Men’s Basketball: BU Found no Answer to Red Hot Merrimack Shooting

By Kaan Oguz

The Boston University men’s basketball team (2–2, 0–0 PL) fell 91–79 to Merrimack (1–3, 0–0 NEC) on Saturday afternoon at Case Gym, conceding its most points in a loss since 2019. Despite four Terriers finishing in double figures and multiple second-half pushes that cut the deficit to two possessions, BU was unable to take the lead after the first minute. The most important standout of the game was Merrimack’s 19 3-pointers which is almost triple the Terrier’s average 3-pointer quantity allowed per game in the first three games (6.7).

From the opening tip, Merrimack committed to a 2-3 zone that immediately shaped the rhythm of the contest. The Warriors extended their guards high above the arc to disrupt BU’s ball movement, while the wings pinched in aggressively to prevent clean middle touches. The Terriers countered early by placing freshman forward Sam Hughes at the high post, trying to collapse the center of the zone and create drive-and-kick actions. Hughes responded with the Terriers’ strongest first-half performance, scoring 15 points before halftime, including a heave from beyond half court as the buzzer sounded. But despite the Terriers’ adjustments, Merrimack generated early separation through perimeter shot-making, knocking down 10 three-pointers in 15 attempts in the opening 20 minutes.

“They exchanged 2’s for 3’s. We were giving up too many threes and getting 2’s and that math did not work enough.” were Coach Joe Jones’ comments about Merrimack’s shooting performance.

Junior guard Ernest Shelton fueled the Warriors’ first-half surge with 17 points, repeatedly hitting contested threes. Besides Shelton’s exceptional scoring performance, Merrimack was effective in pressuring the paint and hitting three-pointers when their three guards, Shelton, Dorset, and Kennedy, were together on the court. Andrés Marrero and Todd Brogna also added key outside shots that stalled several BU runs and contributed to Merrimack’s 48–34 halftime advantage. The Terriers showed stretches of offensive rhythm, generating 12 first-half paint points and shooting efficiently through Hughes and Michael McNair, but the Warriors’ zone defense accuracy dictated the terms of the matchup.

BU reorganized its offensive structure coming out of the break. Hughes shifted to the perimeter to stretch the top line of the zone with his shooting, allowing freshman guard Chance Gladden to operate as the primary middle-zone attacker and use Sam Hughes, their best offensive player in the first half, in the perimeter with his shooting ability. With sophomore forward Ben Defty returned after first-half foul trouble, the Terriers reintroduced their more familiar offensive identity. Defty immediately provided physical interior pressure, finishing multiple drives through contact and applying consistent pressure to the back line of the zone. His activity helped stabilize BU’s scoring, and the Terriers strung together several productive offensive possessions behind Defty, Hughes, and McNair. Defty scored 16 total points—14 of which came in the second half—and helped BU generate late momentum as the Terriers pushed to close the gap.

Micheal McNair was the main character of the Terriers’ best offensive spark in the game. McNair scored multiple baskets during the run, including a rhythm jumper and a transition three-pointer, while sophomore forward Azmar Abdullah buried a corner three after McNair’s assist to bring BU within two possessions. The sequence briefly ignited Case Gym and shifted momentum, as the Terriers began consistently getting touches in the paint and pulling Merrimack’s zone into rotation.

But every Boston University surge was met by a nearly immediate Merrimack response, and the majority of those responses came from Shelton. He delivered one of the most dominant opposing performances seen in Case Gym in recent years, finishing with 33 points and nine made threes while hitting shots from deep range, late in the shot clock, and through quality contests. His timely shooting repeatedly halted BU’s pushes, particularly during moments when the Terriers trimmed the deficit to single digits. Merrimack supplemented Shelton’s shooting with balanced scoring across the lineup, including 16 points from Tye Dorset, 14 from Marrero, 13 from Kevair Kennedy, and 11 from Brogna, stretching BU’s defense horizontally and making it difficult for the Terriers to close out effectively.

Despite finishing with four players in double figures—McNair (21), Hughes (17), Defty (16), and Gladden (10)—and generating consistent second-half production, BU could not slow the Warriors’ perimeter momentum. Merrimack’s 19 made threes marked one of the highest totals the Terriers have conceded in recent seasons and stood as the defining difference in the matchup. The Terriers produced strong stretches of paint scoring, rallied multiple times in the second half, and executed well out of halftime, but the Warriors’ outside shooting and zone defense proved insurmountable as Merrimack secured its first win of the year.

The Terriers return to action on Tuesday, Nov. 18, playing against Columbia at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.