By SPENCER BATES
AMHERST, MA — In its second encounter with UMass on the season, the St. Bonaventure women’s basketball team will be looking to follow a similar script, with a slight alteration to its ending.
Bona, seeking to snap a seven-game losing streak, hits the road to face a UMass team that is trending up after three consecutive wins, for the second time this season. It will be the first of four reverse fixtures Bona has in its final seven games of the regular season.
On Jan. 12, the first time the sides squared off this year, the Minutewomen claimed a 67-58 win over the Bonnies in the Reilly Center. After a stout effort saw the latter just nine points behind entering the final quarter of play, a deficit they had shown to be capable of overcoming earlier in the game, they stalled, and for just shy of five minutes of game time in the fourth quarter, they failed to record a point.
In the meantime, the then-visitors put the game out of reach with a 7-0 run.
Making a big impact with 18 points in that game for UMass was Megan Olbrys and her hot streak has yet to snap since. In fact, her 18-point, 10-rebound performance in the RC kickstarted a seven-game double-figure scoring streak that she will now carry into the reverse fixture.
Crowley noted prior to the first matchup between the teams on the season that the physicality and craftiness she has in the post is what makes Olbrys so effective. Averaging an even 14 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while shooting just shy of 56% from the field, she will be the focal point for Bona in round two.
But for as much attention as Crowley will hope to devote to the paint, his team will need an equal effort on the outside as the guard duo of Yahmani McKayle and Allie Palmieri provide 12.6 and 12.5 points per game, respectively.
The former, who has recently been incorporated into the starting lineup after coming off the bench for a good portion of the season, scored 14 points against the Bonnies last time out. The latter scored seven and grabbed six rebounds.
Crowley will be looking for a better all-around defensive effort from his side, especially on the interior after conceding 36 points in the paint to Duquesne last time out.
Offensively, he will be hoping Dani Haskell finds as much success as she did the last time she faced the Minutewomen, when she tied her career-high with 29 points. He will also hope to see a bounce-back performance from Zoe Shaw, one of the most improved freshmen on the roster this season, after her 12-game double-figure scoring streak was ended in the team’s previous game against the Dukes.
St. Bonaventure and UMass will tip off in the Mullins Center at 6 p.m. on Feb. 5.
