The Events Center lost some of its aura Wednesday night.
All season long, the Binghamton University women’s basketball team has looked to its home-court advantage to give it that extra edge, to end losing streaks and to help it defeat even the toughest of teams. Wednesday, Rachael Vanderwal and the Boston Terriers took that magic out of the Events Center, defeating the Bearcats 77-65.
The Terriers’ attack proved too strong, and they handed Binghamton just its second home loss of the season. Senior guard Vanderwal led the way, scoring 29 points, the most Binghamton has allowed to an opposing player in more than three years.
“I just came out being aggressive and my shots were falling,” Vanderwal said. “I had a lot of confidence, and I kept shooting the ball. I was definitely feeling it.”
Binghamton’s only lead of the game was 2-0, but it was quickly erased thanks to a 7-0 Boston run. The Terriers’ lead continued to grow as the Bearcats failed to register a field goal until seven minutes into the game.
“BU had a lot of energy; obviously they scouted us well,” said head coach Rich Conover. “I think we just had some unfortunate forced turnovers; we weren’t aggressive enough on the offensive end. You certainly have to give Boston credit on the defensive end, but I thought we were a little tentative tonight.”
Sophomore forward Laura Sario led the Bearcats with 14 points. Senior guard Jen Blues added 11 points and five steals, and senior forward Jen Haubrich scored 10 points. But their scoring wasn’t enough to offset Boston’s relentless shooting and Binghamton’s continued turnover problems.
The Bearcats committed 19 turnovers, including 14 in the first half, which the Terriers translated into 27 points.
Boston combined its hot shooting with solid defense to stretch its lead to 20 in the second half, before Binghamton mounted a slight comeback. But it was too little too late.
Senior forward Rachel Laws logged 16 minutes off the bench, scoring six points and pulling in four rebounds as she continues to rehab her injured ankle.
“There’s no real way to explain it, other than that it’s frustrating,” Laws said. “Anyone who has been injured and tried to come back from an injury knows that, with your confidence and everything, it’s like starting all over again.”
The loss is the Bearcats’ fourth in their last five games, but Conover is confident they can snap out of it before the tournament.
“It took a lot out of us to get quality wins [with Rachel Laws out], and I think we’re emotionally drained,” he said. “We expended a lot of energy in the middle of the season; now we need to find some in the end. I think that’s very difficult, but we’re certainly capable.”
Before the game, the Bearcats learned that junior guard Therese Deemand decided to leave the team and return to her native Denmark. Deemand, who dropped 26 points on St. John’s during her freshman season and started 16 games as a sophomore, had been rarely used this season.
“I think, for her, she felt personally that being at home would benefit her more,” Conover said. “She was a great part of our program for 2 1/2 years; we appreciate the effort she put in and we really wish her the best.”
The Bearcats remain tied for fourth place with UMBC, six games behind first-place Hartford.