
Photo by: ©Joe Sullivan/ Boston College Athletics
Positive Energy Carries BC Through Exhibition
October 14, 2025 | Women's Basketball, #ForBoston Files
The Eagles stood toe-to-toe with the nation's best and produced results in their first showing as a team.
The opening moments of Monday's Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Exhibition game between Boston College and No. 1 Connecticut saw many of the 6,012 fans in attendance go fully slack-jawed during the first quarter. They'd arrived at Mohegan Sun Arena under the assumption of a full-blown blowout for the defending national champions, but early buckets from the upstart and underdog Eagles caught them completely off-guard. The shock of two deep balls dealt a particular blow to the veteran-laden Huskies, and the partisan crowd standing in anticipation of the first UConn buckets instead bugged their eyes at BC's undeterred attitude.
The tradition of watching UConn paste an opponent in any arena, let alone one that was in its home state, had to wait for another night. As the game bore forward, the trademark grit of a team without any forged chemistry seemingly evaporated, and the Eagles, despite the 84-67 final score, walked out of Mohegan Sun Arena with an element of respect that didn't exist during the afternoon's preamble.
"I was really proud of the way that our team handled themselves," said head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee. "They competed all game, and coming into the game, winning or losing didn't matter. It was about how hard that [we] could keep on this big stage because this is an opportunity that they've been dreaming about since they were little girls."
Entering Mohegan without any kind of returning production left BC with enough unknown commodity to face Connecticut with an aggression that nobody saw coming, but nobody also could objectively expect the Eagles to play a particular style after entering the offseason with two returnees. Of that duo, Athena Tomlinson's 13.5 minutes per game as a freshman dwarfed the output of Ava McGee, who spent her junior year on the sidelines with an injury, so Bernabei-McNamee was able to blend combinations to effectively counteract UConn's size and athleticism with a smaller and quicker lineup.
A five-out philosophy left UConn center Serah Williams in an uncontested post position while William & Mary transfer Kayla Rolph slotted herself in an additional passing lane that ordinarily wouldn't exist. She hit consecutive shots when Tomlinson fed her both off the dribble and off the possible drive, which in turn forced Williams and Sarah Strong to step out to prevent outer edge looks.Â
"They're definitely the best players in the world," said Bernabei-McNamee. "The way that Sarah uses her body, she's in that much better shape this year, and the way that she moved up and down the floor was really impressive."
UConn eventually found its offensive groove and used bawdy first quarter and third quarter numbers to sink BC's bid to ruin the afternoon, but the Eagles ended the fourth quarter by claiming an 18-14 advantage as both teams emptied their depth charts. The Huskies failed to score a point over the last four minutes of the quarter while BC ended the game on a 9-0 run, and Teonni McDaniel wowed highlight reels by stepping into a three-pointer before driving the basket for a layup in a bigger lineup with Rolph.
"There was a lot to work on," said UConn's Azzi Fudd. "We've been practicing and playing real games by practicing against each other, but playing our practice guys versus an actual opponent is a lot different. Getting this under our belt, seeing what we're working on in real time, it's going to be helpful. We'll watch film and really understand what coach is talking about and what he means. It's hard to [build a winner], so I think this is going to be really good."
Fudd finished with 20 points and four assists with three rebounds and two steals while Strong posted 17 and five numbers with five assists after going 8-for-11 from the floor. Williams added 15 points in 17 minutes against BC's defense, and her two blocks matched Strong for the team lead opposite three offensive rebounds.Â
Amirah Anderson and Kaia Henderson, meanwhile, added eight combined points and a pair of assists for a lineup that moved the ball just as well as UConn's reserves, and Emma LoPinto splashed her first unofficial three-pointer since transitioning from BC's lacrosse program. Anderson also perfectly complemented Lily Carmody in a mid-court combination that grabbed seven combined rebounds, and both came within one second half board of tying Ava McGee's first half, five-board total - all of which will now be erased in favor of the opening game on November 3 against Holy Cross.
Anderson finished with 10 points and tied McGee for the team lead with six boards while Carmody added five rebounds and two assists. Athena Tomlinson's five assists, meanwhile, led a four-player parade with multiple assists, and every player got onto the scoresheet with at least one number in every category, including one rebound for Kiera Edmonds and one steal for Eleanor Trout next to the three-pointer splashed by former lacrosse player Emma LoPinto.
"We were pretty outsized," said Bernabei-McNamee, "but I like the way that we battled on the boards. I think we had an 80 percent defensive rebounding percentage, and that's our victory [against the UConn glass]."
"I thought we struggled to keep them out of the lane," said UConn head coach Geno Auriemma. "Playing the way we played, the way we want to play, it takes a lot, and trying to play like that for the entire time that you're out there, it's not as easy to make shots. So we have to be careful to mix it up and not try to be that [kind of team] for 40 minutes. As the competition is going to get better and better, it's going to get a little bit more difficult."
The tradition of watching UConn paste an opponent in any arena, let alone one that was in its home state, had to wait for another night. As the game bore forward, the trademark grit of a team without any forged chemistry seemingly evaporated, and the Eagles, despite the 84-67 final score, walked out of Mohegan Sun Arena with an element of respect that didn't exist during the afternoon's preamble.
"I was really proud of the way that our team handled themselves," said head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee. "They competed all game, and coming into the game, winning or losing didn't matter. It was about how hard that [we] could keep on this big stage because this is an opportunity that they've been dreaming about since they were little girls."
Entering Mohegan without any kind of returning production left BC with enough unknown commodity to face Connecticut with an aggression that nobody saw coming, but nobody also could objectively expect the Eagles to play a particular style after entering the offseason with two returnees. Of that duo, Athena Tomlinson's 13.5 minutes per game as a freshman dwarfed the output of Ava McGee, who spent her junior year on the sidelines with an injury, so Bernabei-McNamee was able to blend combinations to effectively counteract UConn's size and athleticism with a smaller and quicker lineup.
A five-out philosophy left UConn center Serah Williams in an uncontested post position while William & Mary transfer Kayla Rolph slotted herself in an additional passing lane that ordinarily wouldn't exist. She hit consecutive shots when Tomlinson fed her both off the dribble and off the possible drive, which in turn forced Williams and Sarah Strong to step out to prevent outer edge looks.Â
"They're definitely the best players in the world," said Bernabei-McNamee. "The way that Sarah uses her body, she's in that much better shape this year, and the way that she moved up and down the floor was really impressive."
UConn eventually found its offensive groove and used bawdy first quarter and third quarter numbers to sink BC's bid to ruin the afternoon, but the Eagles ended the fourth quarter by claiming an 18-14 advantage as both teams emptied their depth charts. The Huskies failed to score a point over the last four minutes of the quarter while BC ended the game on a 9-0 run, and Teonni McDaniel wowed highlight reels by stepping into a three-pointer before driving the basket for a layup in a bigger lineup with Rolph.
"There was a lot to work on," said UConn's Azzi Fudd. "We've been practicing and playing real games by practicing against each other, but playing our practice guys versus an actual opponent is a lot different. Getting this under our belt, seeing what we're working on in real time, it's going to be helpful. We'll watch film and really understand what coach is talking about and what he means. It's hard to [build a winner], so I think this is going to be really good."
Fudd finished with 20 points and four assists with three rebounds and two steals while Strong posted 17 and five numbers with five assists after going 8-for-11 from the floor. Williams added 15 points in 17 minutes against BC's defense, and her two blocks matched Strong for the team lead opposite three offensive rebounds.Â
Amirah Anderson and Kaia Henderson, meanwhile, added eight combined points and a pair of assists for a lineup that moved the ball just as well as UConn's reserves, and Emma LoPinto splashed her first unofficial three-pointer since transitioning from BC's lacrosse program. Anderson also perfectly complemented Lily Carmody in a mid-court combination that grabbed seven combined rebounds, and both came within one second half board of tying Ava McGee's first half, five-board total - all of which will now be erased in favor of the opening game on November 3 against Holy Cross.
Anderson finished with 10 points and tied McGee for the team lead with six boards while Carmody added five rebounds and two assists. Athena Tomlinson's five assists, meanwhile, led a four-player parade with multiple assists, and every player got onto the scoresheet with at least one number in every category, including one rebound for Kiera Edmonds and one steal for Eleanor Trout next to the three-pointer splashed by former lacrosse player Emma LoPinto.
"We were pretty outsized," said Bernabei-McNamee, "but I like the way that we battled on the boards. I think we had an 80 percent defensive rebounding percentage, and that's our victory [against the UConn glass]."
"I thought we struggled to keep them out of the lane," said UConn head coach Geno Auriemma. "Playing the way we played, the way we want to play, it takes a lot, and trying to play like that for the entire time that you're out there, it's not as easy to make shots. So we have to be careful to mix it up and not try to be that [kind of team] for 40 minutes. As the competition is going to get better and better, it's going to get a little bit more difficult."
Players Mentioned
Football: Head Coach Bill O'Brien Media Availability (October 16, 2025)
Thursday, October 16
Football: Turbo Richard Media Availability (October 16, 2025)
Thursday, October 16
Football: Sedarius McConnell Media Availability (October 16, 2025)
Thursday, October 16
Football: Head Coach Bill O'Brien Media Availability (October 14, 2025)
Tuesday, October 14