ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Coming off a pair of tough road losses at Army and Lafayette, the Navy women's basketball team will look to even out its overall and Patriot League records on Saturday when the program hosts Boston University in a 4 p.m. matchup at Alumni Hall. The Mids head into action on Saturday at 8-9 overall and 3-4 in Patriot League play, while the Terriers are 8-9 and 4-3 in conference. During the 2017-18 season, Navy defeated Boston in a pair of meetings, 64-59 on Jan. 20 in Boston and 59-48 on Feb. 17 in Annapolis. 

Saturday's game will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network. Live stats will be available at NavyStats.com.

Last Time Out
Navy dropped its second Patriot League conference game in a row on Wednesday morning as the Mids were tripped on the road at Lafayette by a score of 55-42. Playing before a raucous crowd of local elementary school students as part of Lafayette's "Youth Day" promotion at the Kirby Sports Center, the Mids (8-9, 3-4 PL) were never able to find the formula on the offensive end to knock off the Leopards (7-11, 2-5 PL). Trailing by 10 points after the first quarter, Navy tried to tighten the contest up over the final 30 minutes and had the defensive effort to do just that, but never got closer than six points.
 
A matchup of two the Patriot League's top-scorers, Lafayette's Natalie Kucowski (14.8 ppg /finished with 8 points) and Navy's Jennifer Coleman (12.9 ppg /finished with 2 pts) never really materialized on Wednesday and hence it was both team's supporting cast that took the onus in spearheading their respective offenses. The Mids' Kolbi Green posted a game-high 17 points on 5-11 shooting and a trio of three-pointers. The freshman shooting guard also tallied four free throws as she tied a career-best in points. The Leopards' offensive spark came off the bench as Alex Cantwell tallied 15 points of 6-9 shooting and three three-pointers.

Navy opened with the game's first points, but soon after over the next three minutes, Lafayette outscored Navy, 8-1. Trailing 8-3, Green scored the next five points for the Mids. Unfortunately for the visitors, the Leopards were finding success on the offensive end as well and held a 13-8 lead by the 4:57 mark. It stayed at a five-point margin for the next 3:33 as neither team was able to score. Lafayette's Makaila Wilson put a stop to the Leopards' dry spell with a layup at 1:24. Another field goal, this time a Cantwell three-pointer helped Lafayette close the quarter in the lead, 18-8.

Trailing 31-19 at the half, Navy slowly started scratching away at Lafayette's 12-point lead in the third quarter as the team rattled off five unanswered points to make it 31-24 by the 6:28 mark when Jasmine Bishop sank a jumper in the paint. The Mids defense helped this comeback attempt and held the Leopards scoreless for the first 5:21 of the half until Drew Freeland made a field goal at 4:39. Navy made it an 8-2 run to start the period when Green swished home a three-pointer at 3:37. A six-point margin at 33-27 would be as close as Navy got for the rest of the game as Lafayette was able to re-establish itself down the stretch and extend its lead back out to nine points over the last three-plus minutes.

Lafayette never let its lead drop closer than seven points for the entirety of the fourth quarter and came away with the 13-point victory, 55-42. 

For the game, the Leopards outshot the Mids, 43.1 percent (22-51) to 25.9 (14-54). Both team made five three-pointers though Lafayette shot 38.5 percent (5-13) versus 21.7 percent (5-23) for Navy. The Leopards won the battle on the boards significantly by 16 rebounds, 45-29. Navy's defense was effective in terms of causing turnovers as they forced Lafayette into 19 miscues on nine steals. Green led the way with a trio of steals.

Navy versus Boston
The Mids and Terriers have met 11 times in a series that began on December 30, 2011 at the Fordham Holiday Classic in the Bronx, N.Y.  ... All-time, Navy leads Boston, 9-2, with a spotless 5-0 mark in games played in Annapolis ... The two teams started meeting annually once the Terriers joined the Patriot League for the 2013-14 season ... Last season marked the fourth time in series history that the Mids had swept the regular season, 2-0 over the Terriers ... Over the last ten matchups, Navy is 9-1 and currently holds a four-game winning streak.
    Last 5 Games
    Feb. 17, 2018 (H): Navy 59 - Boston 48
    Jan. 20, 2018 (A): Navy 64 - Boston 59
    Feb. 2, 2017 (H): Navy 55 - Boston 41
    Jan. 6, 2017 (A): Navy 62 - Boston 59
    Feb. 4, 2016 (A): Boston 51 - Navy 49

2017-18 Series Recap
Navy and Boston played twice last year during the regular season ... Competitive contests in both Boston on Jan. 20 and Annapolis on Feb. 17 saw the Mids edge the Terriers by single-digits in the first meeting as they won 64-59 on the road before defending Alumni Hall with a 59-48 win in the second half of the home-and-home ... A 15-8 advantage in the first quarter in the January matchup sparked the Mids to victory, while a 28-18 advantage over the second and third quarters played a decisive role in the second contest ... Looking at the cumulative statistics, Navy held slight advantages in a few categories including scoring (61.5 - 53.5 ppg), field goal percentage (36.3% - 36.0%) and assists (17.5 - 8.0 apg), while Boston was more effective in the categories of three-point shooting (38.5% - 30.2%) and rebounding (40.5-37.0 rpg) ... Of the 80 total minutes of action, Navy led for 69:46 minutes versus 5:12 for Boston ... A large disparity in turnovers helped turn the tide for the Mids as forced the Terriers into 48 miscues, including 16 by the team's point guard, Katie Nelson.

Comparing the Teams

(2018-19 Stats)	Navy	Boston
Record / Patriot League	8-9 / 3-4	8-9 / 4-3
Home / Away Record	4-4 / 4-5	6-2 / 2-7
Points Per Game	55.9 PPG	60.2 PPG
Points Allowed Per Game	55.0 PPG	63.5 PPG
Field Goal Percentage	33.8 %	39.9 %
3-Point Percentage	24.8 %	30.8 %
Free Throw Percentage	65.4 %	72.7 %
Rebounds Per Game	39.5 RPG	34.8 RPG
Assists/Turnovers Per Game	10.8 / 16.9	11.0 / 15.6

Individual Leaders

(2018-19 Stats)	Navy	Boston
Points Per Game	Coleman, 12.2 PPG	N. Irving, 13.5 PPG
Rebounds Per Game	Coleman, 7.7 RPG	N. Irving, 8.5 RPG
Assists Per Game	Coleman, 2.6 APG	K. Nelson, 3.5 APG
Field Goal Percentage	Gatzounas, 46.0 %	P. Hauck, 46.5 %
3-Point Percentage	Gatzounas, 32.1 %	P. Hauck, 38.5 %
Free Throw Percentage	Green, 77.1 %	K. Nelson, 86.4 %

Saturday's Promotions
Cheer and Dance Clinic
Navy will host its annual Cheer and Dance Clinic on Saturday. All area cheer and dance teams are invited to register prior to the game and learn a routine that they'll get a chance to perform later on Saturday at halftime of the Navy-Boston game. The clinic and registration will be run out of Halsey Field House beginning at 12 p.m. For more information on the event contact Kristin Toler at 410-293-8743

Parking/Shuttle Ticket Information
Vehicle access to the U.S. Naval Academy is limited to those with a Department of Defense identification card ... It is suggested that everyone else park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium ($5 per vehicle) and ride the free shuttle bus to and from the game ... Shuttle bus service will begin one hour prior to tip. Note that a government issued identification card must be carried and presented by visitors ages 18 and older to the USNA prior to being allowed onto The Yard.

Tickets
Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth online in advance of the game at NavySports.com. The Alumni Hall Ticket Office will open one hour prior to the start of the game.