While most students were at home celebrating the holidays, the William and Mary men’s and women’s teams were hard at work in Williamsburg. Both squads finished their non-conference schedules before moving to Colonial Athletic Association play. While the women extended a successful run into the start of their conference season, the men battled inconsistency during a mediocre stretch.
Women’s Team
The Tribe continued its strong start to the season over winter break. After a break for finals, the College beat non-conference opponents Norfolk State and George Washington to enter the CAA season on a tear. That winning streak continued, as the Tribe beat Hofstra, 60-55, before it lost on the road to Northeastern, 88-74. The College bounced back with a victory over North Carolina-Wilmington, 70-64, before falling to Charleston by 12. After a victory over defending CAA champion Elon, the Tribe moved to 10-6 overall and 3-2 in the conference.
Senior guard Bianca Boggs leads the Tribe and ranks fifth in the league with 17.3 points per game. Boggs also leads the College in rebounding, steals, blocked shots, assists and field goal percentage.
Men’s Team
Over the break, the Tribe finished up its non-conference schedule and entered CAA play. After a break for finals, the College fell 72-40 to Atlantic Coast Conference foe Virginia Dec. 22. The next week, conference action began as the Tribe beat James Madison, 79-74, and Towson, 71-61. Unfortunately for the College, it dropped four of the next five games to fall to 7-12 and 3-4 in the conference, beating Drexel on the road in its only victory during the stretch.
As of Jan. 20, junior forward Nathan Knight leads the Tribe with 19.6 points per game, good for third in the conference. Knight also leads the Tribe and the CAA with 1.8 blocks per contest. Junior forward Justin Pierce leads the Tribe in rebounding and is third in the conference, averaging 9.5 per game. The College leads the league with 17.3 assists per game.