BOSTON – You can be forgiven for thinking that Boston University likes multiple overtime games. The Terriers have had two of them three days apart, winning in four overtimes against Stony Brook on Monday and surviving two overtimes against UMBC on Thursday for an 80-77 win.
But the depleted Terriers could have used a break from the extra sessions. John Holland played all 60 minutes on Monday and another 44 on Thursday, and while he made a clutch three-pointer to start the second overtime and finished with 18 points and nine rebounds, there was a quick way to sum up how he felt after the game.
“I’m tired, man,” the sophomore wing quipped. “I feel a little tired and fatigued, but it’s part of the season.”
The Terriers’ other big star, Corey Lowe, said he had a feeling of déjà vu.
“Here we go again-type thing,” was how Lowe described overtime approaching. “Just talking to their players, everyone was just shocked that this was going on.”
The timing isn’t great for the Terriers, who are in the midst of four games in nine days and are already down in numbers to the point where Dennis Wolff is playing a lot of zone defense. But on Thursday, the same was the case for the Retrievers, who only dressed eight players and had two play all 50 minutes, another play 49 and one more play 48. So if there was ever going to be a war of attrition, Thursday’s game was just that.
It didn’t have to be this way for the Terriers, who had a 39-22 halftime lead and looked firmly in control. But they struggled to make shots, and gradually the Retrievers came back, eventually tying the game at 61 on a Matt Spadafora three-pointer. At times during the first overtime, UMBC looked like they had the edge, but the Terriers were able to send it to a second extra session and held on.
With six overtimes in a few days, the Terriers have certainly tested their depth, as well as their star players, who have had to give them a lot more already. Thus far, they have responded, especially Lowe, who had 26 points and six assists on Thursday.
“He’s had very good concentration in practice, and he’s been focused,” Wolff said of Lowe.
More importantly, Scott Brittain continues to emerge as a post scorer for the Terriers. The junior forward had a season-high 18 points on 7-11 shooting before fouling out in the first overtime. In conference games, he is averaging just under 12 points per contest. His confidence appears to be improving, and it’s showing in the results.
“This is one of the best games he’s played, maybe in his career here,” Wolff said of Brittain. “He was very active, scored a little in the post and gave us a little bit of a presence.”
Thus far, the play of Holland, Lowe and Brittain has gone a long way towards surviving this span for the Terriers. It’s proven to be more challenging that first thought, as both multiple overtime games came at home. Wolff said he could see the effects of fatigue in the second half of Thursday night’s game, although he was also a little concerned at their shoot-around earlier in the day. At this point, their mentality seems to be that of a team in the tournament: survive and advance.
“We’ve got to get through this week,” said Wolff, who added that they have practiced lightly in recent days and will do so in the next couple of days. “This is a brutal week, this is four games in seven days. This is hard whether we are playing eight or nine guys.”
If they get through this week, the Terriers will be better off, especially if they can go 4-for-4 in that stretch. They have already won the first three. Asked how he would feel if they pull off another win on Sunday, Wolff said, “I think we would wake up Monday morning feeling pretty good about the week we just had.”
It has been quite a week, and the Terriers have survived thus far. They might get to like the overtime games if the results stay the same.
