Photo of the women's basketball team huddling before a game.
Eliza Nuestro

Women’s Basketball Heads to URI for WNIT First Round Battle

March 16, 2023

Boston University (24-8, 17-1 PL) vs. Rhode Island (24-6, 14-2 A-10)
Date & Time: Friday, March 17,  2023, 6 p.m.
Venue: Thomas M. Ryan Center, Kingston, R.I.
 
Watch: ESPN3
Listen: GoTerriers.com/Listen (Talent: Brian Maurer and Seth Helman)
Twitter: @BUGameDay | @TerrierWBB 
Rosters: BU | Rhode Island
Schedule: BU | Rhode Island
 
BOSTON – Competing in its first postseason tournament in 10 years, the Boston University women's basketball program prepares in the first round of the WNIT, visiting Rhode Island on Friday (March 17). Opening tip is set for 6 p.m.
 
BU participates in its fifth WNIT in program history, and first since 2013. The Terriers earned an automatic qualifier after capturing its first Patriot League regular season title in program history. BU advanced to the Patriot League Tournament championship game, generating 24 wins to this point.
 
URI also recorded 24 wins on the season, earning a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season title to earn the No. 2 seed in the A-10 Tournament. The Rams are competing in their second-straight WNIT. In total, this is URI's third appearance in a postseason tournament.
 
Friday's game airs on ESPN3, beginning at the top of the hour. Fans can tune in to an audio-exclusive broadcast on GoTerriers.com, with Brian Maurer and Seth Helman on the call. Tickets are available in the link above.
 
TERRIER TIDBITS
  • The Terriers are 2-4 all-time in the WNIT. The furthest they have advanced is the second round, occurring in 2009 and 2013.
  • Those two wins came in the opening round against CCSU (79-60 on March 19, 2009) and Sacred Heart (61-49 on March 21, 2013).
  • Of its six WNIT games, three have come on the road. BU is 0-3 in those contests.
  • The Terriers have played two A-10 opponents in the WNIT, falling to Saint Joseph's and Fordham in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
  • In its last game on March 12, No. 1 BU was thwarted in the Patriot League Championship with a 66-61 loss to two-seed Holy Cross.
  • Trailing by as many as 22 points late in the third quarter, the Terriers ripped off a 25-4 run to pull within one point with 2:30 remaining, but were held scoreless the rest of the way.
  • Senior Sydney Johnson led the Terriers with 19 points on 5-of-11 shooting.
  • Sophomore Lauren Davenport posted 12 points and a team-high six rebounds.
  • Junior Caitlin Weimar added 10 points and three steals.
  • The Terriers would match a program record with its 25th victory, set in the 2008-09 season. BU has already secured its third 24-win campaign in program history.
  • BU would earn its first postseason win since 2013.
  • Only three Patriot League programs have advanced to the WNIT's second round. Bucknell has two of the league's three wins, including a 73-64 win over Fordham in 2022.
  • Two of the Patriot League's three WNIT wins have come against A-10 foes. BU has faced two A-10 opponents in the WNIT: Saint Joseph's in 2012 and Fordham in 2013.
 
SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND
  • The Rams earned a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season championship with UMass, going 14-2 in conference play and 24-6 overall, the most wins in a single season in program history.
  • URI advanced to the A-10 Semifinals before bowing out to eventual conference champion Saint Louis, 59-56.
  • As a team, Rhode Island allows just 57 points per game, while gobbling up 40.4 rebounds per contest. The team ranks 15th in the country with a .265 three-point percentage defense and 25th with a .364 team FG% defense.
  • Mayé Touré paces the Rams' offense with 13.7 points per game on 52.4 percent shooting.
  • Madison Hattix-Covington is the only other Ram scoring in double digits with 10.5 points per game.
  • Head Coach Tammi Reiss is in her fourth season at URI's helm. In her tenure, she has guided Rhode Island to back-to-back appearances in the WNIT for the first time ever.
 
SERIES HISTORY
  • Sunday marks the 23rd all-time meeting between BU and Rhode Island in a series that began in 1978.
  • This will be the first meeting in the postseason as well as the month of March between the programs.
  • Overall, the Terriers sport a 12-10 edge in the rivalry. URI, however, has won the last three contests.
  • BU is 5-7 all-time on the road against Rhode Island, but has dropped three of the last four bouts in Kingston.
  • In the last five matchups between the pair, neither team has reached 60 points. The margin of victory in that span has been 12.6 points, however.
  • BU and URI last squared off in the 2021-22 season, with the Rams picking up a 54-44 victory at the Ryan Center.
  • Rhode Island led by as many as 20 points with under four minutes to go in the third, but Kelsi Mingo drained four threes off the bench to bring the Terriers within one possession late in the fourth before URI pulled away.
  • Mingo's 12 points led the team, while Durant added 11 points. Riley Childs collected an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double.
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