The Guru Report: Drexel Complete’s Weekend Sweep Without Washington Scoring a Bunch While Siegrist Becomes Big Five Scoring Champ in ‘Nova Near Upset of UConn

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA —  Drexel showed it can still do well with a balanced attack on days Keishana Washington isn’t pouring points in the 20s and above as the Dragons completed a weekend sweep at home in the Colonial Athletic Association, beating Elon 61-49 Sunday afternoon at the Daskalakis Athletic Center.

The Dragons (15-5, 7-2 CAA), the preseason favorites, completed their task showing defensive prowess shortly before the NFL Eagles down at Lincoln Financial Field routed the 49ers to win the NFC title and advance to their second Super Bowl in five seasons.

Washington, who became the second player in the program to reach 2,000 career points in Friday’s win over Hofstra, scored 16 points, including 6-for-6 from the line in drawing eight fouls from the opposition.

“This was a great win for us,” said Drexel coach Amy Mallon, who wore an Eagles jersey under her Blazer while guiding the squad. “Especially with going on the road next weekend.”

Ironically, South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, who was a teammate on the former ABL Philadelphia Rage, did likewise in beating Alabama in the Southeastern Conference as the top-ranked and reigning NCAA champion Gamecocks stayed unbeaten and set a program record with their 27th straight win.

“The thing I was most happy with was our bench play,” Mallon said, while passing out credits to other phases of the attack. “Chloe Hodges had 15 points (career highs with eight rebounds), and some other people off the bench did what we needed to do.”

Grace O’Neil had seven points, including a key shot when Elon (5-16, 1-9) was threatening in the second half after having beaten Delaware with a three-pointer before time expired Friday night. She also had six rebounds. Kylie Lavelle, looking more like the star freshman she was in November before missing several games with an injury, had nine points.

“I like the rotation of (Hetta) Sattman, (Jasmine) Valentine, Hodges, Lavelle out they’re all different in what they do, but they’re all versatile players. One thing about Grace O’Neil, she’s one of our toughest players on the team. You can see that. Her ability to rebound for her size, that just goes to show her toughness, also taking that shot, she wants to make those.”

The bench contributed 21 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

Washington, whose career total moved to 2,029, is now seventh among Canadian players and she has now contributed double figure scoring in 54 straight games.

Evona McGill had 14 points for Elon with six rebounds, Lenaejha Evans scored 10, while Ajia James and Raven Preston each scored nine, and Preston also pulled down six rebounds.

Drexel next weekend goes to Northeastern in Boston on Friday night and new member Stony Brook on Long Island, N.Y. on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Delaware went into deja vue mode off Friday’s loss to the Phoenix except this time at the finish the Blue Hens won, picking the triumph up at William & Mary 74-72 in the Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Va., 

The visitors (11-8, 4-4 CAA) stopped their two-game slide while also halting a four-game win streak from the Tribe (10-10, 5-4).

Late in the game the Tribe had gone up 72-71 but Klarke Sconiers grabbed an offensive rebounds, got fouled and then sank both shots. 

Jewel Smalls made it one more for the visitors with a foul shot and then Makayla Pippin stopped a driving layup to secure a better finish than the previous game.

Sconiers had 18 points for the Blue Hens, including in the fourth quarter, while Kharis Idom had 15 points and five assists, and Smalls scored 11 with nine rebounds.

Tara Cousins was also in double digits with ten points.

William & Mary’s Sydney Wagner scored 33, including a perfect 13-for-13 at the line. Riley Casey scored 12.

Delaware next on Friday night at 7 p.m. travels to Towson in suburban Baltimore playing in SECU Arena, the site of this season’s CAA tournament in March.

Repeat History Almost for Nova at UConn: Had the No. 21 Wildcats’ shooting touch been a little better they might have bagged the No. 5 Huskies again a year after winning on the road and ending the No. 5 UConn long consecutive 169-victory domination of conference opponents in the American Athletic Association and Big East.

Trailing earlier in the game in the XL Center in Hartford, Villanova (18-4, 9-2 Big East) went up 51-45 at the eight-minute mark of the fourth quarter but then UConn (20-2, 12-0) went on a 15-4 run to go up 60-55 with 51 seconds left.

Lucy Olsen gave new hope for another upset with a three-ball with 22 seconds left.

Aaliyah Edwards then hit a foul shot and blocked a three-point attempt from Maddy Siegrist, the nation’s leading scorer. UConn also forced an off-balance shot from Olsen and Edwards sank two more free throws to complete a 63-58 victory, ending ‘Nova’s 12-game win streak.

One game after setting the all-time Villanova’s men’s and women’s career scoring record held for over three decades by Shelly Pennefather, Siegrist gained another milestone at the outset of this one, sinking a three-ball to become the all-time Big Five women’s scoring leader in Philly, eclipsing the 22-year-mark by Penn’s Diana Caramanico.

Siegrist finished with 25 points, while Olsen scored 19.

The native of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., is projected to capture the Big East games scoring record when UConn visits the Main Line next month.

Aubrey Griffin, who was sidelined this time a year ago for the Huskies in a similar back-to-back schedule of Tennessee and Villanova recovering from back surgery.

On Sunday, she had 19 points, while Dorka Juhasz scored 16, and Edwards had 13 in the Huskies’ 13th win.

“You put yourself in a position to win the game and then, you know, we didn’t capitalize down the stretch,” said Siegrist. “They’re a great team, a great program and so just knowing that you hung with them, you can hang with anyone.”

Siegrist has scored 20 or more points in each Wildcats game this season.

She also has a chance to top Drexel’s Gabriela Marginean for the Philly Six women’s mark, currently at 2,581. Siegrist at 2,439, is 142 points away.

“Today was the first game all year I thought we really looked tired,” said UConn coach Geno Auriemma, who picked up his 1,169th victory. That total is exceeded only by Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer who extended her Division I women’s record Sunday to 1,178.

“Villanova is really good,” he said. “And not only are they really good, but they’re really hard to play against.”

Auriemma, who grew up in Norristown, was wearing an Eagles Super Bowl T-shirt when he arrived at the postgame presser. 

“There were three Philadelphia teams today,” he joked, including his own group. “We were hoping for a 2-1 split, with Villanova coming out a little bit on the short end, but not by much.”

On Wednesday, Villanova will host Marquette, looking for a series sweep, when the teams meet at 6:30 p.m. in Finneran Pavilion on FloHoops.

Saint Joseph’s Suffers Tough Loss at Richmond: Mackenzie Smith had a career-high 38 points for the Hawks, who fell 94-90 in a nationally televised Atlantic 10 women’s game at Richmond in the Robins Center in Virginia.

Smith scored 17 of the final 21 points by Saint Joseph’s (15-6, 5-4 A-10).

The visitors were down 10 to the Spiders (13-7, 3-4) late in the third but sliced it to six with just the 10-minute fourth quarter to play.

A 7-0 run got the Hawks to within a point with three minutes left in regulation.

Smith’s two buckets late in the last minute got coach Cindy Griffin’s team to a tie and it stopped Richmond from launching any game-winners, sending the game into overtime.

Taking a 4-0 lead, the Hawks were then subdued by an 8-0 run from the home team.

Smith, who scored 12 in the overtime, got the visitors within one.

But Richmond shot 11-of-13 free throws in the period to gain the win.

Smith also tied her personal best with eight rebounds.

The game record in the program is 42 by Hawks Hall of Famer Dale Hodges.

Talya Brugler fouled out in the overtime but scored 14 points, her 15th straight game in double figures. Laura Ziegler had a double double with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Her six assists, all in the first half, were also a new high.

Katie Jekot scored 11 with three assists and a pair of steals.

The 90 points were the most by the Hawks in a loss. 

They now head to play Rhode Island at the Ryan Center Wednesday night in Kingston at 6 p.m. on ESON+.

Rutgers Falls at Indiana: The Scarlet Knights stayed competitive for a long time with the No. 6 Indiana, which is likely to have a higher number when the new Associated Press poll is released Monday. 

Ultimately, the Hoosiers pulled away in their Big Ten match at Assembly Hall in Bloomington and went on to a 91-68 victory aided by Indiana (20-1, 10-1 Big Ten) shooting 11 from deep hitting on 61% of the attempts.

Grace Berger and Mackenzie Holmes each scored 21 points, while Sydney Parrish scored 17 and Yarden Garzon scored 14, including four of the shots from beyond the arc.

Rutgers (9-14, 3-8) got 25 points from Kaylene Smikle and reserve Kai Carter scored 13.

“Today, I thought was Grace Berger Day,” said Indiana coach Teri Moren of her star who recently returned from a knee injury earlier this month. “She looked for her shots and I thought she was aggressive. That was great to see.”

Rutgers is off until next Sunday when Wisconsin visits Jersey Mike’s Arena at 2 p.m. in Piscataway, N.J.

Nationally Noted: After riding to a 19-0 best-ever start in program history, No. 2 Ohio State took its third straight hit, and from an unranked Big Ten team in Purdue 73-65 in Columbus, Ohio.

The Buckeyes (19-3, 8-3 Big Ten) yielded the first ever Top 5 road victory in the visitors’ program history to the Boilermakers (15-6, 6-5).

Purdue’s Abbey Ellis scored five from deep.

“We made a promise to ourselves we were going to be tough throughout the whole game, especially in the fourth quarter, and we were,” said Ellis. “We knew defense was going to get us through. And I think that showed in the end.”

A 9-0 run in the fourth quarter got Ohio State to within a bucket 55-53 with 6:58 left in regulation, and two minutes later Taylor Thierry tied it before fouling out.

Purdue then moved ahead on five-straight points from Madison Layden and then Ellis hit her fifth from deep with 43 seconds left and finished with 26 points, while Cassidy Harden scored 15.

Thierry had 18 for the Buckeyes.

There were a number of ranked team clashes were the lower ranked program beat the higher one but one exception in the PAC-12 where No. 3 Stanford beat visiting Oregon 62-54 at home in Maples Pavilion. 

Cameron Brink executed an unique triple-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and a career-high 10th blocked shot.

“I was aware, and then I really wanted that last one,” Brink said of the block, creating the first triple double in Stanford history with blocks involved.

“”I’m riding a high right now,” said Brink. “I’m really excited about it. I love blocking shots, it’s probably what I do best.”

Phillipina Kyei scored 12 points and grabbed 17 for the Ducks (14-7, 5-5).

Brink now has 88 blocked shots.

Elsewhere in the PAC-12 Washington Stte upset No. 19 Arizona in Tucson 70-59 as Bella Murekatele scored 18 and Ula Motuga scored 16 for the Cougars (15-6, 5-5 PAC-12).

Charlisse Leger-Walker was 0-for-13 from the field but grabbed 10 rebounds, dealt sevcn assists and had five points at the line.

Esmery Martinez had 14 for the Wildcats (16-5, 6-4). 

By ranking, former Southern Cal star Alissa Pili scored with 0.8 seconds left to lead No. 9 Utah over No. 8 UCLA 71-69 in Salt Lake City.

She finished with 23 points for the Utes (18-2, 8-2 PAC-12) while Issy Palmer scored 14.

`

UCLA (17-5, 6-4) got a career-high 17 points from Emily Bessoir, and Kiki Rice scored 11, and Londyn Jones, and Gabriella Jaquez each scored 10.

Southern Cal, which recently upset Stanford, won at No. 25 Colorado 71-54 in Boulder as Destiny Littleton had 21 points, Rayah Marshall had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Kadi Sissoko had 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Trojans (16-5, 6-4 PAC-12). Little was 6-of-13 on attempts from beyond the arc.

Quay Miller had 13 points and 11 rebounds and Aaronette Vonleh had 16 points for the Buffs (16-5, 7-3).

In the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 24 Florida State took care of No. 16 Duke 70-57 in Tallahassee, Fla. The win came on a day the Seminoles (19-5, 8-3 ACC) honored former coach Sue Semrau.

Makayl Timpson scored 21 points for the home team and freshman Ta’Niya Latson scored 15.

The Blue Devils (18-3, 8-2) got 14 points from Shayeann Day-Wilson and Kennedy Brown had 11 rebounds.

No. 20 NC State beat visiting No. 7 Notre Dame 69-65 as Diamond Johnson had 20 points for the Wolfpack (16-5, 6-4 ACC).

Mimi Collins scored 13 points.

“We just had to hold our composure,” Johnson said of a fourth quarter surge.

The fighting Irish (17-3, 8-2) had a 13-2 run in the fourth quarter but fell short.

Maddy Westbeld had 19 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 assists for the visitors.

South Carolina won at Alabama 65-52 in Tuscaloosa as Bree Hall had a career high 18 points, including for shots from deep, while Aliyah Boston had 16 points and 12 rebounds.

The Gamecocks (21-0, 9-0 ) pulled away in the final period from the Crimson Tide (16-6, 5-4).

“I don’t usually come into the game thinking about a shot,” Hall said. “I just let the game kind of just flow and come to me.”

`

Looking Ahead: On Monday, Penn State is at No. 10 Maryland in the XFINITY Center in College Park, Md., while beyond the local, Tennessee is down by No. 4 LSU (20-0, 8-0 SEC) in Baton Rouge.

And that’s the report.

The Guru Report: Temple Overcomes Short Bench While La Salle, Lafayette, and Princeton Extend Streaks But Penn Routed at Harvard

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Temple’s bench did not grow any larger for Saturday afternoon’s American Athletic Conference game in the Liacouras Center with visiting Central Florida (UCF) after the original one-day suspension of sophomore guards Jasha Clinton and Aniya Gourdine prior to the Tulane game turned into a permanent ejection as announced in a Friday night release from the school.

Also gone were Jalynn Holmes and Kourtney Wilson, who on Wednesday with the other announcement were said to have voluntarily withdrawn from the program.

For the second straight game, however, the Owls brushed aside the new state of affairs to hunker down and gain a 63-56 victory showing strength down the stretch to gain enough of a cushion to capture the victory.

UCF in the period went over six minutes without a field goal.

“We went into the the fourth quarter like, `We have to get stops,’” said Aleah Nelson, who played all 40 minutes, shooting 8-for-22  from the field and a perfect 10-for-10 on the line to score 28 points. “When we lock down and play defense just getting consecutive stops in a row, that builds confidence to go shoot the ball.”

Prior to the postgame press conference, the largest media turnout of the season were told one question on the situation would be permitted not that any detailed answer was provided by first-year coach Diane Richardson.

“Well, they are no longer part of the team,” she said. “I can’t comment on kids that are not part of the this team.”

However, she was pleased over the work by the Owls (9-11, 4-4 American) who defensively forced 22 turnovers of which six were steals.

“It was a battle today, it was a very physical game,” Richardson said. “But we withstood the pressure and came away with the win and played some great team basketball.”

The resiliency needed in this situation the Temple coach says comes from the nonconference schedule back in November and December.

“That was the thing we wanted early in the season,” she said. “That’s why we had a tough schedule.I wanted them to learn that we may get knocked down, but we have to get back up. What we are seeing now, especially with a shortened roster, is that resiliency coming out, and that willingness to fight to win.”

Nelson’s playing time by necessity and Tiarra East, who scored 12, have been increased.

The additional minutes were brushed aside, Nelson saying, “They have prepared me, you know, I look over at the bench and they tell me I am not tired. I am not, it’s mentally, I tell myself I am good and push through it and just do whatever it takes.”

Fueled by 4-of-8 from deep, Tarriyonna Gary scored 16 points.

The reserves of Denise Solis, Brtittany Garner, and Makayla Waleed scored just two points, on a Garner basket, compared to 41 from the opposition, but Solis had six rebounds and Waleed had five boards in their 20 minutes each and Richardson was pleased with their effort.

“They may not have scored, but they stopped some people from scoring,” Richardson said. “Very proud we stuck together.”

UCF only made one from beyond the arc in 10 attempts but Destiny Thomas had a double-double 16 points and 13 rebounds while Taylor Gibson scored 15 points.

The Temple situation became interesting with Caranda Perea fouling out, while East and Garner each accumulated four each but in this game at least the Owls weren’t caught with only the minimum five left or under it as the game got deeper.

Recently, the injury-riddled UConn squad, ranked fifth in the Associated Press women’s poll, had to postpone its game, made up last Monday, with DePaul for being under the Big East requirement of seven healthy scholarship players, and DePaul got caught in the same situation Saturday involving its game at Seton Hall.

The NCAA rule limitation count is six and the AAC requirement was unknown late Saturday night.

While emphasis has grown on defense, Richardson said she is not abandoning her offensive schemes.

“We’re still the equal opportunity offense, so we’re going to continue to do that,” she said. “This is a new situation where some of them are playing and not used to the minutes so we are going to work on their confidence in them scoring as well.”

While South Florida is dominating the conference and Temple would have to win the league tourney and automatic bid to get to the NCAA tournament, second place at the end of the regular season gets a berth, no matter the record into the WNIT. If the Owls can find a way, that finish is attainable.

Though most were unaware of the Owls’ new situation, Saturday was basketball alumni day bringing a large turnout from the eras of Andy McGovern, Linda Hill-MacDonald, Charlene Curtis, Kristen Foley, Dawn Staley, and Tonya Cardoza.

At a postgame reception the alums all spoke to the teams “welcoming you to the sisterhood.”

Richardson noted the legacy component saying she had been several schools but never felt the kind of bond the alums bring here.

Temple remains home for its next game, Wednesday, hosting Wichita State (12-8, 2-5) at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ getting closer to a top five finish in the conference which has the perk of a first-round bye in the postseason tourney in March in Fort Worth, Texas.

Ivy Wars Finish First Half With Columbia Alone at the Top After Harvard Knocks Penn Out of Tie: With four of the five contending teams for the four-berth Ivy tourney at Princeton in March, when the smoke cleared following Saturday’s games, Columbia after dominating Dartmouth 79-50 was at the top one game ahead of a three-way deadlock of Princeton, Harvard and Penn, with Yale bringing up the rear.

Princeton, after an 0-2 start, is well on the way of regaining its previous stature of annually dominating the league after the Tigers walloped Yale 79-30 at home in Jadwin Gym, the site of the Ivy men’s and women’s tourneys in March.

Penn (13-7, 5-2 IVY) after the first period suffered its second smoking following a recent loss at Princeton, losing at Harvard 84-60.

Mandy McGurk had 27 points, near a career-high for the Quakers while Kayla Padilla scored 10, Jordan Obi had nine points, six rebounds, and five assists, and Floor Toonders had seven points and six rebounds.

Harvard (12-7, 5-2) had 28 points from Elena Rodriguez and 11 rebounds, while while Lola Mullaney had 19 points, Harmoni Turner had 12 points and 12 assists, NMcKenzie Forbes had 10 points, and Saniyah Glenn scored nine.

Princeton (14-5, 5-2 IVY) did it with defense, the Yale 30 points the lowest dealt by the Tigers since a 65-27 win over Lafayette on December 7th, 2016.

Madison St. Rose continued to shine for the the home team, scoring 17 points, while Kaitlyn Chen had 11 points, six assists, and was +46 in her 30 minutes. Ellie Mitchell had 12 rebounds, and Chet Nweke had a career-high 10 points.

While Yale (10-10, 4-3) is just one-game back in the loss column, the Bulldogs, who beat Harvard on the first go-round, must do it again next weekend, to own a sweep in case a tie-break occurs for the last spot. Likewise in losing to the other three in the hunt, splits will be needed and perhaps an upset from the lower three teams who for now are separated out of contention.

In the win by Columbia (17-3, 6-1 IVY), which had the easiest draw of the day, playing Dartmouth (2-19, 0-7) on Schiller Court at Levien Gym on the Upper West Side in New York, Kaitlyn Davis had the first triple double in the Lions’ 39-year history with 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists. 

“My teammates were finishing shots, finishing layups, making tough plays and getting stops so we could run plays on the offensive end,” she said.

Coach Megan Griffth said, “I felt today she played like she was the best player on the floor.”

Abbey Hsu had 19 points, while Patrick and Hannah Pratt each scored 17.

The Lions now have a chance to forge in front for the top side which a sweep would bring next weekend, beating Penn at 6 p.m. on Friday night and Princeton on Saturday at 4 p.m., the games on SNY and ESPN+.

Princeton on Friday goes to Cornell at 6 p.m. in Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y., while Penn goes there on Saturday at 4 p.m., both on ESPN+.

Harvard is at Yale, Friday, at 6 p.m. on ESPN+ in the Lee Amphitheater in New Haven, Conn.

La Salle Handles St. Bonaventure:  The Explorers matched a six-year high with their fifth straight win in the Atlantic 10, beating St. Bonaventure 65-52 at home in Tom Gola Arena.

Picked for second in the preseason by the conference coaches, La Salle got a combo 38 points from two of its Australian three-sister trio as Claire Jacobs scored 21 points, highlighted by 8-for-12 from the field, including 4-for-7 from deep, while newcomer Mia Jacobs scored 17, propelled by 3-of-5 from deep.

Additionally, Charity Shears had 10 points for the Explorers (14-8, 5-2 A-10) and Kayla Spruill grabbed nine rebounds, and Molly Masciantonio dealt four assists and committed just one turnover. 

Maddie Dziezgowski had 15 points for the Bonnies (4-20, 1-8), while Breauna Ware scored 11.

The Explorers head to Richmond, Va., for a Wednesday game at 11 a.m. at VCU on ESPN+.

Patriot League — Fourth Straight for Lafayette; Lehigh Falls at Boston U.: The Leopards rode a second-half rally for a 53-45 win at home over Colgate at Kirby Sports Arena in Easton, Pa.

Abby Antognoli scored 23 for Lafayette (8-12, 5-5 PAT) while Kayla Drummond had a career-high 15 rebounds. 

Nicole Parks scored 14 for the Raiders (10-11, 4-6) and Madison Schiller had nine rebounds.

Its the first four-game win streak since 2019-20 for Lafayette, which looks for a sweep when it visits Lehigh Saturday at 4 p.m. at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa., on ESPN+.

The host Mountain Hawks will be coming from an 82-69 loss at league-leading Boston U. At Case Gym in Massachusetts.

In Lehigh’s previous game, Saturday’s visitors (10-11, 6-4 PAT) helped Boston U., knocking Holy Cross from the unbeaten column in league play.

In this one, the Terriers (15-6, 9-0) dominated the boards on Lehigh 45-24.

“We knew they were a team who was going to come out and crash,” Lehigh first year coach Addie Micir said. “They did a really good job of that. We’ve got to figure out a way to get on the boards better and how to grab it with two hands.”

Boston U. outscored Lehigh 21-8 in the second period to take control.

“The thing that got away from us in the second quarter … we put them on the free throw line,” Micir said.

Sydney Johnson scored 22 for Boston U. while Caitlin Weimar had 12 points and nine rebounds before leaving in the second quarter with an injury.

Mackenzie Kramer scored 19 for Lehigh, while Frannie Hottinger scored 14, and Meghan O’Brien had all 10 of her points in the second quarter.

Nationally noted: In the Big 12 Ashley Joens had 32 points to lead No. 18 Iowa State at home to an 86-78 win over No. 14 Oklahoma, though the Sooners’ Taylor Robertson scored 25 and broke the NCAA career record for made three-pointers with 498 passing WNBA star and former Ohio State great Kelsey Mitchell.

“It’s really cool to break the record just because of all the people that are up there on the list,” Robertson said. “I wish I would have broken record in a win because that’s what matters, but it’s definitely something that means a lot to me.”

Robertson is at 503 and leads the nation in 3-point percentage at 44%. Her treys are most for all women in Division I, II, or III.

She has already passed the 2,000-point mark.

Texas got a split in its series with Oklahoma State beating the Cowgirls 78-69 at home in the new Moody Center in Austin.

Looking Ahead: In the Big 10 Nebraska rallied from a 17-point deficit at the outset of the fourth quarter but No. 10 Iowa held on for an 80-76 win at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.

Caitlin Clark scored 33 points, disrupting the national 1-2 scoring punch here of Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist and Drexel’s Keishana Washington, moving just in front of the Dragons star.

However, on Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Big East Villanova plays No. 5 UConn in Hartford, giving Siegrist a chance to add some cushion in the game on CBSSN.

Washington will have a chance to take back second, the Dragons hosting Elon in a Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) game in the Daskalakis Athletic Center at 1 p.m., which was moved back an hour due to the Eagles later in the afternoon playing the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship down at the Linc.

In other games involving the locals, Rutgers is at No. 6 Indiana in a Big 10 game at 2 p.m. in Bloomington at Assembly Hall, while Saint Joseph’s is at Richmond for an Atlantic 10 game at 4 p.m. on CBSSN.

In the Nova-UConn game Siegrist needs just two points to become the all-time women’s scorer in the Big Five.

Delaware is at William & Mary at 1 p.m. in Williamsburg, Va. for a CAA game on Flohoops.

Nationally in the ACC, Duke is at Florida State at 2 p.m., and Notre Dame is at N.C. State in Reynolds Coliseum at 3 p.m. on ESPN.

UCLA is at Utah at 2 p.m. while Stanford hosts Oregon at 4 p.m. on the PAC-12 Network.

On Monday, Penn State is at Maryland at 6 p.m. on the B1G Network, while Tennessee at 7 p.m. is at unbeaten LSU in the SEC on ESPN2.

And that’s the report.

The Guru Report: Drexel’s Washington Reaches 2,000 Points in Win Over Hofstra While Delaware Loses to Elon at the Finish

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Milestone night, which has been occurring between Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist and Drexel’s Keishana Washington, the top two scorers in the nation, swung in Washington’s direction Friday night in a Drexel 69-57 win over Hofstra at home in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) game at the Daskalakis Athletic Center.

Needing 11 points to get to 2,000 career points, assisted by her 5th-year classmate Maura Hendrixson, Washington nailed a three-pointer with 26 seconds left in the first period.

At the break between periods the public address announcer made the achievement known to the crowd. 

There was also a congratulatory video from the only other Dragon to reach that number, Gabriela Marginean, whose record of 2,581 points, the all-time total among women in the Philly Six schools, is being threatened by Siegrist, who recently eclipsed a three-plus decade mark topping Wildcats men and women held by the legendary  Shelly Pennefather.

On. Sunday at 2 p.m. when No. 21 Villanova visits No. 5 UConn in a Big East game on CBSSN at the XL Center in Hartford, Siegrist with 2,414 points, just needs  two more to pass former Penn great Diana Caramanico to become the all-time scorer in the Big Five women’s history.

Besides becoming the second Drexel player to reach the mark, the native of Pickering, Ontario, is the eighth Canadian, the ninth in CAA history, and the 12th active player this season in NCAA Division I.

Helping Drexel (14-5, 6-2 CAA), the preseason favorite, to snap a two-game losing streak on the road in successive Sundays, Washington scored 24 to reach 2,013 career points, her game total against Hofstra (8-10, 2-5) breaking a tie with Marginean with her 53rd consecutive one scoring 10 ore more points.

Hetta Saatman and Kylie Lavelle each scored 10 points and Hendrixson dished 11 assists, the sixth time this season she’s dealt dimes in double digits.

“I knew how far I was, not that I was thinking about it during the game,” Washington said. “But I felt the energy in the gym after I made the shot, and I looked up at the score to see that I had 11 points, and I needed 11 points. It’s something that I’ll definitely soak in the coming hours. It was even better that my parents were here to see it happen.”

Hendrixson and Washington have been friends since both arrived as freshmen.

“I don’t think my younger self would have thought that I would be getting this far or accomplish this much,” Washington said. “I didn’t even think I was going to be a 1,000-point scorer.”

Hendrixson said at the postgame presser, “At shootaround today, I was like, ‘Can I assist your 2,000th point?’ She was like, ‘Yeah.’ And then it actually happened. I didn’t even know that was her 2,000th point.”

While expressing joy for her duo, Drexel coach Amy Mallon said, “To get the win and to get the win at home is really important to us, especially coming off the road. Defensively we had some really minutes and seconds and we’re going to build on that. What they’ve been doing on the floor, they’re really a dynamic duo together.”

The Sunday game hosting Elon has been moved up from 2 p.m. to 1 p.m. with an eye that the Eagles will be hosting San Francisco later in the afternoon down at Lincoln Financial Field for the NFC championship and right to advance to the Super Bowl.

The Phoenix will be arriving in a great frame of mind on a short trip from Delaware where on Friday the Phoenix got their first CAA win of the season off a three-pointer before time expired 63-60 at the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark.

Elon (5-15, 1-8 CAA) had lost 13 straight overall.

In the last five seconds trailing 60-59 the Blue Hens (10-8, 3-4) got to the line but Makayla Pippin only made one shot creating a 60-60 tie.

The Phoenix’s Raven Preston then nailed a shot from beyond the arc before time expired for the game-winner.

Jewel Smalls scored 12 for Delaware and grabbed three rebounds, while Klarke Sconiers had 11 points, six rebounds, and two blocked shots. Tara Cousins scored 10, with four rebounds and four assists.

Preston had a game-high 17 points for Elon, while also collecting six rebounds. Kamryn Doty and Evonna McGill, who also had six assists, each scored 13 points, and Ajia James had a double-double 10 points and 10 rebounds.

On Sunday, Delaware goes to William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va., to play at 1 p.m., their sole matchup of the regular season.

Elsewhere in the CAA, Towson, under first-year coach Laura Harper, continues to look strong winning at Northeastern 73-67. 

Temple Depletions Remain While Hosting Central Florida: After first-year coach Diane Richardson initially stated following Wednesday’s win over Tulane in New Orleans, that the suspensions of the Owls’ Jasha Clinton, the third-leading scorer at 11.1 ppg., and Aniya Gourdine (4.8 ppg.) were just for the game, the school in a short press release Friday night near 9 p.m. announced the two were released.

The sophomore guards join graduate forward Jalynn Holmes and freshman guard Kourtney Wilson, whom prior to the game with the Green Tide, voluntarily left the squad.

Additionally, transfer guard Kendall Currence, who at Northeastern at the end of last season was awarded the United States Basketball Writers Association’s Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award, is sidelined for the season with a torn ACL.

So it’s nine players left on the roster to complete the season that continues at 2 p.m. Saturday when UCF visits the Liacouras Center for an American Athletic Conference game on ESPN.+

Nationally Noted It was all in the PAC-12 Friday where No. 25 Colorado at home in Boulder upset No. 8 UCLA 73-70 in overtime as Kindyll Wetta naileda three-pointer from deep with 2.1 seconds left in the extra period.

The Buffaloes (16-4, 7-2 PAC-12) got 20 points and 12 rebounds from Quay Miller, while Jaylyn Sherrod, who dished to Wetta for the winning trey, her only one for the game, scored 18 with six assists.

Charisma Osbourne continued to struggle from the field for the Bruins (17-4, 6-3), scoring 12 points, and freshman Londynn Jones scored 14.

Colorado has also beaten No. 9 Utah and No. 19 Arizona at home in the PAC-12.

The Utes, who host UCLA Sunday, beat Southern Cal 83-73.

Meanwhile two weeks after No. 3 Stanford got shocked at Southern Cal, the Cardinal were in another fight hosting Oregon State, going ahead in the final minute to win 63-60, the Beavers missing opportunities to pull an upset.

Cameron Brink had 21 points and 13 rebounds as Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer extended her Division I women’s basketball record win total to 1177 while UConn coach Geno Auriemma on Sunday will be seeking No. 1169 when the Huskies host No. 21 Villanova at the XL Center in Hartford.

The Stanford coach, though, has a game Sunday playing Oregon.

Haley Jones had 17 points for the Cardinal (20-2, 8-1 PAC-12)  

Oregon State (11-9, 3-6) got 15 points from Bendu Yeaney and Timea Gardiner scored 16.

Washington State edged host Arizona State 61-57 while No. 19 Arizona beat visiting Washington  61-54

And that’s the report.

 

 

The Guru Report: No. 5 UConn Wins at Tennessee; Maryland, Indiana, and Rutgers Get Big Ten Wins; Duke Bounces Back and UNC Streak Continues in ACC

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

No. 5 UConn got off to a big start on Tennessee, then the Lady Vols outplayed the Huskies in the next period only to see the visitors regain their footing the rest of the way Thursday night and go on to an 84-67 victory in Thompson-Bolling Arena in Knoxville.

Having suffered injuries all season, UConn (19-2) is now 4-0 since the revival of the series between two of collegiate women’s basketball’s  super powers in 2020. 

The Huskies and Tennessee (16-7), which had a nine-game win streak snapped, had played every year, sometimes twice, between 1995 and 2007 when the late Lady Vols legendary coach Pat Summitt stopped the annual meetings.

“I don’t know if we could recreate the rivalry we’ve had,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “This is as good a nonconference game you can play anywhere.”

Fairfield transfer Lou Lopez Senechal scored 26 points for UConn while Aaliyah Edwards scored 25. Additionally, Aubrey Griffin and Dorka Juhasz each scored 13 points and Nika Muhl dealt 13 assists to extend the win streak to 12.

At the outset of the third period the home team moved within two points before the Huskies rebuilt a double-digit lead.

Auriemma now has 1,168 wins exceeded only by Tara VanDerveer at No. 3 Stanford, who holds the Division I women’s record and who’s Cardinal (19-2) next plays Friday night.

Tennessee’s Jordan Horston scored 27, Rickea Jackson scored 13, and Jillian Hollingshead scored 11.

Lady Vols coach Kellie Harper, who played for Summitt, said slowing the opposition down was difficult. “They were making every open shot and some tough ones.”

The only two remaining unbeaten teams in Division I are in the Southeastern Conference and the Lady Vols will play at LSU Monday night and then meet No. 1 and reigning NCAA champion South Carolina next month while UConn will host the Gamecocks in their intersectional series on Feb. 5.

But first the Huskies return to Big East play, hosting No. 21 Villanova Sunday in Hartford. 

Tennessee’s seven losses have all been to ranked squads.

Big Ten Mania: No. 6 Indiana at home in Assembly Hall hit No. 2 Ohio State with the Buckeyes’ second loss this week 78-65 after being previously unbeaten and the Hoosiers (19-1, 9-1 Big Ten) moved to first a half-game ahead of idle Iowa, which beat OSU (19-2, 8-2) on Monday.

Mackenzie had 26 points for Indiana while Yarden Garzon connected on four shots from deep, scored 20 and grabbed 10 rebounds. Sydney Parrish and Grace Berger each scored 12 points while Parrish grabbed 11 rebounds and Berger and Chloe Moore-McNeil each dealt six assists.

Ohio State’s Cotie McMahon had 21 points while Taylor Mikesell scored 15, including her 2000th career point and Thierry Taylor had a double-double 13 points and 12 rebounds.

No, 10 Maryland won over No. 13 Michigan 72-64 at home at the XFINITYCenter in College Park and moved into a tie for third with Ohio State.

Diamond Miller had 23 points and five steals for the Terrapins (17-4, 8-2 Big Ten) who held the Wolverines (16-5, 6-4) 13 below their season average of 77.3 and forced them into 24 turnovers worth 25 points.

Purdue upset No. 22 Illinois 62-52 on the road as Abbey Ellis had 16 points for the Boilermakers (14-6, 5-5 Big Ten) while Caitlyn Harper and Janae Terry each scored 10 and Terry made it a double-double with 14 rebounds.

Makira Cook had 19 points for Illinois (16-5, 6-4) while Genesis Bryant scored 11, Brynn Shoup-Hill scored 10, and Kendall Bostic grabbed 10 rebounds.

Rutgers in one of only two games involving locals got a split on the Big 10 series with its long-running rival Penn State, winning 86-82 in overtime in Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, N.J.

Erica Lafayette appeared to have the game won in regulation for the Scarlet Knights (9-13, 3-7 Big Ten) but Penn State (12-9, 3-7) was able to get a layup to force the extended period.

“We played hard and gave ourselves a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter,” said first-year coach Coquese Washington, who was a previous head coach with the opposition

Kai Carter matched her personal best with 17 points and dished a career high six assists. She also grabbed eight rebounds one of which was her 500th.

Chyna Cornwell had a double-double 16 points and 10 rebounds while Kassondra Brown had nine points and 10 boards, Kaylene Smikle scored 14, and Lafayette and Awa Sibide each scored 10.

Penn State’s Makenna Marisa scored 24 points and Temple transfer Alexa Williamson scored 13 with nine rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Shay Ciezki had 12 points, Leilani Kapinus had 11 points, and Taniyah Thompson scored 10.

The Lady Lions are at Maryland Monday night at 6 p.m. on the B1G network while Rutgers is at Indiana Sunday at 2 p.m. on the subscription B1G+.

In the other local game, which was in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), Rider fell at Siena 94-63 in suburban Albany, N.Y.

The host Saints (13-7, 7-3 MAAC) had five players in double figures led by Teresa Seppala with 22 points.

Makayla Firebaugh had 13 points while Amanda Mobley, Victoria Toomey, and Raphaela Toussaint each scored 10 for Rider (5-15, 2-9), which next on Thursday next week goes to Quinnipiac at 7 p.m.

Duke and Notre Dame Knotted in ACC: The No. 16 Blue Devils off their 66-55 upset of visiting No. 12 Virginia Tech in Cameron Indoor Arena  together with No. 7 Notre Name off their 70-47 win over No. 24 Florida State at home in South Bend, Ind., are tied atop the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In two other conference games of note Wake Forest beat visiting Louisville 68-57 while No. 15 North Carolina won 72-57 at Pitt.

In the Duke game the Blue Devils (18-2, 8-1 ACC) used a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter to beat the Hokies (16-4, 6-4). 

Shayeann Day-Wilson had 18 points for the home team while Taylor Soule had 19 points for Virginia Tech and Elizabeth Kitley grabbed 13 rebounds.

In the romp by Notre Dame (17-2, 8-1) Sonia Citron had 19 points and eight rebounds for the Irish while Lauren Ebo had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and reserve KK Bransford had 15 points.

Makayla Timpson had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Seminoles (18-5, 7-3).

Looking Ahead:.Friday belongs to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), Drexel trying to snap a two-game losing streak when the Dragons at 6 p.m. hosts Hofstra in the Daskalakis Athletic Center on Flohoops. A little further south Delaware will host Elon in the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark at 7 p.m., also on Flohoops.

On Saturday,  it’s two more high-powered showdowns with elite opponents in the Ivy League, Penn, tied for first with Columbia, visits Harvard at 2 p.m.in Cambridge, Mass., in Lavietes Pavilion on ESPN+, while Princeton hosts Yale at 2 p.m. in Jadwin Gym, also on ESPN+.

In the Atlantic 10, La Salle will seek to keep its win streak alive hosting St. Bonaventure at 2 p.m. in the Tom Gola Arena on ESPN+ while Temple hosts Central Florida at 2 o.m. for an American Athletic Conference in the Liacouras Center on ESPN+.

In the Patriot League Lafayette hosts Colgate at 2 p.m. in the Kirby Sports Center in Easton, Pa., on ESPN+  while Lehigh is at Boston U. at 4 p.m. on ESPN+ 

The DePaul game at Seton Hall in the Big East is postponed due to the visiting Blue Demons roster shortage.

On Friday night on the PAC-10 Network, UCLA is at Colorado at 9 p.m. and Southern Cal is at Utah. At 10 p.m., Oregon is at Cal and at 11 p.m. Oregon State is at Stanford. 

And that’s the report.

The Guru Report: Saint Joseph’s Heads Night of Four Local Sweeps With Temple, Lehigh and Lafayette

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — It was a lite night on the local card Wednesday with the odds going in that the only team that had the best shot to win was right here at Hagan Arena on Hawk Hill where Saint Joseph’s, attempting to stop a three-game slide by narrow margins to the elite level of the Atlantic 10, was hosting St. Bonaventure, which sits at the bottom of the standings.

Deference to the visiting Bonnies, if you’re the team that Saint Joseph’s has displayed virtually all season, then you know what your mission is and the Hawks successfully accomplished it with a 92-61 triumph, the differential only five points less than it was at its widest margin a few minutes earlier.

“Very proud of the way we bounced back from Sunday’s game (loss to Fordham),” Hawks veteran coach Cindy Griffin said. “I thought the key today was moving the ball and getting the best looks that we can.

“You can see we had 26 assists on 33 field goals, which is phenomenal, and we were able to make the shots we wanted to make. I thought we started off real strong and we were able to maintain that intensity all four quarters.”

Everyone on Saint Joseph’s (15-5, 5-3 Atlantic 10) got to play in this one, the final total for the winners just one point off a previous high scored on a previous 93-69 triumph at Niagara on November 12, 2017, five seasons ago.

It’s also five seasons ago since the last time the Hawks dropped so many dimes, and just the second time all season they shot above 50 percent from the field (33-59, 55.9%) and deep (9-16, 56.3%).

Sophomore Talya Brugler, the reigning rookie of the year in the conference, which she leads in shots and makes, was 7-for-14 and scored 18 points, while Laura Ziegler was 5-for-7, including a perfect 2-for-2 from outside the arc for 14 points, and Mackenzie Smith was also 5-for-7, scoring 15 points.

“Coming off a three game losing streak, getting a quick lead like that, we knew we couldn’t settle and we had to keep pushing,” Brugler said of the game and first quarter which went the Hawks’ way 27-13. “It helped our confidence a lot and the flow of the game was in our favor.”

Oliva Mullins, who set a personal best with seven assists, a total also collected from Katie Jekot, and Emma Bostlet, who was 4-for-9,  just missed scoring in double figures with nine points each.

“Those three losses made us a very hungry team,” Mullins said afterwards. “We wanted to, unfortunately, take it out on the team that was coming next. We just want to roll with this energy and keep it going all the way to the A-10s.”

The conference tourney will return to Chase Field House, home of the 76ers minor league team, in Wilmington, Del.

The Hawks were 17-for-21 from the line, the best a 5-for-5 from reserve Jaden Walker, who scored seven points.

Dominating in transition and in the paint, Saint Joseph’s was 18-7 in points off turnovers and 44-24 in the differential for points in the paint.

St. Bonaventure (4-19, 1-7) got 21 points from L’yanna Lops and 17 from Nikki Oppenheimer but got only 23 from the rest of the squad.

Speaking off getting everyone in the game, Griffin noted, “These guys took ownership of that. They knew our bench was working really, really hard throughout the whole season. You want to be able to put them in the game so they get some court time, stay hungry, to show they are valued and need them to get better so we can get more minutes for them. I was happy we were able to do that tonight.”

Saint Joseph’s heads to Richmond, Sunday, at 4 p.m. in the Robins arena in Virginia on a 4 p.m. CBSSN national telecast. The Spiders were leading Fordham most of Wednesday before fading in the final minutes.

Next Wednesday for the Hawks, it’s on to the first of the two-series home and home with contending Rhode Island, playing the Rams, who were challenged by George Mason, Wednesday, at 6 p.m. in the Thomas M. Ryan Center in Kingston on ESPN+.

Short-Handed Temple Tops Tulane: Don’t expect this to be a trend to adopt but in a surprise outcome considering the timing, the Owls got caught way down yonder in New Orleans, though much differently, in the UConn dynamic of losing players and winning the American Athletic Conference game 68-59 at Tulane in Avron B. Fogelman Arena in Devlin Fieldhouse in Louisiana.

 Not long before the opening tip, an announcement from the school noted that sophomore guards Jasha Clinton and Aniya Gourdine were suspended by first-year coach Diane Richardson for breaking a team role. 

The same note also indicated Graduate forward Jalynn Holmes and freshman guard Kourtney Wilson had voluntarily left the team as well.

A source familiar with roster decisions indicated here the two situations were separate without more elaboration.

On the suspensions in her postgame zoom Richardson said, “It was just for today’s contest, they violated the team’s rules.”

In this one Temple literally turned the tide with a 14-0 run in the fourth quarter on the Green Wave (13-8, 3-5 AAC)  which had been surging in the series with seven straight wins dating back to  2017, the last Owls’ win.

“I think they knew that we only had eight players,” Richardson said of her squad. “And that we had to do it all together, and they had each other’s back and they fought for each other and it was a great outcome.”

The outcome flipped Temple (8-11, 3-4) above Tulane in the standings with plenty of room to easily climb higher considering they are now only a game behind what is a three-way tie for fourth and one-and-a-half behind third.

Tiarra East, normally a spark off the bench, had a double-double for the Owls with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Tarriyonna Gary scored 14 points with four shots from deep, as did Aleah Nelson on the way to 18 points. 

Richardson referred to Gary having “a shooter’s touch, you know, hand down, man down.

“And she was competent, and she pulled it today and we were really pleased with that. Her teammatesare egging her on to keep shooting the basketball, so she did that today.” 

Brittany Garner also helped in reserve scoring 10 points in 12 minutes of play.

Tulane got 26 points from Kyren Whittington, while Anijah Grant and Marta Galic each scored 10.

Temple will have a chance to get a win streak going Saturday when the Owls return home to the Liacouras Center at 2 p.m. on ESPN+ and they host Central Florida (UCF) , which since Katie Abrahamson-Henderson left to fill the Georgia coaching vacancy has struggled and is currently 10-8 overall and 1-5 in the conference.

Lehigh Upsets Holy Cross: The Mountain Hawks returned to their successfully recent overtime act and bagged a big one in the Patriot League, snapping the eight-game win streak of Holy Cross (16-4, 8-1 PL), which had not lost in the conference, gaining a narrow 76-74 victory at home in Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa.

“We talked with our team about how we just have to keep going,” said first-year coach Addie Micir, a former Princeton star. “We’ve been in a lot of these games, and it’s about time we get rewarded for it, right?

“You’ve got to get rewarded by playing hard and making plays when it matters, and we did that.”

With 11 seconds left in regulation, Mackenzie Kramer, who hit the game-tying shot previously to force the Mountain Hawks (10-1, 6-3) into an overtime triumph, did it again, though the Crusaders had two shots that failed before time expired.

“She’s so clutch,” said Frannie Hottinger of her teammate. “She’s like the most clutch player I’ve ever played with, and it’s really awesome to have a teammate like her come up big at the end of the game.”

Kramer also took care of the finish with a shot from deep with nine seconds left to put Lehigh ahead with the final score, though Holy Cross had a chance to keep it going but couldn’t get an equalizer to drop.

Hottinger scored 30, just four off her personal best, and made it a double-double with 11 rebounds. Kramer scored 21 and grabbed five rebounds, including one with 0.7 seconds left as Kaitlyn Flanagan missed a driving layup.

“They’re our performance leaders for a reason,” Micir said of her top stars. “They’re competitive, they’re edgy, and when they can put points on the board, we’re really, really good.”

Anna Harvey dealt nine assists while the team overall was one short of perfect at the line, shooting 11-of-12.

Next up is a trip to league-leader Boston U., Saturday, at 4 p.m. in Massachusetts, the game airing on ESPN+.

Lafayette Takes Third Straight: The Leopards are suddenly humming continuing their run of triumphs beating host Loyola of Maryland in a low-scoring 39-35 battle in the Patriot League in Baltimore at Reitz Arena.

Makayla Andrews scored 13 points with six rebounds for Lafayette (7-12, 4-5 PL), who rallied from a nine-point deficit from the outset of the fourth period, while Kylie Favours just missed scoring in double digits with nine points, and Abby Antognoli scored eight.

The Greyhounds (7-13, 2-7) got a double-double 10 points and 16 rebounds from Lex Therien, while Taleah Dixon also scored 10 points.

Ahead by two near the end, Andrews went to the line and put down both foul shots to clinch the outcome.

Lafayette is back home in Kirby Sports Arena in Easton, Pa., Saturday, hosting Colgate at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

Nationally Noted - Texas Upsets No. 14 Oklahoma: In the one game to focus, Wednesday, the host Longhorns continue to baffle with their roller-coaster season, this time on the upside with a 78-58 win in a Big 12 game at home in their new Moody Center in Austin.

DeYona Gaston had 19 points for Texas (15-6, 6-2 Big 12), Taylor Jones scored 16, while Shaylee Gonzales scored 12 and dealt seven assists,  grabbed six rebounds and four steals, and Rori Harmon scored 10, dealt six assists, and collected five rebounds.

The Sooners (16-3, 6-2) got a double digit scoring game from only Skylar Vann with 13 points, the team held over 29 points below their scoring average.

Looking Ahead: For the locals the next few days, on Thursday night, Rider goes to Siena in suburban Albany for a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ while the long-running rivalry now part of the Big Ten has Penn State looking for a season sweep when the Lady Lions visit Rutgers at 7 p.m. on the subscription ESPN+.

Friday belongs to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), Drexel trying to snap a two-game losing streak when the Dragons at 6 p.m. hosts Hofstra in the Daskalakis Athletic Center on Flohoops. A little further south Delaware will host Elon in the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark at 7 p.m., also on Flohoops.

On Saturday, in addition to the games mentioned with the local results of Wednesday, it’s two more high-powered showdowns with elite opponents in the Ivy League, Penn, tied for first with Columbia, visits Harvard in Cambridge, Mass., in Lavietes Pavilion on ESPN+, while Princeton hosts Yale at 2 p.m. in Jadwin Gym, also on ESPN+.

In the Atlantic 10, La Salle will seek to keep its win streak alive hosting St. Bonaventure at 2 p.m. in the Tom Gola Arena on ESPN+.

On Thursday, nationally, the major intersectional game has Tennessee hosting No. 5 UConn, in Thompson-Bolling Arena in Knoxville at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

In the Big Ten there are two battles of ranked teams Michigan is at Maryland at 6:30 p.m. on the B!G,  while Ohio State is at Indiana at 8:30 p.m. also on the B!G in Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Ind.

Two battles of ranked teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 8 p.m. has Virginia Tech at Duke in Cameron Indoor Arena, in Durham, N.C., on the ACCN; and at the same time on the regional network Florida State will be at Notre Dame in Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Ind.

On Friday night on the PAC-10 Network, UCLA is at Colorado at 9 p.m. and Southern Cal is at Utah.

And that’s the report.

 

 

   

The Guru Report: St. Joe Alums See Rally on Fordham Fall Just Short While La Salle Wins Fourth Straight and Drexel Drops Second Straight

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Maybe it was the fact that besides it being Hawks Women’s Basketball Alumni Day here at Hagan Arena, it was also Saint Joseph’s celebrating the 10th anniversary of its 2013 Atlantic Ten Championship Sunday afternoon that got Fordham all riled up at the outset.

After all, the great memory here of that 47-46 triumph occurring during the inaugural year of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn that had future WNBA star Natasha Cloud in the lineup was also the bitter recall of the closing stop on the Rams at the finish.

Nevertheless if you watched the Villanova opening on Creighton Friday night when the Wildcats made shot after shot with Maddy Siegrist on the way of becoming the program’s all-time scorer, for local fans of the women’s game here in general, the Fordham attack was the reverse.

The Rams couldn’t do anything wrong in an another Atlantic 10 game on the current stretch featuring two of the league’s prime teams and Saint Joseph’s couldn’t do much right, falling behind by as many as 23 points.

However, still down by 19 in the second half, the Hawks finally caught fire and several times moved within three points of flipping the switch but Fordham had answers in the final minutes and left with a 71-65 victory while hanging Saint Joseph’s (14-5, 4-3 A-10) with its third straight narrow loss.

“We just were not ready for their speed, weren’t ready for them to knock down these shots,” said longtime Hawks coach Cindy Griffin, who coached that championship squad and also played here.

“I was very proud of our kids with their resilience and coming back making it a game in the fourth.”

Right before the half ended, Laura Ziegler got one down from deep, the deficit still daunting at 43-25, Fordham (13-7, 5-2) shooting 18-of-29 for 64.3 percent, including six from deep, while the home team was 11-of-31 for 35.5 percent, and just one from beyond the arc.

The poster girl of the comeback was inside force Mackenzie Smith, just 1-for-10 across the first two periods and then 6-of-20 the rest of the way, finishing with 17 points.

“We were settling for jump shots, outside of the paint, and it wasn’t working for us,” Griffin said. “Once we said keep going at it and some paint touches, whether it be driving or post entries to balance out our attack from the offensive standpoint.”

Getting defensive stops and coming to life, the crowd sensed a return to the pre-loss streak world of 14-3, which tied the best start of the Griffin era, occurring her inaugural season, returning home 2001-02.

Talya Brugler’s two foul shots lowered the differential to three the first time 63-60 but Fordham’s Asiah Dingle, the game’s high scorer with 21 points and six rebounds, got two points back with a shot.

Brugler, who had 20 points and nine rebounds, as did Ziegler on the boards, made it 65-62.

Appearing to successfully defend the next possession, it went for naught when Kaitlyn Downey connected from deep with a second left on the shot clock and made it a six point game.

However, Olivia Mullins, who had a career-high 16 points, hit one from deep to get it to a three-point differential again with 11 seconds left.

But now the Hawks were forced to foul and Dingle made 3-of-4 from the line to secure the win.

Though this one was lost by a few more points than the previous two, there were enough plays, especially at the finish, to consider what might have been.

“I think those were key possession or pivotal moments,” Griffin said. “We would have had two more possessions. I think that was really huge.”

Being local, Cloud discussed impressions of Villanova’s Siegrist, who is starting to draw attention from WNBA coaches with an eye to April’s draft.

“She’s a phenomenal player,” Cloud said. “I got a chance to see her last year when I was working out at Villanova’s gym. “All she’s put in, even when she was hurt, it’s all working out now, she’s the leading scorer in the country, now she’s the leading scorer at Villanova. She continues to thrive and it’s good to see a local kid being who she is.”

Siegrist on Monday night will receive the Amateur Athlete of the Year award from the Philadelphia Sportswriters Association at the annual dinner at 6 p.m. at the DoubleTree By Hilton Cherry Hill (Formerly Crown Plaza) on Route 70 across the Delaware River in New Jersey.

Griffin is being cited for reaching 400 wins this season and Jefferson University’s Tom Shirley likewise for now having collected over 800 wins. Tickets can still be bought at the website phillysportswriters.com 

Back here at Saint Joseph’s, the road for the moment gets a little easier, Saint Bonaventure the next opponent and playing here Wednesday night at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

Rhode Island, still unbeaten in league play, will be upcoming home-and-home opponents, but everything else is winnable the rest of the way, though nothing is an out-and-out given.

“The league is really competitive,” Griffin said. “One thing that we need to do is just stay true to what our core values are which is being selfless and relentless.”

La Salle Win Streak Continues: The Explorers are continuing on making good on their preseason forecast of second from the Atlantic 10 coaches, now having won four straight after beating new member Loyola Chicago 67-51 in the Windy City.

A 21-0 run across the two halves was the key for La Salle (13-8, 4-2 A-10), which had four players in double figures against the Ramblers (6-13, 1-5).

Kayla Spruill scored 15, shooting 5-of-11 from the field, including three from beyond the arc; Australian sisters Mia and Claire Jacobs scored 12 and 11, respectively; and point guard Molly Masciantonio scored 10 and dealt six assists.

La Salle is off until Saturday, hosting St. Bonaventure at 2 p.m. on ESPN+, the event also serving as the Explorers’ Pride game.

Drexel Upset by Towson: Keishana Washington continued to get her points as the second leading scorer in the nation to Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist and like the Wildcats’ star, became the second player this week involved with a long-standing school record in the Philly Six.

But Drexel, the preseason favorite in the Colonial Athletic Association, following a week off with the bye, dropped its second straight, losing at Towson 70-61, which is also where the conference tourney will be held in March in suburban Baltimore.

For the host Tigers (11-7, 5-2 CAA), now tied with the visiting Dragons (13-5, 5-2), it was quite an achievement gaining a weekend sweep of the longtime rivalry of Delaware on the road and then at home of Drexel (13-5, 5-2)  in SECU Arena by first-year coach Laura Harper, the former Cheltenham and Maryland star, who succeeded Diane Richardson, who left to fill the vacancy at Temple.

Towson’s Skye Williams had 18 points, while Alexia Nelson and Kylie Kornegay-Lucas each scored 13 points with seven rebounds. Quinzia Fulmore scored 10 and also grabbed seven rebounds.

There were seven ties and nine lead changes in the contest, which was taken control by Towson during the second half.

Drexel’s Washington scored 27, typing her with the legendary Gabriela Marginean, the all-time women’s scorer in local history, getting 10 or more points in 52 straight games.

Siegrist, who previously passed the men’s and Friday, broke the women’s Villanova scoring record, could end up besting that mark by the end of the season, if not sooner.

Chloe Henderson had a career-high 14 points, ten in the second half, while Maura Hendrixson dealt 12 assists.

Drexel will be home this weekend for a pair of games in the Daskalakis Athletic Center, hosting Hofstra, Friday night at 6 p.m. and Elon Sunday at 2 p.m., both games on Flohoops.

Penn State Tops Wisconsin While Rutgers Falls to Michigan State: The Lady Lions shook off an early nine-point deficit and went on to beat Wisconsin 74-69 in the Big Ten at home in the Bryce Jordan Center in State College.

Taniyah Thompson had 27 points for the home team (12-8, 3-6 Big Ten), which is making some strides in moving up the standings this season. 

A 14-2 run in the second period helped get coach Carolyn Kieger’s squad reversed and on to a 35-30 halftime lead.

The game was still close after the break, the third quarter featuring four ties and three lead changes, but PSU gained enough to top the Badgers (6-14, 2-7) at the finish.

Makenna Marisa had 15 points with eight assists and five steals while Leilani Kapinus, gaining the career 500 points milestone, scoring nine, along with getting two blocks and five steals.

Rookie Shay Ciezki dealt a personal best seven assists.

Two big stats for the home team was forcing  25 turnovers while dominating depth with a 31-2 advantage on bench points.

Rutgers, meanwhile, on the road was unable to come back to the winning side, losing at Michigan State 85-63.

Kaylene had another big game for the Scarlet Knights (8-13, 2-7 Big Ten) scoring 27 points, while Kai Carter had 11, the last of which enabled her to reach the 1,000 points milestone.

Michigan State (11-9, 3-6)  got 13 points from three players, Matilda Ekh, Moira Joiner, and reserve Abbey Kimball, while Taiyier Parks, also a reserve, scored 14 in the game played in the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich.

On Thursday, Penn State will go for a series sweep when the squad travels to Rutgers, its longtime rival pre-dating both teams landing in the Big Ten, at Jersey Mikes Arena in Piscataway, N.J.

Nationally noted: Unlike recent days, ranked teams held other than the PAC-12 where one had to lose with two playing each other for the conference lead, but even there, the favorite, No. 4 Stanford at home in Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto, Calif., beat No. 24 Colorado 62-49 as Hall of Fame coach Tara VanDerveer picked up her NCAA all-time women’s best 1,176 victory.

Geno Auriemma, also a Hall of Fame coach, the second best, will go for his 1,166th Monday night when UConn hosts DePaul in a Big East makeup game from one postponed recently when the Huskies’ injury-riddled roster dropped below the conference minimum requirement of seven healthy scholarship players.

In the Stanford game, the Cardinal (19-2, 7-1 PAC-12) set a program record with 14 blocked shots in a single game.

Hannah Jump had 21 points, while Haley Jones had 11 points and a season-best 18 rebounds, and Cameron Brink scored 14 with six of the blocks.

Colorado (15-4, 6-2), parting with a seven-game win streak, trailed by as many as 17, but moved within ten points in the final period.

“We were really good defensively,” Buffs coach JR Payne said. “We just couldn’t score the ball. It’s hard to score against them.

“We never quit. We never wilt. We never stop competing. We definitely showed that. We just needed more shots to fall.”

Jasylyn Sherrod had 16 points for Colorado, while Quay Miller had 14 points and nine rebounds, and Aaronette Vonleh had 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Southern Cal, which upset Stanford in Los Angeles a week ago and looking to get ranked, went in overtime before beating host Washington 63-54 in Seattle.

The Trojans (15-4, 5-4 PAC-12) are off to their best start in 29 years.

Destiny Littleton scored 20 against the Huskies (10-8, 2-6).

No. 19 Arizona on the road beat its in-state rival Arizona State 80-67 in Tempe as reserve Madison Conner scored 16 and Esmery Martinez scored 13 and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Wildcats (15-4, 5-3 PAC-12). The Sun Devils (7-10, 0-8) got a career high 24 points from Treasure Hunt.

Meanwhile in the Big 12, No. 25 Texas, which lost during the week right after re-entering the poll, may have saved itself and blocked Baylor, which fell last week after the third longest active poll streak, by beating the Bears 68-55 on the road in the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas.

The Longhorns (14-6, 5-2 Big 12) used a 44-33 second half to get the job done.

DeYona Gaston had 13 points and 11 rebounds, while Shaylee Gonzales, Rori Harmon, and Sonya Morris each scored 13 points and Taylor Jones scored 10.

Texas forced Baylor (13-6, 4-3) into 22 turnovers.

Top-ranked South Carolina, the defending NCAA champions, in the Southeastern Conference, one of three remaining unbeaten teams, beat visiting Arkansas 92-46 as reigning national player of the year Aliyah Boston had 13 points and 14 rebounds, setting a record for the Gamecocks (20-0, 8-0 SEC) with her 73rd double-double. Zia Cook scored 24 as Dawn Staley’s squad won its 26th straight.

Tennessee, trying to get back into the poll, reeled off an 8-0 run in the last minute, erasing a five-point deficit, and winning at Missouri 68-65 as Rickea Jackson scored inside with a second left and shooting a free throw.

The Lady Vols (16-6, 8-0 SEC) won their ninth straight overall and the 8-0 SEC start is their best since starting 13-0 in 2014-15 to finish 15-1 with the regular season conference crown.

Sara Puckett, 7-of-9, including a perfect 3-for-3 from deep used a three-ball to tie the score with 40 seconds left and finished with 17 points, while Jackson scored 15.

Hayley Frank scored 26 for Missouri (14-6, 3-4).

Idle No. 22 Villanova got some help in the Big East as Marquette at home in Milwaukee thumped Seton Hall 80-62 pushing the Pirates three games behind the second place Wildcats. Who lead second-place St. Johns by two.

In the Atlantic Coast Conference, all the ranked teams won, the biggest outcome No. 20 NC State stopped its free fall beating host Louisville 63-51. Elsewhere in the conference, No. 13 Duke, No. 12 Virginia Tech, No. 7 Notre Dame, and No. 17 North Carolina all won easily as did unranked Florida State 74-37 over host Pitt.

No. 21 Illinois won at Northwestern 67-64, the host Wildcats yet to win in the Big Ten at 0-9 this season.

Back in the PAC-12, No. 9 UCLA edged host Washington State 73-66.

Looking Ahead: None of the locals play until Wednesday, but nationally, two of the other unbeaten squads besides already-noted South Carolina, will see action.

In the Big Ten, No. 2 Ohio State (19-0) off to its best start will host No;. 10 Iowa in Columbus at 7 p.m. on ESPN 2.

No. 3 LSU (19-0) in the SEC will visit Alabama (15-4) at 7 p.m. on the SEC network as transfer Angel Reese  goes for her 20th double-double to break the program record of retired WNBA great Sylvia Fowles. The Tigers look to become just the second team from any  university sport to start 20-0, currently tied with the baseball program’s 19-0 set in 1997. The 2015 LSU softball squad went 25-0 from opening day.

Besides the Big East DePaul/UConn matchup mentioned, another key Big Ten game has No. 6 Indiana (17-1) visiting No. 14 Michigan (16-3). 

And that’s the report.

 

The Guru Report: Penn Returns to Form Routing Yale

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Led by the inside-outside attack of Jordan Obi and Kayla Padilla, Penn shook off Monday’s beating by Princeton returning to The Palestra Saturday afternoon and widening its lead over Yale in the third period to win 79-57 and reduce the three-team lead in the Ivy League to the Quakers and Columbia.

The triumph set a record of 11 straight wins at home — one more than the run of 10 in 2000-2001 — and by seed the Quakers (13-6, 5-1 Ivy) would be first off their recent win here over the Lions.

But it’s still early and the league is deep this season with this Saturday’s trip to Harvard the next challenge.

However, if one wanted to find the main culprit last season in Penn not making the the Ivy tourney for the first time in its then-four year history, excluding the Covid-19 cancellations, that would be an improved Bulldogs squad.

“There was an emphasis that this is a must win for us,” said Padilla, who shot 9-for-12 for 21 points. “They got us both games last season and we recognize each game is important, especially with teams that are fighting for those four spots in the tournament.”

This year’s fight for the NCAA automatic bid will be at Princeton, which has dominated the league until starting 0-2 this season losing to Harvard and Columbia.

The Tigers, however, have since righted the ship.

“We wanted to send a statement that one loss isn’t going to get us,” Padilla said.

Jordan Obio had 20 points and seven rebounds for Penn and Floor Toondors grabbed ten rebounds.

Yale (10-9, 4-2) got a career-best 21 points from its star guard Jenna Clark but everyone else was basically shut down.

“I think our offensive execution was really on point,” Padilla noted. “Everyone was looking to score. And a shout out to Sydney (Caldwell) who was a really spark for us on both sides of the floor, especially for her aggression to attack the basket in this game.”

Caldwell off the bench added 16 points to the Quakers attack.

Toonders drew praise among overall pleasure from Quakers coach Mike McLaughlin.

“She is perfect for this group,” he said. “She defends well. She takes up areas of the floor that needs to be covered especially around the rim. She rebounds the ball.  She can score when the opportunities are there. She is a perfect fit for us.”

Penn owned the board 39-22.

“You get knocked down, you got to get up in this sport,” McLaughlin said of the week’s turnaround.

“I thought we really responded this week and got better. I thought it was a great effort.” 

Yale is under first-year coach Dalila Eshe, a former La Salle and Princeton assistant, while her top assistant is former Quinnipiac star Sam Guastella, who was with former Temple coach Tonya Cardoza the previous two seasons, and with Mountain MacGillivray at La Salle before that.

While the Quakers were doing well here, up at  the furtherest geographical north of the conference, Princeton was being challenged by Dartmouth in a close game at Ledee Arena in Hanover, N.H., until the Tigers broke it open in the third period and went on to a 79-59 victory.

Princeton ( 13-5, 4-2 Ivy), which hosts Yale Saturday, shot 60 percent in the second half to subdue the Big Green (2-18, 0-6) in winning its fourth straight.

Madison St. Rose, who’s had big games recently, including last week’s win over Penn, had 15 points for the Tigers, while Paige Morton had 11 points and Parker Hill scored 10 in a combo 10-of-10 from the field. Kaitlyn Chen had 13 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals, while Julia Cunningham had 11 points and Ellie Mitchell had eight boards and three steals.

Up in New York on Broadway on the Upper West Side, Columbia had little difficulty staying hooked with Penn by routing Brown 94-74 at Schiller Court at Levien Gymnasium,

Abbey Hsu had 26 points, shooting 7-of-11 for the Lions (16-3, 5-1 Ivy), with six rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Kaitlyn Davis scored 17, Hannah Pratt had 11, Kitty Henderson scored 10, and Siena Durr scored 10.

Columbia dominated Brown (8-10, 1-5) on the boards 49-26, of which 21 on the offensive end led to a 26-7 advantage on second chance points.

The closest game among the Ivy leaders saw Harvard win at Cornell 66-53 in Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.

Lola Mullaney had 19 points for the visiting Crimson (11-7, 4-2 Ivy), while Elena Rodriguez had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Harmoni Turner had 15 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.

Lafayette Rallies Past Lehigh: Not the way Patriot League observers thought it would go, based on the seasons of the two to date, in their first of two meetings and 104th of The Rivalry at the host Leopards’ Kirby Sports Arena in Easton, Pa.

It did start that way, however, Lehigh jumping to a 24-13 lead at the end of the first quarter before the Leopards exploded with a 22-8 attack the next for a 35-32 lead at the half.

Then back to the Mountain Hawks to regain the high ground 47-43 heading into the final period.

A 14-8 run from the Leopards at the outset made it 59-54 with 1:40 left in regulations.

Lehigh wouldn’t quit, Ella Stemmer fired a three and the visitors were within a point with 59-58 and 37 seconds remaining.

The home team ran the shot clock down and a pass from Abby Antognoli to Halee Smith made it a three-point advantage with ten seconds but Frannie Hottinger scored and back to a one-point differential with seven seconds left.

The benefit of Lehigh having to send someone to the line, Makayla Andrews sank both shots and then the Leopards forced a turnover and walked away with a 63-60 victory.

Andrews finished with 21 points and eight rebounds for Lafayette  (6-12, 3-5 Patriot) while Hottinger had a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds for Lehigh (9-10, 5-3) with Jamie Behar scoring 13 points.

On Wednesday the Mountain Hawks will host Holy Cross at Stabler Arena at 6 p.m. in Bethlehem, Pa., on ESPN+ while Lafayette heads to Loyola, Md., in suburban Baltimore at 7 p.m., also on ESPN+.

Rider Edged by Fairfield in Double Overtime: The visiting Stags had suffered some tough, narrow losses, recently in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play but the after the host Broncs had erased a 13-point deficit, they ended up at the wrong end of a double overtime thriller, losing 64-61 at Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J.

Mikayla Firebaugh connected with a three-ball with 46 seconds left in regulation for Rider, creating a tie, but a potential game-winner at the finish didn’t drop sending the game into its first extra session.

Taking a 6-0 lead in what became an 11-0 run back into regulation in the first five-minute addition, the Stags (10-8, 6-3 MAAC) countered with a pair of deep shots, the second of which caused another tie with 15 seconds remaining.

It went back-and-forth in the second extra sessions until another deadlock occurred at 61-61 with just over a minute to play.

Fairfield’s Janelle Brown put the Stags up two on the Broncs (5-14, 2-8), who were unable to have the last word. That went to the Stags, Brown going 1-for-2 at the line, and then forcing a Rider turnover on what became its final possession.

“A gut-wrenching loss from a really good game on both sides,” said Rider coach Lynn Milligan. “Fairfield got the last look, but I’m really proud of our team and the way we bounced back. We were looking for a response after the Iona game, and I think we got that.

“We just haven’t gotten a lot of breaks this year for one reason or the other, but that’s not going to deter our mission. It’s not going to deter what we do on a daily basis. Everyone in that locker room is upset that we lost, but nobody in that locker room is wavering or questioning anything that we do.,” she continued.

“I didn’t feel a dip in our aggression. I didn’t feel a dip in our belief and doing what we were doing in that game. I looked at everyone’s eyes and I felt like they felt we were going to win the game.”

Firebaugh scored 20 for Rider, while Raphaela Toussaint had a double-double 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Brown had a double-double 19 points and 11 rebounds for Fairfield, while Callie Cavanaugh had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Izabela Nicoletti-Leite had a double-double 14 points and 10 rebounds, while making four from deep.

The Broncs next play at Siena in suburban Albany, N.Y., Thursday at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

Temple Falls at Memphis: Having beaten the Tigers back on Dec. 30 in an American Athletic Conference opener, the tables were turned on the Owls in Tennessee, losing 64-53.

Caranda Perea had a career-high eight rebounds for Temple (7-11, 2-4 AAC), which still has time to turn it around despite three straight losses. 

Aleah Nelson had 16 points, while Tarriyonna Gary had 11 against the Tigers (11-8, 3-3).

The squad stays on the road going to Tulane at 7 p.m. in New Orleans on ESPN+.

Nationally noted: No. 5 UConn continues to be shorthanded everywhere but the final score. Down to seven healthy players again, with Azzi Fudd sidelined with a re-injured knee, the Huskies fell behind Butler early by nine points in a Big East game in Gampel Pavilion on the Storrs campus but when it was over they had another romp, this one 79-39.

Aaliyah Edwards scored 20, Aubrey Griffin and Fairfield transfer Lou Lopez Senechal each scored 17 points. Dorka Juhasz, the Ohio State transfer, scored 14 points.

UConn (17-2, 10-0 Big East) has won 10 straight, though ahead is Monday’s re-scheduled visit in the Big East from DePaul, postponed when the Huskies were under the conference minimum seven healthy eligible scholarship players; a Thursday trip to Tennessee, still unranked but on a winning streak in the Southeastern Conference, and then back home in Hartford, Sunday, hosting No. 22 Villanova at the XL Center, 2 p.m.

Another record looms from Villanova senior Maddy Siegrist, now the all-time men’s and women’s scorer in the program, being two points short in breaking the Big Five career record over two decades old from Penn’s Diana Caramanico.

Butler (7-13, 2-9) got seven each from Jessica Carrothers and Sydney Janes.

Middle Tennessee continued to make its case to get back into the Associated Press women’s poll after a long absence, finishing Louisiana Tech with a 31-12  on the way to 68-50 victory at the Murphy Center in Murfresboro to stay unbeaten in Conference-USA.

The visiting Lady Techsters (11-8, 4-5 C-USA) had a 38-37 lead after three quarters before MTSU (16-2, 9-0) took over the rest of the way.

Savannah Wheeler had a season-high 29 points for the home team, shooting 9-of-13 from the field and 4-of-5  from deep. Anastasia Boldyreva had 18 points and eight rebounds with four blocks.

MTSU have the fourth longest win streak in the country with 14 games and are 17 in the NET.

Looking Ahead: Saint Joseph’s keeps going deeper in Atlantic 10 waters, having lost two straight narrow outcomes at reigning conference champion UMass and locally to La Salle with Fordham visiting Hagan Arena Sunday at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

Incidentally, veteran Hawks coach Cindy Griffin for reaching her 400th win this season at her alma mater will be honored Monday night at the annual Philadelphia Sportswriters Association awards banquet 5 p.m. at the Doubletree at Hilton on Route 70 in Cherry Hill, N.J. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at the website.

La Salle is on a three-game win streak in the A-10 and visits Loyola Chicago at 3 p.m. on ESPN+.

Meanwhile, Drexel, having been off a week since suffering its first loss in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) at William & Mary, will visit Towson, the site of this year’s tournament, at 2 p.m. on Flohoops.

The two locals in the Big Ten are on the docket, Rutgers hosting Michigan State at 3 p.m. in Jersey Mikes Arena in Piscataway, N.J., on the subscription B1G+, while at 5 p.m., Penn State hosts Wisconsin on the B!G network in the Bryce Jordan Center in State College.

Nationally, Texas, clinging to the No. 25 it is ranked returning to the poll last week, visits Baylor, kicked out ending the second longest appearance streak in a Big 12 game at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.

NC State, which has slid way down from its Top five status, is at Louisville, unranked but a Top 10 team in the preseason, 1 p.m. on the ACCN.

Stanford at 4 p.m. on the conference network is hosting Colorado in a battle for first among ranked in the PAC-12.

On Monday in two Big Ten battles featuring ranked teams, Iowa is at Ohio State, one of three remaining unbeaten teams along with the SEC duo of reigning NCAA champion South Carolina, which hosts Arkansas at 3 p.m. on Sunday, on ESPN2, and LSU, which at 7 p.m. Monday is at Alabama on SECN.

The other Big Ten game on the B!G network, at 8 p.m. Indiana visits Michigan.

And that’s the report.