Guru’s WBB Report: Temple Rallies to Top ECU on Davis Shot While Rider and Penn State Comebacks Fall Short

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

Temple fought back from a first-half plundering by the East Carolina Pirates Saturday afternoon to rally and pull out a 58-57 victory on Mia Davis’ shot with 15 seconds left in regulation for a series sweep in an American Athletic Conference game in McGonigle Hall.

The win got the Owls (8-8, 8-5 AAC) back to .500 overall, though ECU’s 19-5 second quarter certainly made it look at the half that the outcome was heading away from the home team.

“Part of the reason for that (the second period) was we we had two of our three big scorers on the bench in foul trouble,” said Temple coach Tonya Cardoza.

The overall flow of the contest had 15 lead changes and seven ties.

“This was a hard-fought win,” Cardoza said. “East Carolina is a tough team to play against. They’re really disruptive. Took us out of our offense. Mia and ‘Lex (Alexa Williamson) got into foul trouble early and had to sit.”

As it was, even after the break, ECU (6-11, 4-8) was able to be ahead by 12 points in the third period before Temple fought back into competition to make it a three-point game by both sides over the final ten minutes.

Davis scored 20, including 9-for-9 from the line, as the Owls bounced back from a second rout from Houston on Wednesday while rookie Jasha Clinton scored 13 points.

Though Temple overall shot 36.5 percent for the game, the Owls heated up in the second half, shooting 7-for-14 for 50 percent.

In addition to the two fouls each picked up by Davis and Williamson in the second quarter, the Owls got sloppy with the ball committing seven turners leading to 12 points from the visitors, who were able to hold Temple scoreless just under seven minutes until Clinton hit a free throw. The Cherry and White hit but two field goals in the quarter while the Pirates were 7-for-13 in the period, helped by the transition baskets.

“For the most part, the guys that were on the floor did a good job keeping us in the game. And down the stretch when we needed stops, the defense did a really good job and converted down the other end,” Cardoza said. “It was not pretty, but happy to walk away with a win.”

Out of the locker room became a different story as Temple got 11of the first 16 points, and a Davis three-ball pulled the Owls within a point at 38-37.

ECU then went up three on two from the charity stripe but Clinton from deep tied it with under two minutes remaining in the quarter.

Temple then got a brief one-point lead on Rayniah Walker’s foul shot but two from the Pirates during an exchange of leads in the final minute had ECU in front with the final quarter to become where the outcome would be decided.

Maddie Moore’s turnaround jumper gave ECU a two-point lead within the final minute of regulation, but Asonah Alexander’s shot from beyond the arc put Temple in front by a point with 41 seconds left.

Not for long, as the advantage went back to the Pirates on a pair of foul shots to make it 57-56.

“Being down and not throwing in the towel, that shows us a lot,” Cardoza said of the comeback. “Being focused on the defensive side, if they pay attention, things can happen. So no matter what happens, just stay focused, stay the course, play it out, and that’s what they did.

“I was really happy in the huddles, they were encouraging each other. But more importantly on the defensive side, there were a lot more guys focused and trying to get things done than in the past. In the past, we may have stopped playing. When things weren’t going on the offense, when are we going to bear down on the defensive side and get things done and I felt today was one of those days.”

Then Davis came through with the game-winner that was preserved on Clinton’s ensuing steal. Going for the basket, she was blocked but the Owls pulled down an offensive rebound as the final seconds ticked off and time expired.

“‘Coach just said, ‘Get open at the high post and try to score,’ so that’s what I just did,” Davis said.

Temple is next off to a two-game road trip, visiting Tulsa Wednesday at 7 on ESPN+ and then to Memphis next Saturday at 2 p.m., also on ESPN+.

Finishing out before heading for the conference tournament in Fort Worth, Texas, on March 8, the Owls will host No. 14 South Florida on Wednesday, Feb. 24, at 3:30 pm., then travel to UCF the following Saturday at noon, and return to conclude the regular season March 2 at 3:30 p.m. against Memphis. The remaining home games will all be in McGonigle Hall and all televised on ESPN+.

Rider Falls to Niagara: Going into Saturday’s contest, the outcome seemed an easy bet with Rider one of three teams in this pandemic season having played the most games, while visiting Niagara had played but four, the most recent being a weekend of lost games with Marist on Jan. 22-23.

In fact, the Purple Eagles had but one win.

But that’s not the way it worked out in the first of. Rider’s final home pair of games of the season in Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J., as the Broncs fourth-quarter comeback died allowing Niagara to prevail 65-59 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

The visitors (2-3, 2-3 MAAC) used a 10-0 run to go up seven late in the second quarter before the Broncs (5-17, 4-13), who have struggled with a young roster, knocked off some of the deficit to three at the break.

The third quarter was played basically even, Rider leading at the end with ten minutes left in regulation.

Then Niagara, under Jada Pierce who had previously been a Saint Joseph’s assistant and West Chester graduate among numerous other coaching stops, opened with an 8-0 run before the Broncs countered with a 10-2 rally to move within a basket at 52-50 under the four-minute mark.

Then the momentum went back to the Purple Eagles with another 8-0 run and 10-point lead which the home team whittled but not enough as Niagara made its foul shots to secure the win.

The Purple Eagles’ Angel Parker had a double double of 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Ally Haar, Maddy Yelle, Olivia Mason, and reserve Sydney Faulcon each scored 10.

“We’re disappointed we didn’t get it done on our home floor today,” said veteran Rider coach Lynn Milligan, whose more veteran squad a year ago earned the top seed in the MAAC tourney and won the quarterfinal against Niagara before the rest of the event in Atlantic City, where it will return next month, was cancelled at the outset of the coronavirus strike.

“We had too many mistakes that cost us in the end. We are going to have to be better tomorrow. There were plays on both ends of the floor that we’d like back, but we’ll make the right adjustments and be ready to go tomorrow.”

Makayla Firebaugh scored 19 and grabbed five rebounds for the Broncs along with two steals, a block and an assist, while Maya Hyacienth scored 14, and Raphaela Toussaint had nine points and six rebounds.

Victoria Toomey had four blocks and six rebounds, while Amanda Mobley dished eight assists.

The loss snaps a four-game win streak in the series.

Daija Moses is the lone senior on the roster and thus being honored this weekend.

The teams return at 1 p.m. Sunday on Valentine’s Day on ESPN+.

While Rider shuffled opponents early in the non-conference season and involved in switches later, the Broncs do not have one game listed as cancelled or postponed, though early cancellations were replaced on the fly.

Thus, Sunday is the Broncs’ last game, giving them a long time to re-tool until the start of the tournament, March 8.

Slow Start Dooms Penn State: Though Johnasia Cash got her eighth double double with 16 points and 12 rebounds, visiting Michigan State’s strong first half was enough to withstand a Lady Lions rally the rest of the way for a 78-65 win in the Big Ten that was also the annual Play4Kay game to fight breast cancer at the Bryce Jordan Center in State College.

Though attendance is restrictive due to COVID-19 protocols, the home team was able to use remote access to involve various survivors, including using the giant video scoreboard to announce the starting lineups.

Anna Camden scored in double figures with a personal best 16 points for Penn State (8-9, 5-8 Big Ten) while Niya Beverly and Makenna Marisa each scored 14 points.

The Spartans quickly jumped to a 35-11 lead and still had a sizable advantage at 48-26 before several runs by the home team the rest of the way made the score closer but not enough to seriously threaten the visitors.

“Obviously, a much better second half than first half,” said second-year Lady Lions coach Carolyn Kieger. “We have to figure out how to play four quarters.

“The last two games we’ve been up and down, and that goes along with youth and leadership. I’m pleased with our fight in the second half, but obviously we can’t start out like that.”

Nia Clouden topped three teammates scoring in double figures with 17 points for Michigan State (11-5, 6-5).

Penn State next is back on the road this week, traveling to Iowa, which features freshman Caitlin Clark, on Thursday, and then travels to Nebraska, Sunday.

West Virginia Stunned by Oklahoma: The No. 19 Mountaineers’ 11-game win streak came to an unseen ending, losing to Oklahoma 72-71, in a Big 12 game at home in WVU Coliseum in Morgantown.

The Sooners (8-9, 5-7 Big 12) came to life in the fourth quarter with a 15-5 run and held on as coach Mike Carey’s squad (16-3, 10-3) couldn’t get a potential game-winning shot to drop on the last possession.

Kirsten Deans scored 22 points and dealt six assists, while Kysre Gondrezick scored 19, and Jasmine Carson scored 19 for the home team. 

“I give Oklahoma credit,” said Carey. “They hit shots, we didn’t.

“When Kari Niblack in foul trouble, they were killing us on transition because nobody talked at that time. We weren’t getting back. In the fourth quarter, we scored five points because I think we took 13 shots and none of them were 3’s. We were 1-for-9. We did have an opportunity win there and ran a play,” he explained.

“Esmery (Martinez) had a wide-open shot and missed it. (Deans) got the rebound and kicked it out. We looked slow. We had foul trouble. Madisen (Smith) was getting cramps in her calves.

“We weren’t getting back and playing defense. We didn’t go to the foul line. We had way too many turnovers once again. We were leaving our feet in the paint. Those kind of things add up to a loss.”

Madi Williams scored 21 for Oklahoma, while Taylor Robertson scored 20, and Gabby Gregory scored 12, and reserve Skylar Vann picked up 10 points.

The loss was ill-time for West Virginia, trailing first-place Baylor by just a game in the standings and heading to Waco, Texas, Wednesday, though the Bears will be hosting Texas in between on Sunday.

“We just overcoming things and they have great belief in one another, unconditional love for each other and they’re playing for each other,” said Sooners coach Sheri Coale. “There’s such a difference between playing hard and playing for each other and I think the defensive performance in the fourth quarter was a great reflection of what playing for each other looks like.”

Trailing by nine heading to the final 10 minutes, the Oklahoma part of the run was 15-0 but in the overall period the Mountaineers missed 11 of 13 shots and made seven turnovers.

Deans’ three-pointer got the home team within a point with 28 seconds left and then the Sooners committed a turnover giving more life to West Virginia.

Martinez missed a short jump shot but Deans got the offensive rebound, sent the ball to Smith, who took an open game-winning three but it fell short and time ran out.

Oklahoma has had success in the land of Country Roads, winning four straight times in Morgantown and two in a row when the Mountaineers were holding a ranking. West Virginia also departed with a 10-game home win streak against Big 12 rivals.

Stanford’s Fourth Quarter Sinks Oregon State: The No. 5 Cardinal continues to click since a rare two-game losing streak last month within the PAC-12 saw Hall of Fame coach Tara VanDerveer’s squad drop from the top spot in the Associated Press women’s poll, which likely will have UConn following Louisville and South Carolina as the newest but golden oldie No. 1 when the next rankings are announced early Monday afternoon.

An eight-point lead in a competitive game after three quarters at Oregon State transformed into a 23-6 blowout over the final ten minutes on the way to an 83-58 victory for the PAC-12 leaders. The lead in the final quarter grew to as much as 27 points.

“We got a great defensive effort, especially in the second half,” VanDerveer said. “I mean, to hold them to 18 points in the second half,  six points in the fourth quarter., I think that was really, really great defense by our team.”

Five players scored in double figures for Stanford (18-2, 15-2 PAC-12), paced by Haley Jones, with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Kiana Williams scored 16 and dealt eight assists, freshman Cameron Brink scored 13, while reserves Alyssa Jerome and Hannah Jump scored 14 and 11 respectfully.

While Stanford was in a unique situation with a stringent COVID-19 county-wide protocol in Santa Clara in Northern California forcing the Cardinal away from campus on Dec. 1 to keep going from elsewhere until last weekend after a relaxation of the rules, Oregon State (4-6, 4-4), which was ranked early in the season, has had to deal with numerous shutdowns due to positive tests showing up either within the program or among opponents to cause postponements.

In fact, this game was pushed back a day with the Beavers emerging from the latest shutdown that caused two postponements last weekend.

Overall, nine Oregon State games have been postponed, including Sunday’s original schedule with Cal visiting, due to the Golden Bears lacking the minimal number of healthy players.

In Saturday night’s game, the Beavers got 16 points from Sasha Goforth, while Taylor Jones had a double double of 13 points and 15 rebounds, and Aleah Goodman scored 12.

Coach Scott Rueck said of his team, which last played two weekends ago in a win at Utah, “I think for a large part of this game, we showed who we are, what we’re capable of.

“Just weren’t able to finish it. For three quarters this was a heck of a game and then they obviously finished well, so credit them for that.”

VanDerveer’s record-setting career win total among Division I women’s coaches improved to 1,112, ahead of UConn’s Hall of Famer, Geno Auriemma, who reached 1,107 in Friday’s Big East win at Georgetown.

Her next game is Monday night, Stanford’s final road game of the season, is at No. 11 Oregon, while the Huskies on Wednesday will be at St. John’s.

The legendary Hall of Fame Tennessee coach Pat Summitt had the record at 1,098 when she retired in 2012 battling Alzheimer’s Disease that ultimately claimed her several years later.

VanDerveer became the new leader in early December while Auriemma moved into second all-time last month.

“Alyssa Jerome gave us a huge, huge lift off the bench,” VanDerveer said as part of her rundown of Saturday’s win. “She’s been a great team leader.

“A great team win against very good team. We did not have a great week of practice,” alluding to players nicked. “But one of the things we’ve been able to do since returning (to Maples Pavilion a week ago), is we’ve been able to get people to get in the gym and put up extra shots. I’m really excited how well our team played.”

As for Haley Jones, the Stanford coach noted, “This was a tough game for Haley. This is where she got hurt last year. It brought back some memories for her which I thought she wanted to erase, which I thought she really did. You know, a double double, rebounding, scoring, just really making some great plays for us.

“Haley in many ways is still a freshman, without the ability to finish her freshman year, without the ability to train in the offseason, so she’s a very young player, but she’s very intelligent. She is one of the smartest players out there. She sees things really well. Both her parents are basketball coaches. So with her vision and her strength, she’s really making some great plays for us.”

South Florida Returns: A month later, seven-postponed games, though two cancelled by SMU’s suspension of the season, No. 14 South Florida finally got back on the court in its Yuengling Center in Tampa and completed setting a program record with its 10th straight victory, beating Tulsa 67-46 in the American Athletic Conference where the Bulls (11-1, 8-0 AAC) have a perfect record.

The sole loss on the season was a narrow one early in the season to Baylor, then in the Top 5 of the rankings, though the Lady Bears have remained in the Top 10.

While Tulsa (5-9, 4-9), which next hosts Temple, is nicknamed the Hurricanes, appropriately it was the Bulls who whipped up a storm in the contest.

“Our three-point shooting is one thing we pride ourselves in and it is usually one of our strengths,” Tulsa coach Matilda Mossman said. “They weren’t giving us many open looks.”

Tulsa stayed in the game until near the end of the first half when USF tore off on a 10-0 run for a 33-20 advantage. The Bulls kept it going, opening the third quarter on an 11-2 tear.

Bethy Mununga had a team-best 19 points and 15 rebounds, while Sydni Harvey added 14 points, Elisa Pinzan scored 13, and Mihaela Lazic scored 10.

However, the Bulls got things done without Maria Alvarez, Elena Tsineke, Cristina Bermejo, and Kristynsa Brabencova available, though all were on the bench except Tsineke, but not in uniform.

Jose Fernandez noted in the postgame press conference that each player needs to pass a series of tests before returning.

He said the trio at the game had passed their 10 days of isolation “and now they got to through testing to come back.

“You go through a blood test,” he explained the procedure, you got to go through a stress test, you got to go through an echogram, so for them to return and participate, and of course see a team doctor;.”

He said Tsineke would return Sunday to the team, “but she’s got to go through her testing starting Monday.”

Having to rely on the veterans to make up for the absences, Fernandez did get help from redshirt freshman Lazic, who made her first start and scored the 10 points.

She said she gained confidence for her performance from the trust by the team and coaching staff.

“We were missing four people, then I realized I got to step up, this is my time, and let me show everyone they can trust me.” 

Tulsa got 18 points from Wyette Mayberry, returning from missing the last contest due to illness. 

USF will be home again Wednesday at 7 hosting Cincinnati on ESPN+.

Two other ranked teams playing in the afternoon also had easy times, No. 23 South Dakota State won at Oral Roberts, 82-60, in the Summit League, while No. 17 Gonzaga handled visiting Santa Clara 67-50 in the West Coast Conference, but No. 25 Missouri State on the second day against the same opponent, just nipped Illinois State 73-72 in a Missouri Valley Conference game played at Redbirds Arena in Normal.

In the latter game, Brice Calip scored with 1.4 seconds left in regulation to rescue the Lady Bears (13-2, 9-0 Missouri Valley), who had trailed early by 16, but rallied for their ninth straight victory.

Jasmine Franklin scored 15, Elle Ruffridge had 13, Abby Hipp scored 12, and Calip had 11 for Missouri State, which way back early in the season pulled a 16-point rally to upset then-No. 12 Maryland.

Illinois State (9-6, 6-6) had lost to the Lady Bears 69-52 on Friday night at home.

Meanwhile, Gonzaga (18-2, 13-0 WCC) at home in the McCarthey Center in Spokane, Wash., extended the nation’s current best home streak to 23 games, in the wake of the 61 by Baylor went by the boards last month on Iowa State’s upset. Jenn Wirth, LeeAnne Wirth, and Melody Kempton each scored 12 points and Jill Townsend scored 10 against Santa Clara (12-8, 8-6).

“I’m really happy that we played great defense in the first half,” said Gonzaga coach Lisa Fortier. “That was the difference. We just really guarded.”

The Zagg’s 22-3 second quarter held up against the visitors’ 24-12 response he following period,

South Dakota State used a 32-13 second quarter to subdue the Golden Eagles (6-11, 4-5 Summit League) in the hosts’ Mabee Center in Tulsa and win its 13th straight as Myah Selland scored 18, shooting 7-for-10 from the field to go with her seven rebounds and five assists, while Tori Nelson scored 12, and Madysen Vlastuin scored 10 for the Jackrabbits (16-2, 9-0).

The two teams play again at the same site Sunday at 2 p.m.

Cal Baptist Unbeaten Streak Rolls On: The Lancers are two wins from no longer having to reference the 22-game run finished by Princeton last season prior to the cancellation of the Ivy tournament and the conference subsequently cancel winter sports this season for all its teams that also includes Penn.

Cal Baptist made it another weekend sweep as the Lancers topped host Texas Rio Grande Valley 79-64 in a Western Athletic Conference game in Edinburg to go to 18-0 this season overall but 21-0 on the current two-season streak. The WAC leaders are 10-0 in the conference.

Sydney Palma was a perfect 9-for-9 from the field, including 4-for-4 from deep for Cal Baptist, which was down 42-40 in the third quarter when she went on to score 18 of her points. Caitlyn Harper had 13 points and 11 rebounds, while Ane Olaeta had 13 points and 11 assists.

The Lancers’ 393 assists are second currently in the NCAA.

The only other unbeaten team in Division I is Bucknell, which was off to its best start at 8-0 within the Patriot League and overall but has been on pause due to come out next weekend. League members did not play non-conference with the exception given to Army and Navy. The other military academy, Air Force, which is in the Mountain West Conference, but has also been playing since the three-week delayed NCAA season start on Nov. 25.

Seton Hall Edged in Overtime: In their first game after losing at No. 2 Connecticut on Wednesday, Seton Hall fell to Creighton 77-76 in overtime in a Big East battle back home in Walsh Gym in South Orange, N.J., as the Bluejays (5-8, 4-5 Big East) scored with 1.7 seconds left in the extended period on Tatum Rembao’s shot, who was under the basket.

Lauren Park-Lane’s driving layup had given Seton Hall it’s first lead in the overtime before Creighton was able to execute the game-winner.

The setback moved idle Villanova into fourth behind UConn, No. 22 DePaul, and Marquette, all of whom have beaten the Wildcats.

Tossed away by the loss by the Pirates (9-5, 7-4) was a double double 25 points and 17 rebounds effort from Desiree Elmore, while Park-Lane scored 19, Mya Jackson scored 15, and former UConn member Andra Espinoza-Hunter grabbed 15 rebounds.

Morgan Maly scored 20 for Creighton and Rembao scored 18, while Temi Carda scored 12.

The Pirates led 29-16 in the second quarter before the Bluejays were able to reduce the deficit and head to the break trailing 33-25.

Seton Hall used a 9-0 run in the third to take a dominating 43-29 lead just over the six-minute mark before Creighton struck back across two periods with a 13-3 run to tie the score 52-52 in the fourth quarter.

Rembao score twice, once from deep, to give the Bluejays a four-point lead but the Pirates rose again with an 8-0 run concluded with Amari Wright’s trey for a regained 63-59 advantage with 3:47 left in regulation.

But Rembao kept running rescue work, tying the game 64-64 at 1:03 on a three-ball. Temi Carda almost got it down for the visitors with a pair of foul shots with but Elmore went inside with 14 seconds left to force the ovcrtime.

In the extra period, the Pirates trailed by five with 1:36 left before Elmore and Jackson scored back-to-back to move within one.

Elmore than rebounded and fed Park-Lane for a wire-to-wire score and a 76-75 lead with 18 seconds left.

Though no timeouts for Creighton remained, the Bluejays came down and found Rembao underneath for the winning shot.

Elmore was able to get off a shot as time expired but it rimmed out and Creighton had the upset.

Seton Hall next heads to DePaul for a Monday contest at 7 televised on FS1.

Stony Brook Beats Maine to Tighten America East: It was 1 vs 2, America East style, and Stony Brook upset front-running Maine 59-54 their own Island Federal Arena on Long Island to tie the Black Bears 

(14-2, 11-2 AEC) in the loss column with the Seawolves (11-4, 9-2) to host them again Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

The game was also Stony Brook’s Play4Kay game to battle breast cancer.

The two were on a collision course last season as the Seawolves sought their first NCAA tournament but the conference playoffs got cancelled, along with virtually the rest of the sports world as the coronavirus took hold.

In this one the Seawolves took advantage of some cold shooting by Maine.

Asiah Dingle, a transfer from Kent State, led the home team with 16 points, including two foul shots with 14.1 left in regulation to keep Stony Brook in safer territory.

She led her previous school in scoring, assists and steals.

Hailey Zeise had six points and eight rebounds.

The Seawolves had not played in just under two weeks.

It was a battle to the finish.

Stony Brook reopened a five-point lead with on Earlette Scott’s two foul shots with 42.1 seconds remaining before Dingle’s ensuing points to snap a nine-game win streak by the Black Bears.

“Maine is a very good team, and we both understand the importance of this game,” said Stony Brook’s Caroline McCombs, whose name in the offseason was speculated in several coaching openings.

“We took care of business today, and it’s a quick turnaround for tomorrow.”

Her associated head coach is former La Salle coach Jeff Williams.

The Stony Brook defense, which is forth in the nation allowing 50.2 points, held Maine’s effort to 32 from the field.

“Stony Brook played better than we did,” said Maine coach Amy Vachon, talking to the Bangor Daily News afterwards.

“When we get 20 more shots than the opponent, we should probably win the game. But they made bigger plays down the stretch than we did and we didn’t shoot the ball well,” she continued.

“Stony Brook is a very good defensive team, obviously. To say they didn’t have anything to do with it would not be fair. I also think we missed a lot of shots. You can’t have your two best players go 5-for-29,” she said of Dor Saar and Blanca Millan, who is 14th in Division I with a 22.7 average but was held 10 points under to 12. 

Anne Simon led the Black Bears with 17 points, while Maeve Carroll scored 13. 

The Seawolves are the defending regular season champions in the America East.

Villanova To Be Reactivated: The Wildcats, according to the team website, are set to resume their Big East schedule Tuesday at 7 at home in Finneran Pavilion when Butler visits. Off the latest pause due to COVID-19 protocols, Villanova last played beating Providence at home 67-53 on Feb. 3, which was 10 days ago, a period in which a road trip to Creighton, Providence, was postponed, as were home games from Xavier and DePaul.

The Providence game, which was put off twice on separate issues with each program, was just re-instated for Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 1 p.m. on the Flohoops apps and a previous game hosting Seton Hall was previously re-inserted as the home and regular season final on Feb. 27. The past postponed trip to soon-to-be No. 1 Connecticut will not be rescheduled.

After the Butler game, if no more disruptions occur, the schedule says Friday at Marquette at 8 p.m., Sunday at Georgetown, at 2 p.m., and then the Saturday visit at 8 from Seton Hall, whose Saturday loss flipped the Wildcats into fourth place. They previously won at Seton Hall in an earlier meeting.

On Saturday’s overall card, 19 games were cancelled or postponed.

Looking Ahead: With Delaware flexing heavy muscles and Drexel’s rally falling short in Newark on Friday, the Dragons to try to avoid falling further behind the Colonial Athletic Association frontrunner and will seek to make the weekend a split Sunday afternoon when the teams finish their series at 1 p.m. on NBC-Philadelphia in the Daskalakis Athletic Center.

The game replaces last weekend’s homecoming events, the two-game hosting of Hofstra, which were postponed because of COVID-19 issues on the part of the visiting Pride.

Towson, meanwhile, is right on the heels of the Blue Hens, having won the first of a weekend back-to-back at Northeastern in Boston 90-69 as Kionna Jeter scored her third straight +30 game for the Tigers (11-3, 6-1 CAA), who play again in the Cabot Center Sunday at noon on the Flohoops streaming apps.

Drexel will finish the regular season visiting Towson next Saturday and Sunday and then hosting preseason favorite James Madison the following Saturday and Sunday weekend.

The Atlantic 10 local duo of La Salle and Saint Joseph’s will finish their weekend road trip trading visits with La Salle heading to Fordham in Rose Hill Gym at 4 p.m. in the Bronx on ESPN+ where the Rams trail by two games Dayton, which is unbeaten in league play. The Hawks will be down in North Carolina visiting Davidson seeking to recover from Friday’s loss at Fordham. The tip is at noon on ESPN+.

Rider will look to recover from Saturday’s home loss to Niagara, playing the Purple Eagles once more at at 1 p.m. on ESPN+ in Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J. The Broncs, one of three teams who have played the most games toward the maximum allowance, will be playing their final of the season and then be on a long break before the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament opens next month in Atlantic City.

Rutgers, which a week ago came off a pause that began after January 3, will look to keep its hot two-game streak that was a home win last week against Nebraska, and then an upset Thursday at No. 22 Northwestern. The Scarlet Knights visit Purdue in the Big Ten matchup at 2 p.m. on the Big Ten network in West Lafayette, Ind.

Nationally, a heavy plate, beginning with frontrunner No. 9 Maryland at Nebraska in the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, where visiting Terrapins coach Brenda Frese will be seeking her 500th win with the program that would break a tie for record wins with Chris Weller, who preceded her.

Also in the Big Ten, No. 21 Northwestern will be looking to shake off the Rutgers loss and go for a sweep of the No. 12 Buckeyes when the Wildcats visit Ohio State at 12:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.

No. 15 Indiana, close to the leaders, has a Big Ten visit on the network to Illinois in Champaigne-Urbana at 3 p.m.

In the PAC-12, No. 10 Arizona will be looking to stay right on Stanford’s heels and finish a Northwest trip and weekend trip at Washington in Seattle at 2 p.m. on the conference network. As mentioned above, the Cal at Oregon State was postponed as is No. 8 UCLA at Colorado. 

In the Big 12, No. 7 Baylor will seek to gain some distance off West Virginia’s upset loss ahead of this week’s Mountaineers visit when the Bears host Texas at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas, at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.

In the Southeastern Conference, South Carolina completes its short return to No. 1 a week ago, caused by the upset loss Monday at No. 2 UConn, but still pursuing an unbeaten No. 1 in the conference, hosting LSU in the Colonial Life Arena in Columbia at noon on the SEC network.

No. 24 Georgia is at Missouri at 2 p.m. on the SEC network, while at 3 p.m. on ESPN, No. 16 Tennessee, will try to shake off it’s loss at No. 20 Kentucky, looking for a big upset win visiting No. 6 Texas A&M., whose earlier loss to LSU before gaining a split is the Aggies’ only setback all season.

Mississippi State, bounced out of the poll a week ago after a then-current streak of 125 straight ranking weeksm will try to re-gain momentum visiting Ole Miss at 4 p.m. on the conference network ahead of Tennessee’s visit on Tuesday night.

As mentioned earlier in the America East, a showdown for No. 1 conference-wise between host Stony Brook and Maine at 2 p.m. on ESPN3.

In the Summit League, No. 23 South Dakota finishes its weekend two-game set at Oral Roberts in Tulsa, Oklahoma at 2 p.m.

In the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 3 Louisville, which fell from No. 1 a week ago off the Cardinals’ upset loss to North Carolina State, is postponed on its visit to Syracuse.

On Sunday’s card, 13 games are postponed or cancelled.

On Monday, in the ACC, No. 4 North Carolina State’s game with visiting Notre Dame is postponed, while as previously mentioned above No. 22 DePaul hosts Seton Hall in the Big East, Stanford is at No. 11 Oregon in the PAC-12, and No. 20 Kentucky is at Florida in the SEC.

Shutdown Roll Call: Since the start of the season, beginning with Ivy opt-out prior to the start of any competition and along the way for everyone else 26 teams are now shuttered, the most recent Hartford last Monday, though Detroit is for non-COVID reasons, while Ohio State continues to play, but has taken itself out of the March Madness.

Here’s the list by conference.

(1) American Athletic Conference  — SMU

(3) America East — Hartford, UMBC, Vermont

(2) Atlantic Coast — Duke, Virginia

*(1) Big Ten — Ohio State (non-COVID-19 out of postseason)

(1) Big West — CSUN

*(1) Horizon — Detroit Mercy (non-COVID-19)

(8) Ivy League - Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton, Yale

(4) MEAC — Bethune-Cookman, Florida A&M, South Carolina State, UMES

(1)MAAC — Canisius

(1) Mountain West — San Jose State

(1) SEC - Vanderbilt

(1) WAC - Dixie State

Total — 25 of which 23 COVID-19 related

And that’s the report.