Will Rhode Island women go dancing? Rams top St. Louis, head to Atlantic 10 title game Sunday

HENRICO, Va. — Free-throwing shooting has not been a strength for the Rhode Island women’s basketball team this season, making about 65 percent of its attempts.

Those struggles almost caught up with them on Saturday in the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament, but the No. 6 Rams made just enough down the stretch to hold off No. 7 Saint Louis, 68-62, and reach the tournament finals (Sunday, 4 p.m. vs. Richmond, ESPN2) for the first time since 2003.

“Everyone knows you got to make free throws to win close games,” coach Tammi Reiss said.

More: Rhode Island women's basketball led for most of Sunday's game — 3 reasons why they lost

While the Rams (21-13) were just 11 of 22 at the line for the game, they hit 6 of 8 in one key stretch after the Billikens (26-5) got within three at 60-57 with about 3½ minutes to go. What helped the Rams was when they did miss free throws, they got big stops or rebounds on the other end. For the game, URI outrebounded Saint Louis, 40-27.

“Really, really proud of how we closed that game out,” Reiss said.

Leading the way for the Rams were Dee Dee Davis with 16 points, Maye Toure with 14, and Teisha Hyman with 12. Toure added 10 rebounds, and Davis had nine rebounds and four assists.

For Saint Louis, Peyton Kennedy had 16 points, Kyla McMakin had 13 points, and Brooklyn Gray 10.

In the regular season, the teams split their two games, with each winning on the road. On Feb. 11 at URI, the Rams led by seven at the half but were outscored by 10 in the second half and lost by three.

On Saturday, URI raced to a 39-23 halftime lead on the strength of a 24-11 second quarter. But the Billikens, who never led after going up, 16-15, early in the second quarter, came out strong in the second half again and made it a game.

“Every time we play them, it is a game, a heart-stopper, it’s a battle of wills,” Reiss said. “The last time we played them at home, they broke us. It was eerily similar to this game, where we turned the ball over, they’re making a furious comeback.”

Saint Louis cut the 16-point halftime deficit to six, but Hyman hit a big 3 late in the third quarter and the Rams led by six going into the final 10 minutes.

“(Friday) I wasn’t so aggressive offensively. I was focused on defense,” Hyman said. “My teammates believed in me, so they were telling me to shoot it.”

In the fourth quarter, the Rams built a 57-50 lead with 6:25 left on a 3-pointer from Sophie Phillips, who a day earlier set the single-season 3-point mark for the Rams. The Billikens cut it to 62-60 with 1:59 left, but a shot in the lane by Toure and a free throw from Anaelle Dutat made it 65-60 with 39 seconds left. After two free throws by the Billikens, Davis sank 3 of 4 free throws for a six-point lead with eight seconds left.

“I’m extremely proud of my team today on how they regained their composure,” Reiss said. “Out of halftime, (Saint Louis) made that comeback, but instead of faltering, we punched back. We held together, and that’s what it takes to beat a good team in March.”

In URI’s home loss to Saint Louis, Kennedy had 31 points, and McMakin 17. Holding them to 29 on Saturday was huge.

“It was a team effort,” Hyman said.

Reiss said they learned a lot from the first two games against Saint Louis. She also noted the Billikens struggled from the field, shooting 37 percent for the game, with McMakin 4-for-16.

“To make Kyla shoot 4 for 16 — that’s a win,” Reiss said. “We guarded them much better the second time. And that’s an off night for them. Those kids can play.”

In Sunday’s game against Richmond, the Rams are going for their first A-10 Tournament title in just their third appearance in the championship game. The most recent was 2003. (The other was in 1996.) A victory comes with an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, and the Rams’ only appearance in that was in 1996.

“The best team, offensive team, in the league,” Reiss said of the Spiders, who won the regular-season title with a 16-2 mark. “They have multiple weapons. They have size. … They all can shoot the 3-ball. They can post you up.”

Saint Louis starter Marcavia Shavers was hurt less than two minutes into the game after taking a hard fall chasing down a rebound. She was taken off on stretcher. There was no word on her injuries.

The Rams will be facing the Spiders for the third time this season in what will be essentially a home game for Richmond — the Henrico (Va.) Sports and Events center is just 25 minutes from the Richmond campus. URI lost, 71-67, on Jan. 14 at Richmond, and 68-49 on Feb. 7 in Kingston.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island women beat St. Louis, will play for Atlantic 10 title