URI Beats St. Joe’s For Statement A10 Win

In a game that had the feel of postseason play, Rhode Island outlasted third-place Saint Joseph’s 70-65 Wednesday night.

Harsimran “Honey” Kaur scored 17 second-half points and Rhode Island (15-13, 10-5 Atlantic 10) held the visiting Hawks (20-6, 11-4 A-10) without a field goal over the final 2:49 to pull out the victory.

The first half was very evenly played, despite differing approaches for the teams. The biggest lead for either side was five points – a 26-21 edge for Rhody in the second quarter – and the score was tied at the end of both periods.

Rhode Island had extreme balance in its scoring, as six players scored between four and six points. Sophie Phillips and Hawa Komara led the team with six points each. Anaelle Dutat and Sophia Vital both had five, while Palmire Mbu and Ines Debroise chipped in four points each. For Saint Joseph’s, Laura Ziegler and Rhian Stokes both had nine points, while Mackenzie Smith added six points.

URI opened the third quarter by scoring the first five points of the half. The Hawks responded with a 14-3 run of their own as Rhody turned the ball over four times in a span of five possessions. A Talya Brugler layp put Saint Joseph’s ahead 46-40 for its biggest lead of the night. Harsimran “Honey” Kaur hit a jumper to snap the drought for Rhody, but Stokes came right back with a 3-pointer to extend the Hawks’ lead to seven.

Kaur caught fire late in the third, scoring eight points over the final 1:22. Her 3-pointer just before the buzzer pulled Rhode Island back within three at 55-52 heading into the final quarter.

The teams traded 3-pointers to open the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Smith drained one for Saint Joseph’s, but Sophie Phillips had the immediate response for the Rams. A turnaround jumper in the paint by Hawa Komara trimmed the deficit to two at 59-57. Anaelle Dutat came up with a steal on the next Saint Joseph’s possession, and a Sophia Vital jumper tied the game with little less than six minutes to go.

Again Saint Joseph’s took the lead on two Laura Ziegler free throws with 4:49 to go. Another turnaround jumper by Komara tied the game once more as the teams kept going back and forth. A Stokes layup was followed by a Kaur baseline jumper, keeping the score knotted with less than two minutes to go. After a defensive stop, Sophia Vital scored hit a driving layup with 1:58 to go, putting the Rams in front 65-63 for URI’s first lead of the period.

A foul gave Laura Ziegler two free throws with 1:32 to go, which she promptly sank. It was the 11th tie of the night.

With the shot clock winding down, Vital again drove the lane and hit a layup with 1:03 to go. Holding a 67-65 lead, the Ram defense came up with a stop. A scrum on the rebound led to a held ball, giving Rhode Island possession and the lead with just 38.9 seconds remaining. On the inbounds play following a Saint Joseph’s foul, Kaur was bumped out of bounds by a Hawk defender, but she was called for a traveling violation.

Talya Brugler missed a potential tying layup with 27 seconds to go. The rebound went out of bounds and possession was awarded to the Hawks, which was upheld after an official review. The Rams got another stop and Kaur got the rebound. She was swarmed by three Saint Joseph’s defenders, and a held ball was called, once again giving the ball to the Hawks. For a third time, Rhode Island forced a missed layup, and again Kaur grabbed the rebound.

This time a foul was called, sending Kaur to the line for two free throws with 12.6 seconds to go. She made both to make it a two-possession game, 69-65. An Anaelle Dutat steal essentially sealed the win. Sophie Phillips was fouled with 5.3 seconds left and sank 1-of-2 to ice the game.

Inside the Box Score
Saint Joseph’s was without head coach Cindy Griffin, who the school announced was recovering from a minor procedure. Associate head coach Melissa Dunne handled the team in Griffin’s absence.
Rhode Island has won four of its last five games overall.
The Rams improved to 10-4 in the Ryan Center this season.
Center Harsimran “Honey” Kaur had a team-high 19 points. All but two of the points came in the second half.
Guard Sophia Vital had 11 points and six assists. She also matched her career high with five steals.
Forward Anaelle Dutat, guard Sophie Phillips and forward Hawa Komara all had 10 points, giving the Rams five players in double figures for points.
Guard Ines Deboise had six points and five assists.
Rhody allowed just two second-chance points.
The Rams had an 13-6 edge in fastbreak points and an 11-5 advantage in steals.
Up Next
The Rams are back at home Wednesday, Feb. 19 to host Saint Joseph’s. Game time is 6:35 p.m. on ESPN+.