Against Niagara, Erica Carter scored 20 points only to see the team’s 15-point lead evaporate en route to a Bearcats loss.
So Carter decided to kick it up a notch. This time, the Bearcats would not let victory slip away.
Carter erupted for 35 points on 9-for-13 shooting from behind the arc to help Binghamton (2-5) overcome Bryant (3-5) on the road Monday, 75-59. The senior guard finished just three points shy of the all-time single-game record for points. Her nine threes set a school record, and it was the most points a Bearcat has scored since 2002.
Binghamton’s overall performance at Bryant necessitated an even deeper glance at the record books. Their 53 first-half points was the most that the program has ever scored in a single half since moving to Division I. Sophomore guard Andrea Holmes dished out 11 assists, the most a Bearcat has recorded since 2001, the season before Binghamton made the leap to Division I. Junior guard Jackie Ward recorded her first double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. She has scored in double figures in scoring in six straight games.
Carter scored 27 points in the first half alone while Bryant sat back in zone defense. She missed her first long-distance shot and proceeded to drill seven in a row to close out the half, at which point BU led 53-31.
“Jackie and Andrea did a great job of finding her,” said Bearcats head coach Nicole Scholl. “As a coach it’s surreal to watch a player like Erica sometimes because every time she touches the ball, good things happen with it.”
According to Scholl, this win was exactly what the Bearcats needed for their morale.
“It really provides you with some confidence,” she said. “To come in on the road and get a big win like this, it gives us a lot of confidence about what we need to do.”
Binghamton’s confidence needed a boost after a heartbreaking loss to Niagara on Saturday by a score of 57-52. The Bearcats lead 45-30 with 13:36 left before the Purple Eagles crawled back to get the win.
Carter led the Bearcats with 20 points and Ward added 14, but turnovers and missed free throws down the stretch allowed Niagara to keep the momentum working in its favor.
“I think in the second half, Niagara just came out and worked harder,” Ward said. “I don’t wanna say that they wanted it more, because we really wanted it, but they just showed it more … Their shots started to fall, ours didn’t.”
Carter also pointed to the defensive struggles in the second half as a deciding factor in the game.
“On the defensive end, they were getting easy shots,” she said. “But also whenever our defense doesn’t go as planned, then that turns into bad offense too. So overall we weren’t getting the same shots we were getting in the first half, they were pressuring us more. I think we just ended up rushing.”
The Bearcats committed 19 turnovers in the contest, and many came in the second half when they were trying to close out the victory. Ward also mentioned the rushed pace of the game in the second half as a significant factor in the outcome.
“I think we started to play to their speed,” she said. “They were playing faster, we started to play faster, we started to play into their hands a little bit, instead of slowing down, remaining calm and running our game, which we should have done.”
“Basically, turnovers are what ended up being the reason why we lost the game,” Carter said. “Down the stretch [we] need to compose ourselves and take care of the ball.”
The Bearcats shot just 4-of-10 from the free-throw line in the contest, bringing its season free-throw percentage down to .552.
“It’s definitely not where we want it to be,” Scholl said of the percentage. “It’s funny cause at the beginning of the year, our focus was on rebounding … now it’s become the free throws situation. It’s definitely going to be a new focus for us in practice.”
The Bearcats’ are set to try for another road win at 7 p.m. this Friday at Big East power Villanova.