pointer at 9:24 to 54-45. Umez-Eronini brought the Terriers to within seven after drawing a foul in the paint and putting down both free throw attempts.
VCU pulled ahead for good after the Terriers drew to within seven points, going up by 14, 65-51, at 4:50. BU came as close as eight with 30 seconds left, however the Rams held on to the ball and hit two free throws to round the scoring at 76-65.
BU travels to Kansas on Sunday, Dec. 30 to face the Jayhawks at 3:00 p.m. ET.
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