Men’s Basketball: Terriers Edged by UConn
By: Dave Souza
Kyle Foreman stood at the foul line with time almost gone in Boston University’s Wednesday night contest with the University of Connecticut. His Terriers trailed the Huskies by three, and Foreman would need some help if BU was to pull off a seemingly improbable win.
After draining the first shot, Foreman’s second shot missed, producing a long rebound that would decide the game. The Terriers were unable to collect their 11th offensive rebound as UConn (3-4) sealed the 51-49 victory with the board.
“We were out of sync offensively,” said BU Head Coach Joe Jones. “Some of that had to do with their length and their size, but I thought overall I was happy and pleased with our effort and how hard we played.”
It was the second straight contest in which Jones criticized his team’s offensive play. After falling to Saint Peter’s on Monday, Jones cited a lack of consistency on his squad for the double-digit loss. Usually a prolific shooter for the Terriers (4-3), senior guard Eric Fanning scored just three points against the Peacocks. On Wednesday, Fanning returned to form, leading BU with 21 points.
Fanning went seven for 11 on field goals and a perfect six for six from the foul line. The Trenton, N.J. native also nailed down his lone three of the game in the opening minutes of the first half.
The Terriers as a whole struggled from beyond the arc, converting on three of 19 attempts on the night.
“We can score in some different ways, we have to do a better job of searching for those opportunities,” Jones said. “We’re a team that can get to the foul line more than we do. . . .getting the ball inside, and driving the ball to the basket more often are some things that we’ve kind of been missing with the diversity of how we play. I think sometimes we just fall in love with the three because we have a lot of guys who can make them.”
The Huskies also struggled shooting from beyond the arc as they converted on just five of 17 attempts. While Jones revealed that BU’s game plan was to limit the damage done by sophomore guard Jalen Adams, it was freshman guard Christian Vital that led UConn in scoring.
Vital’s 13 points were the most for a UConn offense that was rather quiet on Wednesday night. While the Terriers kept pace with the highly touted program for most of the night, they were their own worst enemy, allowing 12 points off of turnovers.
BU will look to rebound from back-to-back losses on Saturday when they square off with North Carolina State on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. in Raleigh, N.C.