Here's how Rhode Island women's basketball clinched share of regular-season title
SOUTH KINGSTOWN — It had to be Dayton, of course. It seems rather fitting.
The University of Rhode Island had its collective heart broken by the Flyers last season. One of the best women’s basketball campaigns in program history turned sour thanks to a pair of late losses against the eventual Atlantic 10 regular-season champions. The Rams couldn’t break free from the doldrums and were eliminated in the first round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament by Quinnipiac.
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Saturday's game brought a long-awaited chance at redemption, and URI spent the afternoon at the Ryan Center unleashing any lingering hurt feelings. Two extended first-half runs pushed this one out of reach early, as the Rams sizzled from the field and attacked defensively.
The result was never in doubt, an 81-57 demolition that allowed URI to set program records in three different win columns — in a season, in a season of conference play and in a season at this venue. It was also a first triumph against the Flyers in 19 years — that March 2004 blowout in the league tournament finally has some company.
“When you constantly win and you don’t go through pain, you get really complacent,” URI head coach Tammi Reiss said. “We’re good, but are you going to be great? Are you going to be a champion?
“Every champion has to hit a low. Every champion has gone through adversity. It’s how you grow.”
Saturday's win meant URI's first-ever conference title
The Rams now have their own share of a first conference title since formally joining the league in 1983-84. Massachusetts hosted George Washington late Saturday afternoon and enjoyed its own home blowout to earn a split. A host of tiebreakers granted the Minutewomen the No. 1 seed during the conference tournament next week in Delaware — URI went ahead and cut down the nets on their home floor regardless of those finer details.
“Now I can see the work is paying off,” said URI forward Mayé Touré, who finished with 15 points. “It’s encouraging because we have more to go get. We’re not done.”
Reiss took the scissors last at the basket adjacent to the home bench. Associate head coach Megan Shoniker walked away with a strand of her own — her time as a player with the Rams included four seasons below the .500 mark. That was the general program history here until Reiss was hired in 2019-20, assembled a strong staff and set out to change the culture.
This was a 13-10 game before URI demonstrated the clear difference between contender and rebuilder. Dayton lost head coach Shauna Green to Illinois and suffered an exodus among its top-tier talent — Rams center Tenin Magassa was one of several players who departed, leaving with multiple years of eligibility for a conference rival.
Win marked culmination of strategy to improve program
URI took the administrative steps necessary to make a day like this possible. Athletic director Thorr Bjorn cultivated a strong bond with Reiss and was able to fend off approaches from Virginia and Syracuse last spring. The ensuing 10-year contract extension signed by Reiss ensured an opportunity to continue improving this roster. The transfer portal brought Magassa and veteran options like Sayawni Lassiter from Rutgers, Emma Squires from Richmond and Madison Hattix-Covington from VCU — all three were honored during pregame Senior Day ceremonies.
“This team is special,” Hattix-Covington said. “I feel like the team and staff are special. When they say family here, it really is a family environment.”
The Rams (23-5, 14-2 Atlantic 10) were picked third in the preseason and spent the better part of the last four months outperforming those expectations. Last year’s group wouldn’t have connected on 10 3-pointers and raced to a 23-3 advantage in fast-break points. It certainly didn’t have the depth to put together a 35-2 avalanche off the bench and place a pair of reserves in double figures.
“Now it’s a little bit more difficult to try to guard us offensively,” Reiss said. “We had all superstars last year. Literally, people were like, ‘You’re so talented. You’re going to win the league.’ Because we had first-team players — we really did.
“But the pieces didn’t fit. They didn’t fit. They just weren’t the right pieces.”
Rams put game away with 17-0 first-quarter run
The Flyers (6-20, 5-10) lost contact thanks to a 17-0 burst that started late in the first quarter. URI enjoyed a 27-10 cushion after 10 minutes that eventually swelled to 77-41 late in the third. The Rams showed no ill effects from a last-second shot by Anna DeWolfe that helped Fordham to a stunning win Wednesday night in the Bronx.
“It was obviously heartbreaking to lose, especially at the buzzer,” Lassiter said. “But I think we had more of a chip on our shoulder knowing we had to get this one.”
URI won a total of 29 games in four years prior to hiring Reiss. The Rams were 15-39 in that span at home — they're now 25-3 on this floor since the start of 2021-22, and the 1,952 fans on hand Saturday represents significant growth at the box office. Finishing in the top four of the conference three consecutive times qualifies URI as the threat Reiss hoped to create when she left as an assistant coach with the Orange.
“The reason I came here was to build something special,” Reiss said. “It’s the reason I didn’t want to leave.”
bkoch@providencejournal.com
On Twitter: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: URI women crush Dayton, clinch tie for regular-season crown
