Advertisement
Published Nov 26, 2024
Temple's second-half comeback falls short against Princeton
Jaison Nieves
OwlScoop.com Staff Reporter

The way Diane Richardon saw it, Princeton acted and Temple reacted.

It left the Owls trailing by as many as 18 points against the Tigers Tuesday evening before Temple nearly dug itself out of that hole, cutting the deficit to two with a minute remaining.

But poor shooting in the clutch cost the Owls in a 62-57 loss to the Tigers at the Liacouras Center.

Temple (3-3) was able to erase a 12-point deficit three days ago in a comeback win over Big 5 rival Drexel, but the reigning Ivy League champions denied the Owls this time.

“It’s a tough loss to look at because we played Temple basketball in the second half and unfortunately kind of set back in the first half,” Richardson said. “[Princeton] ran their stuff and we pretty much sat back. They’re a good team, but our scout was on point because obviously in the second half, we did what we needed to do.”

Alabama A&M transfer Kaylah Turner had her best game in Cherry and White, leading the Owls with 15 points. Tiarra East recovered from a slow start and scored 13 of her 14 points in the fourth quarter to give the Owls a chance late into the game.

Trailing by 10 at 59-49 with 2:46 left to play, Temple unwrapped an 8-0 run to get within two nearly two minutes later, and the Owls would have tied the game with that run had it not been for missed free throws from East and Anissa Rivera, who split their respective trips to the foul line during that stretch. Turner’s three made it a 59-57 ballgame with 1:09 to go, but that was as close as the Owls would get.

Princeton (5-2) looked in control from the opening tip, starting the game on a 12-3 run, with Tristen Taylor hitting the Owls’ lone bucket in the first five minutes. The Tigers spread the ball around, breaking down Temple’s defense and knocking down efficient shots to grab a 16-7 lead at the close of the first quarter.

Temple mixed things up defensively in the second quarter, pressing Princeton off of the inbound. But the momentum it created didn’t last long, as Princeton went on a 12-0 run to enter halftime with a 32-17 lead. During that run, the Owls shot 0-for-4 with three turnovers, while Princeton’s Tabitha Amanze dominated the paint with six of her 12 points.

“[At half] we knew we had to play tougher defense and we knew we had to hit shots,” Richardson said. “We’ve had some woes shooting the ball lately, but I know always our defense turns to offense. ”

The Owls found a burst of life out of the half with Taylor’s playmaking creating opportunities for the bench. Turner scored six points and freshman Kelian Cedano scored four as the Owls gained some momentum. But Princeton held strong and led 51-36 after three quarters.

Then East stepped up for Temple in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 of the Owls’ 21 points in the final period. But once the Owls got within a bucket after Turner’s three pointer, they shot 0-for-4 the rest of the way, and Princeton’s Skye Belker and Fadima Tall combined to go 3 of 4 from the line to put the game out of reach.

“I think it’s just a mindset thing at the end of the day for us,” Taylor, who scored nine points and dished out a team-high six assists, said. “We just have to do better at coming out in the first half and having the same mindset that we do in the second half and we won’t have games like this.”

Princeton was without its leading scorer in guard Madison St. Rose, but Ashley Chea stepped up in her place, scoring 17 points and hitting 3 of 4 shots from beyond the arc. Belker chipped in 14 points, while Amanze swiped a game-high 10 rebounds.

Temple will turn its attention to its second Big 5 matchup of the season when it plays at La Salle Sunday at 2 p.m. If the Owls win at the Explorers’ new John Glaser Arena, they will play in the championship game of the inaugural women’s Big 5 Classic Friday, Dec. 6 at Villanova’s Finneran Pavilion.

Watch Tuesday night's postgame press conference here.

Front page photo by Robin Hsiao, Temple Athletics.

info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings
info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings
Temple
2025Commitment List
Updated:
temple
FOOTBALL
Scores / Schedule
footballfootball
3 - 9
Overall Record
2 - 6
Conference Record
Finished
Temple
17
Temple
North Texas
24
Arrow
North Texas
UTSA
51
Arrow
UTSA
Temple
27
Temple
Temple
18
Arrow
Temple
Florida Atlantic
15
Florida Atlantic
recruiting
2025Team Rankings
recruiting Team Rankings