The Guru Report: Temple Tops Penn in Big Five; No. 25 Penn State Falls in Overtime at No. 12 Ohio State; Pitt Rallies Over Lehigh;
By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru
PHILADELPHIA — For the first time this season a week ended without a fair share of shocking results, though No. 21 Washington State fell to its in-state rival Washington in the PAC-12 opener for both squads.
We begin first with our local trio of games in which Temple here in the Owls’ Liacouras Center Sunday afternoon got its first Big Five win of the season, avenging a rallied loss by Penn at The Palestra.
Out in the western part of the state Lehigh followed up its scoring explosion output on La Salle by producing another powerful offensive attack, but Pitt of the Atlantic Coast Conference fought back in the fourth quarter.
And duking it out in the neighboring Buckeye State in the Big Ten opener for both teams, No. 25 Penn State, which received its first Associated Press ranking Monday afternoon since 2014, held command on No. 12 Ohio State until late in the game, then at the finish forced the opposition into overtime but could do no more.
Nationally, the major focus was up at the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn., where No. 2 UCLA stayed unbeaten easily controlling No. 20 Florida State, which visits Drexel here next Sunday; No. 11 Utah, which gave Saint Joseph’s its lone defeat so far, chased top-ranked South Carolina all afternoon; and No. 17 Connecticut on the play of Paige Bueckers but on the brakes losing to ranked teams by beating No. 24 North Carolina, which could cause the Tar Heels to be dispatched when the sixth poll of the season is released at noon Monday.
And part of the ESPN viewing package was the WNBA lottery draft pick position revelations involving the four teams that did not make the playoffs. For the second straight year Indiana got the No. 1 pick after its choice last year – South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston, who represented the Fever Sunday, became the top rookie.
The Los Angeles Sparks will pick second, the Phoenix Mercury third, and the Seattle Storm fourth.
If most players such as Iowa scoring sensation Caitlin Clark decide not to use their allowed fifth year of eligibility off the NCAA Covid legislation, the draft will be deep enough to benefit the four lottery teams and beyond.
Meanwhile, there were some other outcomes worth noting further down in the recaps.
Nelson Reaches Milestone in Temple Victory: The Owls had not played since a one-point loss to Pacific last Saturday at Arizona State when Aleah Nelson missed a second foul shot followed by the missing a potential game-winner as the game ended.
Sunday was a happier occasion for the grad player and her teammates in a 61-47 win over Penn (6-5, 1-3 Big Five), which a year ago finished a late rally with a shot from Kayla Padilla, who’s using her grad year playing at No. 6 Southern Cal in her hometown.
In the third quarter Nelson became the third person in the program’s history and seventh in the combined history with the men to reach 500 career assists.
“All week we worked on our defense, and we wanted to throw the first punch, something we hadn’t been doing,” said Nelson, whose five assists in the game got her exactly to 500 while she also scored six points.
The Owls (4-5, 1-2) achieved both, especially with Penn having just won Friday night at Merrimack in suburban Boston as Jordan Obi had a career-high 30 points.’
In this one, Obi had nine points and 10 rebounds, while Stina Almqvist had a game-high 18 points and freshman Mataya Gayle was in double figures her sixth straight time, scoring 14 points.
But Temple dominated the first two quarters taking a 32-21 lead at the half.
The Owls forced 28 turnovers for a 31-9 advantage in transition points, and 38-14 in the paint. They also had a 46-40 advantage on the boards and Penn’s 28.8 percent from the field was a season low.
Ines Piper double doubled for the home team with 16 points and 10 rebounds while Tiarra East had 14 points Rayne Tucker scored 10.
“They run a lot of Princeton offense, Mike (McLaughlin) is real good at it and it has so many options off that,” said Temple coach Diane Richardson. We knew we had to stop that.”
As it was the offense wasn’t that great, but the defense more than just compensated.
“The game plan was to go inside,” Richardson explained. “They listened to the scout this time. We missed a few bunnies, but we cleaned it up with our offensive rebounds, so I was pleased with that.”
Feyonda Fitzgerald and Donna Kennedy are the two other Temple players in the 500-assist club.
“Defensively, I thought we did a good job,” Penn’s McLaughlin said. “But with 28 turnovers, it’s going to be difficult road to win.
“We had some good shots we just didn’t make. But I thought we did a good job defensively, against an athletic well-coached team, but offensively we just couldn’t put the ball in the basket,” he continued.
“But we had some moments. We had them down to five in the third quarter but then a turnover just breaks your back,” McLaughlin added.
“Overall, I thought we did some good things but just not enough. That’s a good team. They’re going to have a good year. They’ve got some experience; they’ve got some talent. I’ll cheer for them. I hope they win.”
Penn is off until a calendar year-end back-to-back in the Palestra in which the Quakers will host Maine and Gwynedd Mercy Dec. 30 and Dec. 31 each day at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
Temple will host Delaware at 7 p.m. Thursday on ESPN+
On Sunday the Owls wrap-up Big Five play at La Salle. Should Temple win and then La Salle beats Villanova Dec. 21, Saint Joseph’s automatically becomes outright Big Five champs without regard to the result of the Hawks’ game with the Explorers in January because everyone would have at least two losses and the most the Hawks could have isone.
Richardson said her personal preference would be to play everyone as opposed to the Classic format the men went to this season.
As for site of the championship, a place that won’t have empty seats.
She also said Temple and Saint Joseph’s have scheduled a game next season beyond the format to guarantee they see each other so it would be a stand-alone beyond a City Series or a second game that would not count as Big Five like the second La Salle and Saint Joseph’s game in the A-10.
Penn State Falls in Overtime to Ohio State: Less than a half month after the Lady Lions fell a point short of then-No. 8 Southern Cal, they nearly nipped No. 12 Ohio State, losing 94-84 to the Buckeyes (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten) in the conference opener for both after extending the game just before the end of regulation.
A week ago, they got ranked at 25th for the first time since the final poll of 2014 season amid all the chaos but several hours later they lost at West Virginia, making it likely they’ll get tossed when the new poll is released Monday at noon.
But they’ve shown they’re good enough to challenge good enough opponents in the conference to return, pending the condition of leading scorer Makenna Marisa whom the AP reported suffered a leg injury early in the overtime and was carried to the locker room.
Ohio State has won eight straight after suffering an opening day upset in Las Vegas to then-No. 21 Southern cal.
Jacy Sheldon had 31 points, Cotie McMahon scored 27, and Celeste Taylor had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Buckeyes, who trailed by nine at the outset of the fourth quarter.
However, they opened the fourth with a 10-0 run to go in front 69-68, and Taylor’s 3-pointer beating the shot clock gave them an 80-76 lead with 43.9 seconds left in regulation.
But Penn State (7-3, 0-1) tied it on Marissa’s eighth straight point and after an ensuing turnover Taylor Valladay’s shot with 10.8 seconds left to send the game into overtime.
Marissa had 28 points and Shay Ciezki scored 19 for the Lady Lions, who host St. Francis (Pa.) on Friday.
Pitt Rally Overcomes Lehigh: In their first-ever meeting with the Panthers the Mountain Hawks set three more records in what became a 94-82 loss.
“One, I want to give Pitt credit,” said Lehigh coach Addie Micir. “Especially the last 10 minutes -- that was the best basketball we've seen them play.
“They executed at such a high level, and we're competing, and we were trying and fighting.
“I said to our team, we are going to get people's best, and that's the best part of it. What I love about this team is no matter if we were up in the game or down, we were smiling, having fun and playing Lehigh basketball.”
A win would have been the first ever for the Mountain Hawks (8-2) against an ACC opponent.
Lehigh set a Patriot League record with 19 made 3-pointers, while Ella Stemmer tied the program record with 37 points set by Liz Feeley in 1986. She also set a record for the program with 10 made from beyond the arc eclipsing the nine made by Alex Ross in 2008.
Lily Fandre aded 15 points and Remi Sisselman scored 13 while Fandre and Meghan O’Brien each scored seven points.
Pitt (5-5) dominated the fourth quarter 30-12. Bella Perkins scored 22 for the Panthers, a career-high, while Jala Jordan tied a personal best with 23 points off the bench.
Lehigh is now off for finals and Christmas until Rider visits Dec. 30.
The National Scene: After plunging to its lowest ranking in 30 years at 17th, Paige Bueckers helped UConn apply the brakes by shooting 11-for-14 from the field to score 26 points, influding her 1000th career point, while blocking four shots in a 76-64 victory over No. 24 North Carolina in the last of three games of the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at the Mohegan Sun.
Aaliyah Edwards had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskies (6-3), hit by more injuries as they had fallen from a preseason ranking of second with losses to then-unranked NC State, and top five opponents UCLA and Texas, the Longhorns 10th a week ago when the teams met in Austin.
Boston College transfer Maria Gakdeng, one of five to score in double figures for the Tar Heels (6-4), had 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Bueckers tied past UConn all-American Maya Moore as fastest Huskie to 1,000 in her 55th game after missing all of the past season and much of the previous with knee injuries following a freshman season in which she was named national player of the year.
Coach Geno Auriemma picked up his 1,186th career victory, moving within eight of Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer, the women’s record holder at 1,194.
Retired Duke men’s coach Mike Kryzyzewski has 1,202 for the combined record.
Connecticut will host No. 18 Louisville, Saturday, in Hartford.
The day got started with No. 2 UCLA staying unbeaten by downing No. 20 Florida State 95-78 as Stanford transfer Lauren Betts had 22 points and 18 rebounds.
“I'd be the most foolish coach not to give her touches,” UCLA 's Cori Close said. “It creates for the people around her.”
Betts, a 6-foot-7 senior is shooting 77 percent from the field for the Bruins (9-0).
Charisma Osborne and Angela Dugalic each scored 16 points.
Ta’Niya Latson had 26 for the Seminoles (7-3).
UCLA visits Ohio State a week from Monday.
The middle game saw No. 11 Utah challenge No. 1 South Carolina before losing 78-69 to the unbeaten Gamecocks (9-0).
Kamila Cardoso had 17 points while Te-Hina Paopao scored 15 for the winners while MiLaysia Fulwiley and Chloe Kitts each scored 11 points.
“We can only get better,” said South Carolina coach Dawn Staley. “That's the thing. This is the worst we're going to be and we're just in December.”
Utah (8-2), which had just won Thursday at Saint Joseph’s, was playing its second game since losing second-leading scorer Gianna Kneepkens for the season with a foot injury.
Reigning PAC-12 player of the year Alissa Pili followed up her 31-point performance against the Hawks with 37 against South Carolina.
“I hope we don't see them in the tournament and whoever does get to see them, good luck to you,” staley said.
Meanwhile with travel partner rivals playing each other to get the final PAC-12 season started, Washington won at No. 21 Washington State 60-55 in Pullman ro stay unbeaten at 10-0.
It’s the first road win in the Boeing Apple Cup Series for the Huskies since 2019.
Hannah Stines had a career-high 21 points for Washington, which almost lost all of a 20-point halftime lead, while Lauren Schwartz scored 20, and Dalayah Daniels had 11 points.
The Cougars (10-2) outscored the visitors 38-23 in the second half getting within a possession before suffering the loss.
Bella Murekatete had 19 points for the Cougars while Charlisse Leger-Walker scored 11. Eleonora Villa scored 10.
TCU got 38 bench points in an 85-41 win over Prairie View A&M (3-4) in Fort Worth to extend the unbeaten start to 10-0.
Richmond (8-2) went in overtime at home to beat Appalachian State 80-77 as Maggie Doogan scored 28 points. Meanwhile A-10 preseason pick Rhode Island (6-5) was on the downside of its roller-coaster start losing 55-44 at St. John’s (5-6).
Columbia (7-4) went into its finals break topping visiting Wagner 79-50 as Abbey Hsu scored 25 points.
Fairfield (7-1) got 21 points from Janelle Brown edging visiting Fordham 77-74 dropping the Rams to 5-6.
No. 7 LSU (9-1) used a strong second half as the defending NCAA champions beat Louisiana 83-53 as
Aneesah Morrow scored 27 points. Coach Kim Mulkey announced Kateri Poole is no longer with the team.
No. 6 Southern Cal (8-0) had an easy 85-53 victory over UC Riverside (4-4) as freshman sensation JuJu Watkins scored 27 points.
Looking Ahead: Three locals play Monday, highlighted by Villanova trying to bounce back from Saturday’s loss at Saint Joseph’s, hosting reigning Ivy champion Princeton at 7 p.m. at Finneran Pavilion on FloHoops.
Delaware is at VCU (8-1) in Richmond at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ while Lafayette at 6 p.m. hosts Monmouth on ESPN+.
On Wednesday Rutgers is at Princeton at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ in Jadwin Gym.
And that’s the report.
posted by Mel Greenberg | 7:40 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home