Following back-to-back dicey wins over FAU and Tulsa, Temple needed a full 40 minutes of play Saturday against Charlotte to continue to establish itself as one of the best teams in the American Athletic Conference. In those two previous games, the Owls had leads north of 10 points but struggled to close things out comfortably, with both matches going down to the wire.
After being outscored by the 49ers to start the third quarter, it appeared the Owls were headed in the same direction, but a decisive run later in the period allowed Temple to pick up an 80-62 win at the Liacouras Center that left behind any late-game drama.
Following the game, head coach Diane Richardson was all smiles, relieved that her team was able to pick up a stress-free win.
“For an old lady like me, that feels good, ‘cause they really get me going sometimes,” Richardson said. “But it was a good win. I’m really proud of our team. I’m really proud that we are playing some cohesive basketball and that has been our goal from the very beginning.”
Temple, which improved to 11-6 overall and 5-1 in conference play, was led by guard Tarriyonna Gary, who notched 18 points on 7 of 11 shooting, including three shots from deep. Forward Jaleesa Molina, who has continued to take massive steps of improvement, scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for her fifth double-double on the season.
Temple won despite getting just eight points on 4 of 15 shooting from leading scorer Tiarra East, although East did contribute seven rebounds and four assists.
It was a fast start for the Owls, with Richardson implementing a full-court press to generate early pressure on Charlotte (5-12, 0-6 AAC). It worked well, forcing nine turnovers in the first quarter which led to easy opportunities on the offensive end.
Molina led the charge on the offensive end scoring eight points on 3-for-3 shooting with East scoring six and Gary chipping in with five. As a team, the Owls shot 65% from the field, jumping out to a 25-12 lead.
“Our goal was to put pressure and hopefully turn them over,” Richardson said, not wanting to take for granted a Charlotte team that had yet to win in league play. “They’re a good team that really causes pace, so we knew we needed to slow that down and probably discourage them from turning them over. And our defense stepped it up. We put some pressure on them. Our switches were great and we turned them over.”
While the first quarter showcased the offense in full swing, the second quarter was a story of defense for Temple. The Owls held the 49ers to 3 of 15 shooting, with Charlotte scoring more points on free-throws (eight), than points from field goals (seven).
Temple still shot efficiently, led by guard Tristen Taylor’s five points, with Molina and Kaylah Turner adding four apiece, and the Owls led by 44-27 at halftime.
Playing sharply coming out of the half has been a struggle for the Owls, however, and that continued Saturday. Charlotte used its own full-court press that gave Temple issues, as the 49ers outscored the Owls by 11-2 to start the third quarter. Seven of Temple’s 15 turnovers came in the third quarter.
Just when it seemed Temple was heading into a repeat of the past two games, the Owls went on a 14-2 run sparked by great ball movement, with six different players scoring during that run as Temple ended the third quarter leading 60-44.
“During practice, we work on [ball movement] all the time,” said Gary. “It’s not new to us. We know we have to go in with a specific game plan and the whole week throughout practice, we did different drills to share the ball.”
The fourth quarter saw the 49ers attempt to make a big comeback with guard Madison Roshelle scoring seven of her 17 points in the period, but it wasn’t enough, as Gary responded with six of her own, handing Charlotte its seventh-straight loss.
The Owls have now won three straight games, their longest win streak of the season, as they sit in second place in the AAC, tied with North Texas and behind 7-0 UTSA.
“Our thing is, we are striving to be at the top,” Richardson said. “Each game is each game and we have to focus on each game. And if we continue to work hard, follow our scout, I think we’ll be OK.”
Temple will travel to Greenville, North Carolina for its second matchup against ECU, this one coming Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Owls came out on top against the Pirates earlier this season, 63-58, behind 26 points from Gary.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Watch Saturday's postgame press conference here.
Front page photo by Grace Crosby
