Myriad of mistakes see Bona women’s hoops fall to La Salle 67-58

By SPENCER BATES

ST. BONAVENTURE — The St. Bonaventure women’s basketball team was the victim of its own demise in its 67-58 loss to La Salle on Jan. 29.

In recent losses for Bona, one large issue has been at the root of its problems, whether it be a slow start or a lack of anticipation. But against the Explorers, there was no big, glaring issue that led to its downfall. Instead, there were a number of things that went wrong at different times that all culminated into an, albeit narrow, loss.

The Bonnies and Explorers both entered the game with 1-8 records in Atlantic 10 play and the parity between the sides was evident in a relatively back-and-forth first half.

The Bonnies were able to avoid a slow start for the second time in as many games and even managed to put together a 10-2 scoring run in the first quarter that played a big role in the slim lead they held after the first quarter.

But still, while there were positive moments for the hosts, their guests had plenty of their own.

The tenacity that La Salle brought on offense, attacking the basket and winning inside positioning on several plays, and on defense, winning the battle of the boards and picking up second-chance opportunities, paid dividends as it remained in tight contention for the game.

“I thought La Salle was quicker to the ball, both on rebounds and loose balls,” Crowley said. “I thought we really missed some opportunities in the paint to build ourselves a lead. I thought in the first half we had a chance to really have some separation, and we let them hang around. I just thought we looked tentative on both ends.”

St. Bonaventure forward Caitlin Frost (21) draws two La Salle defenders. Frost finished with 12 points against the Explorers. (Spencer Bates)

Bona’s tepidness on the offensive end was evident in its lack of second-chance points — recording just nine off eight offensive rebounds — and its 10-point deficit in the points-in-the-paint category.

“I thought we did a really good job of getting to the paint, we just didn’t get payoffs,” Crowley said. “There was a negative sequence in the third quarter, we missed three straight (shots) in the paint. Really good looks, really good plays, we just didn’t get the payoff.”

But it was their reluctance on the defensive end that led to most of the Bonnies’ problems.

“I thought specifically there was two (rebounds) in the fourth quarter that really hurt us,” Crrowley said. “We had gotten a miss, and then they got the rebound right under the basket. Then, we had forced a missed three … and we watched the rebound. I believe they got four points out of that. At both times, I think we’re down four, and it’s just so demoralizing, because when you get that rebound, you get some pace offensively and put some pressure on the (the opposition’s) defense a little bit.”

“They got a number of baskets … where they just kind of dribbled around us, or they made one move and just got an easy basket. Way too many, to be quite honest.”

St. Bonaventure guard Dani Haskell (22) rises up for a 3-point attempt. (Spencer Bates)

And as the Bona defense continued to concede one response after another, the mistakes it made started to come from a point of over-anticipation.

Crowley has spoken before about the need for his players to anticipate more on both ends of the floor, but against the Explorers, he saw moments where his players were all too eager to get ahead on their defensive duties that they opened up easier opportunities for their opponents.

“They were nervous that they didn’t want to give up the shot,” Crowley said. “So, instead of executing what they should, they went back to a natural instinct of just kind of jumping, and it really hurt us. I mean, you could probably look back and they probably had eight, nine points off that, which is the difference in the game.”

But still, despite the lapses, Bona was in the game until late thanks to a game-high 22-point performance from Dani Haskell, 13 points from Zoe Shaw and 12 points from Caitlin Frost. However, where the starters succeeded on offense, the bench provided no punch, with all three non-starters that entered the game combining for zero points.

“We need everybody, especially late in the year,” Crowley said of the need for his bench to make an impact. “We need to have some minutes and we need positive things, whether it’s good defense or a rebound or even just an extra pass or a good screen. There’s a lot of opportunities for some positive things, and we need that from everybody.”

But still, the lack of bench points alone was not the sole cause of the loss, it was a myriad of mistakes that ultimately culminated into the Bonnies’ sixth consecutive loss.