Women's basketball delivers statement win over St. Joe's

Photo courtesy of gorhody.com

Rhode Island officially put the Atlantic 10 on watch on Wednesday.

With the clock ticking down below 1:00, sophomore guard Sophia Vital did what she does best – ripping through the lane and sneaking under everyone, she sank a layup to give URI the edge over a top-three Atlantic 10 foe. 

It’s an ending fans have become used to, and as expected, two longtime rivals brought it down to the wire Ryan Center on Wednesday. URI women’s basketball narrowly overcame St. Joe’s, 70-65, to go 2-0 in a vital home stretch. The win didn’t come easy, and represented a major turning point in the theme of URI’s season – growth.

“We were locked in,” URI Head Coach Tammi Reiss said. “We were going to get a stop…Today was [a] next play mentality. Go make another play to make up for what we didn't get. Don't lose your head on what happened...in the beginning of the year, we could not do that. We just folded like a house of cards in every game.”

The battle between two defensive A-10 heavyweights lived up to its billing. Through the opening half, the teams were separated by just three field goal attempts and were an identical 3-8 from distance, entering the locker room knotted at 32-32 after junior forward Anaelle Dutat rimmed out a jumper at the buzzer.

The Hawks finally pulled away in the third quarter, extending their largest lead of the game to seven points when Taylor Brugler kissed a layup off the glass to complete a 14-3 run. Although Rhode Island continued to respond, they struggled to keep hold of the ball with more than half of the Hawks’ run coming off of four URI turnovers. 

The Rams were never going to go down easy. Seemingly inspired by a 33-point third-quarter showing last time out, the Rams finally re-discovered an offensive spark when senior center Harsimran “Honey” Kaur drained a trio of triples in the final two minutes, including a heave to beat the buzzer from the top of the key to keep the game within a possession heading down the stretch.

“Every game we play against St. Joe's, it was a barnburner, so tonight was no different,” Reiss said. “It just was one of our most complete games on both sides of the ball. We have not played this well [all season]. I say this with all due respect to our other opponents, but St. Joe's is a really good team.”

With the game ripped wide open, the teams immediately traded a pair of threes to start the fourth, and St. Joe’s held onto the lead. However, things quickly went cold for the visitors from there, as a scoring drought nearing seven minutes eventually allowed Kaur to knot the game at 63 with a heavily contested mid-range jumper.

Down the stretch, Vital’s late layup paved the way for a chaotic final minute. The Hawks had three chances to tie in the final possession, with Kaur coming up with the rebound – and turning it back over – on two straight plays. However, the visitors couldn’t convert, sinking only one of their last 11 shots, allowing Kaur to ice the game from the line. 

Kaur finished the game with a floor-high 19 points, and joined all five starters in double figures. On the other end of the floor, the Rams played relentless defense, forcing the Hawks into 17 turnovers.

“We knew tonight was going to be a battle,” Reiss said. “It came down to two things – discipline and toughness – to play that team, and that's a good team. When you end a game with three stops in a row, and we call that a kill, that's toughness.”

The win brings URI up to fifth in the A-10, in prime position to fight for the tournament single-bye. Up next, the Rams will hit the road for a Sunday showdown with UMass for the final time as A-10 rivals. The game will tip-off at 1 p.m. on ESPN+, WRIU 90.3 FM and the Varsity Network.