The Boston University Terriers (15-14), who only advanced to the semifinals on a game-winning shot with 10 seconds left in the quarterfinals, advanced to their first America East Championship title game since 1990 with a 68-57 win over the University of Vermont (21-8) in the second semifinal game at the Friendship Cottage Cheese America East Championship on Friday evening.
Boston University, the tournament's #3 seed, opened up a 39-27 lead on #2 seed Vermont just 90 seconds into the second half, then withstood one Catamount spurt after another. Although the Catamounts continued to chip away at the lead, the Terriers lead never dwindled past three points in the final 20 minutes. After a a Vermont basket cut the margin to 50-46 with 4:41 remaining, Boston U. embarked on a 12-4 run that put the game out of reach. Freshman guard Katie Meinhardt, the America East Rookie of the Year who made the game-winning shot against Northeastern in the quarterfinals, sparked the decisive run with a three-pointer and a three-point play, and even assisted on the bucket that gave the Terriers a 60-50 lead with 1:54 left.
Meinhardt scored all nine of her points in the second half, and in two tournament games, has scored 19 of her 23 points in the second period. Junior guard Katie Terhune and senior guard Alison Argentieri each had a game-high 17 points for Boston University, while sophomore forward Larissa Parr had 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds. The Terriers won the game with 69% (9-of-13) accuracy from three-point range, and outrebounded Vermont 29-24. The win ended a 15-game losing streak against Vermont. Boston U. last defeated the Catamounts on February 10, 1996, winning 71-61.
Seniors Theresa LaRocque and Morgan Hall each had 10 points for Vermont, and sophomore forward Lani Boardman also had 10 points. LaRocque, a 5-foot-6 point guard, fought for a team-high seven rebounds, dished out four assists, and made 5-of-7 from the field. All seven players that saw action for Vermont contributed at least five points. The Catamounts made all eight of their free throws, and in two tournament games, were literally unflappable at the line, making 41-of-43 (95.2%) of their foul shots.
The two teams traded big runs early and often in the first half. Boston U. surged to an 11-point lead with a 15-0 run, but saw the advantage neutralized with a 16-1 Vermont spurt. The Terriers had the last word, however, taking a 34-27 lead into intermission with a 15-5 run over the last 6:05. Boston University made 6-of-7 shots during the run, which included a pair of threes and eight points from Terhune. The Terriers shot a scorching 78% (7-of-9) from three-point range in the opening period. Terhune made 3-of-4 shots from behind the arc, while Argentieri and Parr each made a pair of threes. Vermont shot 53% (10-of-19) in the first 20 minutes and spread scoring among all seven players who played.
Boston University advances to Saturday's 4 p.m. championship game and will vie for its first America East title since 1989 The Terriers face the #1 seed University of Maine (25-4), which advanced with a 71-65 win over #4 New Hampshire in the evening's first semifinal. The championship game will be televised by the America East TV network.
BOX SCORE FROM 3/14/03 8:30 p.m.
#3 Boston University vs #2 Vermont
OFFICIAL BASKETBALL BOX SCORE -- G A M E T O T A L S
#3 Boston University vs #2 Vermont
3/14/03 8:30 p.m. at Chase Family Arena (West Hartford, CT)
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VISITORS: #3 Boston University 15-14, 10-6 AE
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
No. N A M E FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
10 Argentieri, Alison * 4-5 3-4 6-6 0 2 2 0 17 5 0 0 0 38
12 Moseley, Marisa * 3-6 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 3 6 3 4 1 1 31
15 Terhune, Katie * 6-11 3-5 2-2 2 2 4 3 17 1 0 0 1 30
32 Norris, Adrienne * 2-6 0-0 1-4 2 5 7 4 5 2 1 2 1 24
42 Parr, Larissa * 5-11 2-3 2-4 2 7 9 2 14 1 2 1 2 38
11 Lopez, Amparo 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+
13 Meinhardt, Katie 3-8 1-1 2-2 2 0 2 0 9 3 0 0 0 24
22 Vanderwal, Rachael 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 13
54 Werner, Rachel 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
TEAM ........................................ 1 2 3 3
TOTALS 23-49 9-13 13-18 10 19 29 12 68 15 11 5 5 200
TOT-FG 1stH: 13-27 48.1% 2ndH: 10-22 45.5% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 46.9% Deadbl
3pt-FG 1stH: 7-9 77.8% 2ndH: 2-4 50.0% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 69.2% Rebs
FThrow 1stH: 1-4 25.0% 2ndH: 12-14 85.7% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 72.2% 2
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HOME TEAM: #2 Vermont 21-8, 12-4 AE
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
No. N A M E FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
03 LaRocque, Theresa * 5-7 0-0 0-0 1 6 7 1 10 4 2 0 2 40-
10 Cressman, Dawn * 3-6 1-2 2-2 1 2 3 3 9 3 2 0 0 35
14 Yantzi, Aaron * 3-5 0-0 0-0 1 2 3 1 6 1 4 1 1 27
24 Boardman, Lani * 2-6 2-4 4-4 0 0 0 1 10 0 0 0 2 23
33 Hall, Morgan * 4-14 0-0 2-2 1 2 3 4 10 0 1 0 0 25
25 Spinka, Tiffany 2-2 1-1 0-0 0 2 2 2 5 1 2 1 0 29
32 McNamara, Katie 3-6 1-1 0-0 1 5 6 2 7 0 2 1 0 21
TEAM ........................................ 0 0 0
TOTALS 22-46 5-8 8-8 5 19 24 14 57 9 13 3 5 200
TOT-FG 1stH: 10-19 52.6% 2ndH: 12-27 44.4% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 47.8% Deadbl
3pt-FG 1stH: 3-4 75.0% 2ndH: 2-4 50.0% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 62.5% Rebs
FThrow 1stH: 4-4 100.% 2ndH: 4-4 100.% OT: 0-0 00.0% Game: 100.% 0
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OFFICIALS: Angie Lewis, Bonita Spence, Joanne Aldrich
TECHNICAL FOULS:
#3 Boston University - none
#2 Vermont - none
ATTENDANCE: 1016
SCORE BY PERIODS: 1st 2nd OT1 OT2 OT3 OT4 TOTAL
#3 Boston University 34 34 68
#2 Vermont 27 30 57
PTS IN THE PAINT: #3 Boston University - 16 #2 Vermont - 18
PTS OFF TURNOVERS: #3 Boston University - 19 #2 Vermont - 06
2ND CHANCE POINTS: #3 Boston University - 08 #2 Vermont - 04
FAST BREAK POINTS: #3 Boston University - 00 #2 Vermont - 02
2003 Friendship Cottage Cheese America East Championship
Semifinal #2...BU advances to meet Maine in Saturday's final, 4 p.m.