A last-second layup proved the difference as the women's basketball team gutted out a gritty 66-65 victory over in-state rival University of Rhode Island last night at the Pizzitola Sports Center. The victory is the fourth in a row for the Bears, who improve to 4-1.
The Bears are now off to their best start since the 1993-1994 season, when Brown won the Ivy Championship and earned the league's first trip to the NCAA tournament.
"It was a good win over an Atlantic-10 team," said Head Coach Jean Marie Burr. "We are looking to tune up for the Ivies, and our confidence is hitting stride."
With URI up 65-61 and the game clock reading less than a minute, Colleen Kelly '06 hit a deep three to pull Brown within one with 42.6 seconds left. URI ran the clock down to 14.4 seconds before shooting an air ball, which was ruled to have touched a Brown player. With two seconds left on the shot clock, URI was whistled for an offensive foul, giving the ball back to Bruno with no time elapsed.
Brown moved the ball up the court to Kelly on the left side, where the Rams promptly collapsed on her. Kelly stumbled forward, nearly losing her footing, but managed to get the ball off to Lena McAfee '07 on the right block for an easy layup and the Bears' first lead in over 11 minutes. URI was whistled for a foul on the play, putting Bruno on the foul line with just 2.8 seconds left.
McAfee's subsequent miss fell into the outstretched arms of Holly Robertson '05, sealing the victory.
It was an especially tough loss for first-year URI coach Tom Garrick, as the Rams were assessed a technical foul because they did not turn their starting lineup in 10 minutes before tip-off. The two free throws made by Kelly gave Brown a 2-0 lead before the game even started.
"This game goes squarely on my shoulders," Garrick said. "We did not get the lineup in on time. That is an NCAA regulation. It was a two-shot foul, we lost by one, you don't need to go any further than that."
Despite the early 2-0 lead, the Bears were unable to secure any momentum with the two teams trading baskets in the opening minutes. Brown's biggest lead came on a jumper from Robertson that put Bruno up 11-8 with 12 minutes left in the first half. As the half wore on, turnovers on the offensive end started catching up to Brown, and URI built a 27-21 lead off of transition baskets and second-chance points.
A three-pointer by Jackie Vocell '06 with less than 30 seconds left cut the Ram lead to 32-28 at the half. The Rams had gained 14 of those points off Brown miscues.
"We just didn't do a good job taking care of the ball," said co-captain Sarah Hayes '06. "We did not have a safety to get back, but even if they stole the ball, we came right back."
Brown looked much better at the start of the second half, as improved defensive rebounding allowed the Bears to get out in transition more often. Two baskets from Hayes and one from McAfee quickly turned the four-point deficit into a 34-32 lead.
"We went more for the boards in the second half," Hayes said. "There was a lack of energy in the first half, but we came out in the second half and wanted the ball more. We also boxed out better."
Bruno also started working the ball inside to Robertson, who used her size advantage to pour in 10 of her 20 points and grabbed 11 of her career-high 15 rebounds after the half. The double-double is Robertson's second in as many games.
"(Robertson) is very versatile," Burr said. "She can score in and out. We really emphasize that she is a presence on the court."
Despite the added energy, Bruno still was having problems with URI's zone. The Rams also kept getting open jump shots on offense, allowing them to take the lead again on a three-pointer with just under 11 minutes left.
"We had a hard time with the 2-3 zone," Burr said. "We play a lot of man-to-man and match-up (zones), so my guards got a little confused as to what to do."
The Rams continued to extend their lead, going up by as much as seven, but Brown refused to let them break the game open, cutting the Ram lead to six with just over two minutes left. Kelly then nailed a deep two, followed by two made foul shots from Robertson to bring Brown within two. The Rams scored one final time as guard Peta Kneen hit a layup and drew a foul to put them up 65-61. Her missed free throw led to Kelly's rally-sparking three-pointer.
In addition to Robertson, Kelly and Hayes came up big for the Bears, both scoring 12 points on the night. Vocell, meanwhile, was a huge spark off the bench, finishing with nine points, all of which came on critical shots from behind the arc.
The Bears will return to the Pizzitola Saturday at 1 p.m. to take on Winthrop University in the opening round of the Brown Classic. The loser of that game will play in the consolation game at 1 p.m. on Sunday, and the winner will compete in the championship game at 3 p.m.
