After earning five straight wins twice this season, the AU women’s basketball successfully recorded its first six-game winning streak of the year by beating Boston University 62-38 at Bender Arena on Feb. 19.
AU’s dominant defense and rebounding carried the team throughout the game.
“We’ve just really been focusing on getting our defense inside to be crisp,” junior forward Arron Zimmerman said. “[Assistant coach Tiffany Coll] is the biggest supporter, motivator and corrector when it comes to inside post play. She’s really been working with us and we’ve been working hard in practice to get our post [defense] really good.”
AU (19-7, 12-3, PL) limited BU (11-17, 6-9, PL) to a 33.3 field goal percentage for the game, including a 25.9 field goal percentage in the first half. The score was only tied three times in the first half and BU never led in the game.
The Eagles also powered over the Terriers in rebounding. AU secured 42 rebounds in the game to BU’s 31 rebounds.
“I think when teams play zone, it’s hard to box out, so we told them that rebounding was one of our keys to victory and if we could continue to crush the boards especially versus the zone, then we could get some looks, and we did,” head coach Megan Gebbia said.
The score was close for the first eight minutes of the game with each team exchanging scores. In response, the Eagles distanced themselves from the Terriers by going on a 10-1 run, forcing BU to call a timeout when AU led 21-11 with 7:58 left in the period. The Terriers tried to spark a run, but the Eagles kept a lid on the Terriers’ offense. AU capped off the first half on an 8-0 run to go into halftime with a 33-17 advantage.
AU’s defense continued into the second half as the Eagles were able to keep BU from making a field goal for just under the first six minutes of the half. Just before BU senior guard Rashidat Agboola made a lay-up with 14:01 to play in the game, the Eagles led by 29 points. The Eagles led by 20 or more points throughout the second half before winning 62-38.
Eleven of the 12 players on AU’s roster made an appearance on the court with each player recording at least one point.
“[There is] a lot of balance in our scoring and that’s something that we’ve tried to preach to them all year,” Gebbia said. “You have multiple scorers like we had today. If we can continue this type of scoring the next two weeks into the tournament, I think we’ll be in good shape.”
Zimmerman led the Eagles with 12 points and 11 rebounds, her second double-double this season and during her career as an Eagle. Sophomore forward Michelle Holmes, senior guard Alexis Dobbs and senior forward Sarah Kiely each added nine points for the Eagles.
AU will look to push its win streak to seven straight wins when it plays the United States Military Academy at Annapolis on Feb. 22. AU holds second place in the Patriot League and Army is in third place.
kavancena@theeagleonline.com
