By Ethan Kibbe
Assistant Sports Editor
I wish I knew.” That is how St. Bonaventure women’s basketball Head Coach Jim Crowley responded when asked why his team was mired in a five-game losing streak after falling to Virginia Commonwealth University 61-51 on Wednesday night.
When the contest began, it looked like St. Bonaventure would take control of the game. The Bonnies dominated from the opening tip, scoring the first 12 points of the game and holding the Rams scoreless for nearly seven minutes. The Bonnies passed the ball around the perimeter, looking to drive to the hoop or pass into the post for a high-percentage shot. But as the game progressed, the Bonnies began to fall apart. Their swarming defense lost its energy, and they settled for heavily guarded shots on offense. With five minutes to go in the first half, their lead had been trimmed to seven points, and by the time the first half ended, the Bonnies clung to a three-point advantage.
“We started the game exactly how we wanted,” Crowley said. “We wanted to get to the rim, and we wanted offense at the rim, and we did that.”
As VCU gained control in the first half, Crowley’s disappointment was visible.
“We stopped doing what worked,” Crowley said. “We were moving, we had pace, we put pressure on, and, from halfway through the first half throughout the rest of the game, we stopped doing it.”
At the beginning of the second half, the Bonnies managed to hold on to their lead. They made several shots and limited the offense of VCU. Then, just as they had in the first half, the Bonnies relinquished control of the game. The defensive energy dissipated, and the offense began missing shots. VCU took its first lead of the game 33-31 with just over 13 minutes left, and it never gave it up. With five minutes to go, the Rams led 48-40, and they held on to win 61-51.
Although the Bonnies lost the game, Crowley did not view defense as the problem. Instead, he blamed the offense for the loss.
“When you’re not getting anything out of your offense, every defensive mistake is blown up, gets bigger,” Crowley said.
For juniors forward Katie Healy and guard Nyla Reuter, the losing streak is frustrating.
“I felt like we just lost our confidence,” Rueter said.
Healy, on the other hand, blamed the team’s effort for the loss.
“We’re not going hard enough,” Healy said. “In games, we’re not going at a high enough level. We’re working hard at times, but it’s not consistent.”
With the loss, the Bonnies fall to 11-8 on the season and 1-5 in Atlantic 10 games. VCU improves to 13-6 and 4-2 in the conference.
Up next for the Bonnies is a 2 p.m. Saturday matinee at St. Joseph’s. The game could be the confidence boost that the Bonnies need; St. Joe’s was 13th in the A-10 going into Wednesday.
There is still time for the Bonnies to find a winning formula, but if this team is going to meet its preseason expectations, things need to turn around quickly.
kibbeei14@bonaventure.edu
