When star sophomore guard and reigning America East (AE) Rookie of the Year Jasmine Sina suffered a torn right ACL during a preseason conditioning session last fall, many were quick to count the Binghamton women’s basketball team (9-10, 4-2 AE) out of contention for yet another season.
BU second-year head coach Linda Cimino, however, remained positive, confident that her remaining players could pick up the slack.
“We still have the same goals, which are to continue to improve and get better, learn the system and change the culture of the program,” she said after Sina’s injury. “Even with Jasmine not in the lineup, I believe that we will have others step up.”
Stepping up is just what multiple Bearcats have done this season, as different players have delivered clutch performances in each of Binghamton’s victories.
While sophomore guard Imani Watkins continues to produce offensively, averaging 16.6 points per contest, she hasn’t been alone in a season that has delivered as many conference wins as the past two years combined. Sophomore forward Alyssa James is BU’s leading defender and bests Watkins’ point average by a tenth of a point at 16.7 per contest. Senior guard Kim Albrecht is dominant from the free-throw line, leading the AE at an 89.1 percent clip. Freshman guard Rebecca Carmody has been one of Binghamton’s leading scorers on multiple occasions and made a buzzer-beating shot to give BU its first conference win in a year, a 51-50 victory over New Hampshire.
“Our team is really coming together,” Cimino said. “I think we have great team chemistry. On any given night, anybody can be our leading scorer.”
Last season Binghamton relied almost entirely on rookie guards Sina and Watkins to carry the team. Even with Sina out of the lineup, this year’s squad has found a way to come out on top in twice as many games as they did last season.
Despite being picked to finish last in the conference preseason poll, BU has proven to be arguably the biggest surprise in the conference this season, earning four victories in six games to tie for fourth place in the AE. This small sample size is significant for the Binghamton program as it represents its highest win total since the 2012-13 season.
The success BU has achieved this season is due largely to an upgraded defense spearheaded by James, who has been an outstanding post presence in her first year as a Bearcat. The 6-foot-1 forward is tied for 10th in the nation in blocked shots per game, averaging 3.17 per contest. James’ ability to contest shots has helped Binghamton hold its opponents to 60 points or fewer in four of its last five games. Last season, the Bearcats allowed a conference-worst 71.4 points per game. This year, however, BU has cut that total to just 58.6 points per contest.
“[Defense] has been our point of emphasis,” Cimino said. “Having Alyssa anchoring our defense has helped us tremendously. Our zone is really active right now.”
Even in losses, the Binghamton defense has performed well above last season’s performances. Against Albany — the four-time reigning conference champions — last week, the Bearcats held senior forward Shereesha Richards, the AE’s leading scorer, to just 15 points — 10 fewer than her season average. The Bearcats fell by just 12 to the AE powerhouse.
Although the BU defense has shown remarkable improvement compared to that of recent years, areas of weakness remain that must be addressed for Binghamton to have a shot at leading the pack. A major concern for the Bearcats is the number of points they allow in transition, particularly off of turnovers. In Sunday’s 75-70 overtime victory over UMass Lowell, BU committed 20 turnovers.
“Our transition defense in the first half was not good,” Cimino said. “Our guards missed about four box outs and we left the shooters open, so there was miscommunication in transition defense.”
After a game-tying 3-pointer by Albrecht with just over four seconds left sent the contest into overtime, the Binghamton defense returned to its powerful form, forcing three turnovers and allowing the River Hawks to net just four points.
The Bearcats are set to return to action on Wednesday against UMBC. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the RAC Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.