University of Rhode Island vs Boston University
NIT Tournament - First Round
Ryan Center, Kingston, RI
Friday, March 17, 2023
6:00PM
NIT Tournament - First Round
Ryan Center, Kingston, RI
Friday, March 17, 2023
6:00PM
Media
TV: N/A
Online: ESPN3
App: Varsity Network
Previews
Boston University Fan Forum
First off, congratulations to the University of Rhode Island women’s team for securing their second ever WNIT bid, and just their third ever postseason appearance. Rhody’s other WNIT performance came last year with a loss at home coming at the hands of the Quinnipiac Bobcats. Rhody will play at home Friday night against the Boston University Terriers. Boston University received the WNIT bid as the automatic qualifier with the Patriot League regular season title. They eventually lost to the Holy Cross Crusaders in the Patriot League finals Sunday afternoon. I watched the second half of that game on one of the televisions in my basement & it was great game. BU was down 22 halfway through the 3rd quarter & went on a 16-0 run to cut it 6 with under 6 to go. They ended up cutting the lead to just 1 point with 2 minutes to go but didn't have enough to overcome the enormous deficit. Boston University & Holy Cross basically have the same rivalry this season as URI & UMass did. Both BU & HC went 17-1 in the Patriot League & their only loss in conference play was at the opponent’s home court.
Coach Melissa Graves is in her second year at Boston University & won Patriot League Coach of the Year. The Terriers won their first 17 conference games. On the court, Boston University is led by junior forward Caitlin Weimar who won Patriot League defensive player of the year. She is averaging just about a double-double on the season, going for 15.6 points & 9.8 rebounds. Weimar’s rebounding total puts her in the top 30 in the country. Her height could potentially be an issue downlow as she is 6’4. Somehow she was held without a rebound in the conference finals game, but went for 21 & 14 in the semifinal game against Army. Senior guard Sydney Johnson runs the point for this team. She is a dynamic player, the team’s second leading scorer with almost 13 per contest & is averaging about 3 and a half assists as well. Those numbers secured her a first-team honor. Alex Giannaros is the team’s best three point shooter who is shooting it at over 50% from deep. She is the team’s third leading scorer with over 10 per game. Maren Durant is the other low post player with some height. She is averaging roughly 8 & 8 per game. Her & Weimar account for 63% of the teams blocks as they both have almost 50 each. Those two players along with Sydney Johnson made up for 3 of the top 5 all defensive team players. The Rams are going to find it difficult to score down on the block.
Rhody has stumbled a bit to close out this season as they are 3 and 3 over their last 6 games. This is very reminiscent of last season when they lost their final four games & lost 5 of their last 6 games. This game against the Terriers is going to be tough one. Maye Toure, who won A10’s Most Improved Player, is in for a battle downlow with Weimar Durant downlow. Sayawni Lassiter is going to have to step it up this game. She has been struggling of late from the field (just 22% over the last 4 games). If she can get the Rams running, get the defense on their heels, she can either drive it or kick it out to Sophie or Dolly for the open three.
In my opinion, the winner of this game comes down to who can get over the disappointment of not making the NCAA Tournament. The Terrier’s were closer to that accomplishment, down just 1 point with 2 minutes to go in the league championship on Sunday. The Rams will be coming off almost a 2-week break since the last time they played, so expect there to be a little bit of rust. This is a coaching matchup of two up & coming coaches, both winning coach of the year in their respective conference. Damn, this is a tough one. My prediction is that this will be a battle but the Rams end up the hard fought victory. URI 67 – BU 63. Go Rhody!!
Opponent
Record:
24-8, 17-1 in the Patriot
17-14, 12-6 in the Patriot (Last Season)
Rankings (URI):
NCAA NET: 119 (71)
RPI: 112 (51)
Leaders:
Points – Caitlin Weimar 15.6 (Jr., F)
Rebounds – Caitlin Weimar 9.8 (Jr. F)
Assists – Sydney Johnson 3.4 (Sr., G) (2.1 TO per game)
URI Leaders:
Points – Maye Toure 13.7 (Jr., F)
Rebounds – Maye Toure 8.7 (Jr. F)
Assists – Sayawni Lassiter 4.6 (Sr., G) (2.5 TO per game)
Historical
Series: 10-12
H: 7-5, A: 3-7, N: 0-0
Most Recent Matchup: 12/19/21 54-44 W at URI
Most Recent Win Streak: 3 – URI
