The Guru’s Local/National NCAAW Roundup: Joens Gets Career-High Leading Villanova Over Xavier While Rider Picks Up First MAAC Win; No. 5 Oklahoma and No. 6 Kentucky Suffer Upsets in SEC Action

 By Mel Greenberg

VILLANOVA, Pa. – Last season the portal took away an important part of the Villanova attack when Lucy Olsen left to spend her senior year at Iowa.

Wednesday afternoon the portal showed signs of giving back.

Having had a 10-game winning streak get shattered at Marquette Sunday and struggling early here in Finneran Pavilion trailing Xavier down two 11-9 near the end of the first quarter, the Wildcats erupted on an 8-0 run highlighted by three-pointers from reserve Ryanne Allen and Iowa State transfer Kelsey Joens to go in front to stay and protect second place in the Big East with a 67-50 victory.

Allen, a native of Warminster, came home last year from Vanderbilt and Wednesday Joens with a career-high 18 points had a breakout game with her points coming by way of six 3-pointers.

In all, Villanova (13-3, 6-1) connected with 15 makes from deep though after building a 33-20 halftime lead, Xavier (9-7, 2-5) cut the deficit to seven late in the third before the Wildcats prolific shooting continued in the fourth to pull away.

Jasmine Bascoe nailed three from beyond the arc and scored 15 points while Brynn McCurry scored 10 points with a game-high seven rebounds.

Xavier’s Savannah White and Mariyah Noel each scored 16 points with Noel also dishing seven assists.

Joen’s day couldn’t have come at a better time with freshman Kennedy Henry unable to play against the Musketeers.

“There were some areas she wanted to improve on. and I’ll tell you she flipped that switch real quick,” Villanova coach Denise Dillon said. “She would credit her teammates, but we did a much better job moving the ball and not settling for contested shots.”

“We got to figure a lot out, but that’s part of the game,” Dillon said of the portions with narrow lead but we’re in the league now (out of non-conference play) where everybody knows you. They know your tendencies and style.

“There’s a lot of pressure at the start of games. It’s not a selfish thing its everyone wanting to make plays.”

Villanova now hits the road for the next two playing Sunday at Providence, a team that has managed to be a thorn in the side in spite of the superiority of talent and then next Thursday at top-ranked and defending NCAA champion UConn.

Rider also had an early game visiting Siena in suburban Albany (N.Y.) and the Broncs (3-12, 1-5) finally made it into the win column after an opening five-game losing streak in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference courtesy of a three-pointer from Alena Cofield to gain a 61-59 victory over the Saints (6-8, 4-1).

Defense was the key after the score as Rider forced a pair of turnovers and a missed shot to keep Siena off the scoreboard.

“It feels great,” said first-year Rider coach Jackie Hartzell. “I’m really proud of our players and our fight at the end. We’ve been close in a couple of these games, and to pull one out, I’m just really proud.

“Our players showed me a lot today; this is a tough place to play and to keep fighting the way we did hopefully there’s more wins to come.”

Cofield, a freshman who set a career-high her previous game, set a new one with a game-high 18 points, while Kristina Ekofo scored 15 points, reserve Emmy Roach scored 11 points, and Deb Okechukwu scored 10 points.

Rider stays on the road a little further south on Saturday visiting Marist in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. At 2 p.m. (ESPN+).

Three other locals, all at home, also played Thursday and all of them are still looking for their first season conference win, two in the Big Ten.

The Big Ten duo are Rutgers and Penn State who continue to struggle playing ranked teams in the conference.

Rutgers lost to No. 7 Maryland, 88-41, at Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, N.J., while Penn State fell to No. 9 Michigan, 105-65.

In the Rutgers (8-8, 0-5) loss, Yarden Garzon scored 18 points, connecting on all six shots from deep for the visiting Terrapins (16-1, 4-1), while Addi Mack added 15 points.

Nene Ndiaye scored 11 for the Scarlet Knights, who next visit Northwestern Sunday while Maryland hosts No. 19 Ohio State.

Michigan (13-2, 4-1) got 18 points from Mila Holloway while Te’Yala Delfosse scored 17 in the Wolverines’ ninth-straight win and 10th over Penn State (7-9, 0-5), which has not improved returning for a bunch of home games in Rec Hall from the larger Bryce Jordan Center.

It was a wire-to-wire win for the visitors.

Nyla McFadden scored 10 for the Lady Lions, who host Illinois Sunday while Michigan hosts Wisconsin.

Delaware (6-9, 0-3), which dropped both games in its first weekend playing in Conference USA opponents on the road, dropped its home conference opener in the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, losing 65-50 to Louisiana Tech (8-5, 1-1), the national power of yesteryear which beat Cheyney of suburban Philadelphia in 1982 to win the first NCAA women’s title contest.

No one for the host Blue Hens scored in double figures, Jiya Perry just missed collecting nine points.

Delaware next hosts Sam Houston on Saturday at 2 p.m. (ESPN+).

Only one local team is in action Friday, Drexel, which dropped its Coastal Athletic Association opener at home Sunday, is at Stony Brook on Long Island, N.Y. Tipping off at 6:30 p.m. (FloCollege) before returning home to host Hofstra Sunday in the Daskalakis Athletic Center at 2 p.m.

The National Scene

Two teams that shot up into the Top 10 of the Associated Press women’s poll Monday both suffered upset losses in Southeastern Conference competition.

No. 5 Oklahoma (14-2, 2-1) part with a 13-game win streak losing at home in Norman to No. 15 Ole Miss, 74-69, just the 13th win for the Rebels (15-3, 2-1) over a Top 5 opponent, though the campus later suffered a downer with the football team dropping its playoff semifinal to Miami in the close of regulation.

Ohio State transfer Cotie McMahon scored 22 points for Ole Miss while Aaliyah Chavez scored 26 points for the Sooners who also got 15 points and 20 rebounds from Raegan Beers.

Oklahoma went ahead briefly in the fourth quarter and next visit No. 6 Kentucky Sunday while Ole Miss the same day hosts in-state conference rival Mississippi State.

Kentucky (15-2, 2-1), which handed LSU its first season and conference loss and then entered the Top 10 on Monday was upset 64-51 at unranked Alabama (16-1, 2-1), which claimed its highest ranked win in the Kristy Curry era, which began in 2013, and highest ranked win overall earned since 1997.

Jessica Timmons scored 24 points for the winning Crimson Tide, while Diane Collins collected 16 points.

Tonie Morgan, who hit the game-winner against LSU scored 14 for Kentucky while Asia Boone added 12 points.

Alabama next is at Missouri Monday.

Elsewhere among ranked teams in the SEC, No. 2 Texas (18-0, 3-0) at home in Austin got a career-high 23 points and 11 rebounds from Kyla Oldacre in a 97-36 win over Auburn (11-6, 0-3), which committed 26 turnovers the Longhorns mined into 40 points.

Texas is off to its best start since becoming the first unbeaten NCAA team at 34-0 in 1986 and is one of four remaining unbeaten teams along with SEC rival Vanderbilt, Texas Tech of the Big 12, and top-ranked UConn, the defending national champion, of the Big East.

The Longhorns on Sunday are at No. 12 LSU, which after dropping its first two overall and SEC contests, won 80-59 at Georgia (15-2, 1-2) as Flau’jae Johnson scored 15 of her 25 points in the final quarter.

No. 7 Vanderbilt (16-0, 3-0) stayed perfect beating visiting Missouri 99-68 as sophomore Mikayla Blakes led five Commodores teammates in double figures with 20 points and now move on to start a three-game road trip Sunday at Texas A&M.

No. 3 South Carolina (16-1, 3-0) won 93-58 at Arkansas and next host Georgia on Sunday.

No. 20 Tennessee (11-3, 3-0) got 26 points from Mia Pauldo, a season-best from the Lady Vols freshman, in a 90-80 win at Mississippi State and next host Arkansas in Knoxville Sunday.

In the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 10 Louisville (15-3, 5-0) got a career-high 23 points from Elif Istanbulluoglu in a 77-68 win at Miami and next host Pitt Sunday.

Miami’s loss was compensated for its campus fans elsewhere with the football team beating Ole Miss to advance to the national championship against Friday night’s winner between No. 1 Indiana and Oregon.

Elsewhere in the ACC, Duke won its seventh straight topping host California 78-74, while Notre Dame, which ended a long run Monday in the AP Poll following two losses to unranked opponents, beat Boston College 94-60 at home in South Bend, Ind.

Clemson beat N.C. State at home 75-65 while Stanford at home beat Wake Forest 55-43.

In the Big Ten besides the teams mentioned, No. 25 Nebraska (14-2, 3-2) won at home in Lincoln beating Indiana 78-73 with a strong finish as Britt Prince scored 20 for the Huskers and Jessica Petrie scored 17 and next host No. 4 UCLA on Sunday.

No. 15 Michigan State (12-3, 2-2) got 21 points while Grace VanSlooten and Rashunda Jones each scored 17 points in an 82-67 road win at No. 23 Washington (12-3, 2-2) in Seattle.

The hosts got 15 points off five makes from 3-point distance Elle Ladine.

The Spartans Sunday continue to Oregon while Washington the same day is at Purdue.

In the Big 12, No. 16 Baylor (14-3, 3-1) got 10 points and 12 rebounds from Darianna Littlepage-Buggs in a narrow 56-52 home win in Waco, Texas, over Colorado (11-5, 2-2).

Baylor next hosts Kansas Sunday.

No ranked teams play Friday while on Saturday No. 24 Princeton has an Ivy visit to Yale in New Haven, Conn., and No. 17 Texas Tech is at Cincinnati.

Both games are on ESPN+, Princeton tips at 2 p.m. while Texas Tech the same time is at Cincinnati.

Elsewhere in the MAAC, Quinnipiac and Fairfield stayed perfect in league play, the former winning 70-44 at Mount St. Mary’s while the latter won 84-62 at Fairfield.

 

 

 

 

  

The Guru’s Local/National NCAA Roundup: Lehigh and Lafayette Grab Patriot Wins While Scoring Droughts Cost La Salle and Saint Joseph’s in the A-10; Cincinnati Upsets No. 11 Iowa State

 By Mel Greenberg

La Salle and Saint Joseph’s both suffered scoring famines in their games Wednesday in the Atlantic 10, La Salle’s 3-0 start ending with a 62-47 loss at defending tournament George Mason (9-6, 4-0) in Fairfax, Va., and Saint Joseph’s falling 48-36 at Davidson (12-5, 4-0) in North Carolina.

La Salle and Saint Joseph’s meet Saturday at the Hawks’ Hagan Arena, the first of two in the home-and-home series at 2 p.m. (ESPN+), neither game counts in the Big Five since play was completed last month in the revised Classic tournament format begun last season.

In the Patriot League, however, defending champion Lehigh won 60-57 at Holy Cross, taking the host Crusaders in Worcester, Mass., out of the conference unbeaten column.

Lafayette was a winner also with a narrow 65-64 triumph at Boston University.

In the La Salle game, the Explorers (10-5, 3-1) trailed wire-to-wire, though at the half were behind 29-23 with Aryss Macktoon scoring 14 of her 17 points.

Ashleigh Connor had 10 points and seven boards.

George Mason’s Kennedy Harris scored 18 points, shooting 7-for-14 from the field, including 3-of-4 from deep, while Zahirah Walton and reserve Page Greenburg each scored 10 points and Hawa Komara grabbed eight boards while also being scoreless.

Davidson snapped Saint Joseph’s overall win streak with Gabby Casey the only player in double figures for the Hawks (11-4, 4-2), scoring 19 points and grabbing eight rebounds.

The Wildcats didn’t exactly light the scoreboard either, Charlise Dunn and reserve Kyra Bruyndoncx each scored 10 points, and Dunn grabbed 13 rebounds.

Lehigh (7-7, 3-0) got a strong night from Lily Fandre up at Holy Cross (8-6, 2-1) who scored 17 of her 23 points in the first half including becoming the Mountain Hawks’ 25th player to reach1,000 points.

“Those 1,000 points were hard-earned, and Lily did it the right way, unselfishly and within the flow of our system” said Lehigh coach Addie Micir. “Every point mattered, and we’re looking forward to many more.”

Jessie Ozzauto added 17 points to the winning attack.

“It was a really solid team win with different players stepping up at different moments,” Micir said.

Kendall Eddie led Holy Cross with 17 points, 11 in the fourth quarter to keep it close.

Lehigh, quickly the only team without a Patriot League loss, hosts Colgate Saturday at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa., at 2 p.m. (ESPN+).

In Boston, the start by Lafayette (6-8, 2-1) is the Leopards’ best league start in four seasons.

Teresa Kiewiet scored 23 points shooting 9-for-18, including 3-for-6 from the deep, while Haylie Adamski sizzled even more from outside with 5-for-8 beyond the arc on the way to 20 points, and Talia Zurinskas scored 11 points.

Boston U. (4-10, 0-3) got 14 points from Anete Adlier, while Hildur Gunnsteinsdottir and Anastasiia Semenova each scored 13 points.

On Saturday, Lafayette hosts preseason favorite Navy at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) at the Kirby Sports Arena in Easton, Pa.

On Wednesday, Villanova has an 11:30 a.m. morning Education Day game hosting Xavier (ESPN+, Rider also has a morning tilt at Siena (ESPN+), looking for a first win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference while at night in the Big Ten, Rutgers hosts No. 8 Maryland at 7 p.m. (B1G+) at Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, N.J., Penn State hosts No. 9 Michigan at 6 p.m., and in Conference USA Delaware hosts Louisiana Tech at the Bob Carpenter Center at 7 p.m. (ESPN+) in the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark as the  Blue Hens seek their first win in their new league following last weekend’s 0-2 debut on the road.

The National Scene

The schedule was light but the stunners occurring since New Year’s Day continued with No. 11 Iowa State (14-2, 2-2) in the Big 12 falling 71-63 at Cincinnati, the visitors’ second straight loss in league play after a 14-0 start tied a program record.

It’s the first Bearcats win over a ranked opponent since the 2011 season when they were in the Big East.

Cincinnati (6-10, 1-3) was led by Mya Perry, scoring 26 points on 10-of-14 from the field, including 4-of-6 from 3-point distance, in getting the Bearcats’ first win over the visiting Cylones in five meetings since joining the conference.

They also dominated the boards 44-30.

Caliyah DeVillasee scored 13 points for Cincinnati and Joya Crawford scored 10.

Iowa State’s Audi Crooks didn’t reach 30 points but still scored a bunch at 23 with 10 re bounds, her 54th game reaching 20 and she maintains the nation lead with 82 straight games.

Cincinnati gets a chance to beat two straight ranked teams Saturday hosting No. 17 Texas Tech, while on Sunday, Iowa State hosts West Virginia.

The two other ranked Big 12 teams did not have an easy night either, Texas Tech (17-0, 4-0) winning 71-66 at West Virginia (13-3, 3-1) while No. 13 TCU (15-1, 3-1) bounced back from its first loss, winning 69-61 over visiting Oklahoma State (13-4, 2-2).

In the Texas Tech win, Bailey Maupin scored 27 points and Snudda Collins scored 19 as the Red Raiders going 4-0 in league play is their best since a 5-0 start in 2004-05.

West Virginia’s Jordan Harrison scored 22 points with five assists.

In the win by TCU, the Horned Frogs scored the last nine points to edge the Cowgirls.

Notre Dame transfer Olivia Miles scored 20 points for the home team, which held Oklahoma State scoreless the final seven minutes.

In the Big East it was business as usual, No. 1 and defending NCAA champion UConn (16-0, 7-0) in Hartford routed visiting St. John’s 88-43, the two-season win streak running to 32 straight games and Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma’s record win total climbing to 1,266.

Sarah Strong had 19 of her 24 points in the first half, while Azzi Fudd scored 16 and has now made 34 straight free throws.

The Huskies have also won 45 straight regular season Big East games, last losing on Feb. 21, 2023, to St. John’s, which fell to 12-4 overall and 3-3 in the conference.

UConn visits Creighton in Omaha, Neb., on Sunday, and St. John’s host Butler on Saturday.

No. 19 Ohio State (14-2, 2-1) in the Big Ten was the other ranked team in action, winning 78-69 at Illinois (13-3, 3-2) in Champaign as Jaloni Cambridge scored a career-high 41 points, 29 in the first half.

The Buckeyes are at Maryland Sunday while the same day Illinois is at Penn State.

In other games of note, Army, under first-year coach Katie Kuester, won 71-66 at Loyola, Md., Miami, Ohio in the Mid-American Conference beat new member UMass 72-60, and Georgia Southern beat Sun Belt favorite James Madison 78-70.

A big slate Thursday has a bunch of ranked teams in the Southeastern Conference playing but only one game against each other, all airing on the subscription SECN+.

No. 3 South Carolina is at Arkansas (7:30 p.m.), No. 12 LSU still looking for its first conference win after two losses is at Georgia (6:30 p.m.), No. 15 Ole Miss is at No. 5 Oklahoma (7 p.m.), No. 6 Kentucky is at Alabama (7 p.m.), No. 7 Vanderbilt, one of four remaining unbeaten teams, hosts Missouri (7:30 p.m.), No. 20 Tennessee is at Mississippi State (7:30 p.m.), and No. 2 Texas, another of the unbeatens, hosts Auburn (8 p.m.).

In the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 10 Louisville is at Miami at 3 p.m. on the ACCNX, while in the Big Ten besides those playing the locals No. 25 Nebraska hosts Indiana at 8 p.m. and No. 23 Washington hosts No. 15 Michigan State at 9 p.m., both on the B1G+.

In the Big 12 Colorado is at No. 16 Baylor at 8 p.m. (ESPN+).

 

 

 

The Guru’s Local/National NCAAW Roundup: Temple Handles Wichita State for First Road Win; D2-Holy Family 4th Quarter Surge at Jefferson Keeps Tigers Perfect in CACC; Oregon 14-0 Finish Carries Ducks Over No. 21 USC

 By Mel Greenberg

Maybe Saturday’s loss to open American Conference play was just rust from a long holiday layoff, time will tell, but Temple righted the ship in a hurry Tuesday night winning 70-50 at Wichita State forcing the Shockers (3-13, 0-3) into 21 turnovers and grabbing 14 steals.

The Owls (7-7, 1-1) were the only local playing Tuesday night, and none were in action Monday.

A 9-0 run in the second period put Temple ahead to stay the rest of the way.

The Shocker record leaves it to still be decided if the Owls will be an upper echelon conference team but step one at least called for that kind of performance and Temple delivered.

The win was the first on the road this season.

Kaylah Turner, Jaleesa Turner, and Saniyah Craig each scored 13 points.

The Owls stay on the road in the Midwest Friday heading to Tulsa at 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+).

D2 Holy Family Wins Big at Jefferson

The empty D-1 home schedule allowed a Tuesday visit nearby to a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) game with Holy Family at Jefferson, two teams which also compete in the Philadelphia/Suburban Women’s Basketball Summer League.

A 21-6 fourth quarter allowed Holy Family (10-3, 5-0) from Northeast Philadelphia to pull away to a 69-50 victory over Jefferson (9-5, 3-3).

Kara Meredith had six makes from deep and scored 31 points for the Tigers while Claire Dougherty was 5-10 from the field for 10 points and Taylor Hinkle grabbed 10 rebounds.

The Rams’ Emily Spratt scored 16 points.

Four locals are on the road Wednesday night: In the Atlantic 10 Saint Joseph’s is at Davidson in North Carolina at 6 p.m. while La Salle with the best league start at 3-0 since 2013-14 is at defending league tournament champion George Mason in Fairfax, Va., at 7 p.m., both games airing on ESPN+.

The two meet Saturday at Saint Joseph’s at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) in the first of two in their annual home-and-home series.

In the Patriot League, defending champion Lehigh is at Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., at 6 p.m. while Lafayette has a morning 11 a.m. visit to Boston U., both games also airing on ESPN+.

The National Scene

On Monday Notre Dame ended a long run in the Associated Press women’s poll following two upset losses in the Atlantic Coast Conference and now No. 21 Southern Cal may be headed likewise following Tuesday night’s 71-66 Big Ten home loss at the Galen Center in Los Angeles to Oregon.

On Saturday night USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb termed her team’s wipeout at crosstown No. 4 UCLA “an embarrassment.”

The Trojans are without reigning national player of the year JuJu Watkins, who suffered an ACL tear in her right knee in the NCAA tournament ruining what had been a Top 5 season.

Oregon (14-3, 2-2), which last season was part of a mass defection with Southern Cal among others from the PAC-12 to the Big Ten, ACC and Big-12, used a 14-0 finish to gain Tuesday’s win.

Ehis Etute had a career-high 17 points for the winning Ducks, while Katie Fiso scored 14, and Ari Long and Mia Jacobs each scored 11 with Long hitting three straight 3-pointers in the closing surge.

USC (14-3, 2-2) got 21 points from Kara Dunn and freshman standout Jazzy Davidson had 14 points, 13 boards and five assists.

The Trojans had an early 23-9 lead and were still up big at 37-21 at halftime.

On Sunday, Oregon hosts No. 15 Michigan State and USC visits Minnesota.

The Big Ten was involved in the only two ranked games Monday night: Michigan (12-2, 3-1), which fell from sixth to ninth in the new AP Poll earlier in the day, won 70-60 at home in Ann Arbor over Minnesota (10-4, 1-2) as Olivia Olson scored 21 points, and goes to Penn State Thursday.

No. 14 Iowa (13-2, 4-1) won 67-58 at Northwestern (6-9, 0-4) handing the Wildcats their ninth straight loss.

Ava Heiden was 9-11 and scored 23 for the Hawkeyes who next are at Indiana Sunday.

 Northwestern longtime coach and Father Judge grad Joe McKeown announced his impending retirement heading into this season.

The PAC-12 returns next season with new members except the return of Washington State and Oregon State, which are playing the second of two seasons in the West Coast Conference.

On Wednesday’s national slate, in the Big East, No. 1 UConn hosts St. John’s at 7:30 p.m. on truTV; No. 19 Ohio State is at Illinois in the Big Ten at 7 p.m. on B1G+; while in the Big 12, No. 11 Iowa State at 6:30 p.m. is at Cincinnati, No. 17 Texas Tech at 7 p.m. is at West Virginia, and No. 13 TCU at 7:30 p.m. hosts Oklahoma State, all on ESPN+.