Temple University Athletics
#24/23 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL GETS BY LA SALLE, 66-64, IN OVERTIME
1.8.06 | Women's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA- According to Temple head coach Dawn Staley, Temple never plays well against La Salle. The Owls (10-3, 2-0 A-10) may have needed an overtime period to put away the Explorers (5-8, 2-1 A-10), 66-64, on Sunday afternoon, but one Owl did play well, senior All-America Candidate Candice Dupree. Dupree scored a season-high 29 points, to go along with six rebounds and team-highs of four assists, three blocks and four steals, and it was her three-point play with three seconds remaining in overtime that allowed Temple to win its 24th consecutive Atlantic 10 game. TU was able to secure itself at least a share of the Big 5 City Title. Temple is currently 3-0 in city play.
Though it looked as if the teams were neck and neck from the very first whistle, it was Dupree who allowed Temple to keep it close. The Owls' leading scorer was unstoppable, accounting for 13 of Temple's 19 points scored by the 15 minute mark. Temple took a slight lead in the opening minutes but a jumper by Carlene Hightower put La Salle back on top. After failing to score a basket for three minutes, five straight points by Kamesha Hairston tied the score at 11 with 11:30 remaining but lethargic play for the ensuing minutes allowed La Salle to regain the lead, an advantage that they would not relinquish for the rest of the half. Hightower answered with a five-point run of her own to open up a 25-19 score with three minutes remaining but the scrappy Owls refused to go away. Jennifer Owens sank a trey and Khadija Bowens drove the lane to make it 25-24 with just over two minutes to play. Tough play by Fatima Maddox down the stretch allowed Temple to stay just one point behind and take a 27-26 score into the locker room.
Second half play was just as tight as the first, with the first five minutes bringing two lead changes and a tie score. After a Bowens lay-up gave Temple a 37-35 advantage with 12:36 to play, the Owls seemed to suffer a setback, committing three fouls and a turnover in a span of 30 seconds. Luckily, the Explorers did not perform much better down that stretch and with just over nine minutes to play the score was tied yet again (40-40). Davineia Payne, who scored 13 second-half points, sparked a 7-0 Explorer run that gave La Salle a slight 47-40 cushion with 7:46 to go but Temple refused to back down and battled back to tie the score at 49 with four minutes to play. A jumper by Payne with 1:50 to go gave La Salle a 54-51 lead but Bowens, like she has so many times before, drove the lane for a lay-up to cut the lead to just one point (54-53) with 49 seconds remaining. Temple used its signature defense to gain stops on the next two Explorer possessions and a jumper by Dupree gave the Owls the lead for what looked to be the last time with 34 seconds remaining. La Salle had one more trick up its sleeve, however. The Explorers moved the ball down court and began to chip away at the clock. With five seconds remaining, Crista Ricketts was fouled by Owens and had an opportunity to win the game if she made both of her free throws. Luckily for the Owls, Ricketts made just one of two free throws to tie the score at 55, forcing an overtime period.
The overtime period continued to be tight, with no clear winner in sight. Oddly enough, the final minute of regulation seemed to repeat itself in the final minute of overtime, except this time, one team came out on top. Bowens' driving lay-up gave Temple a 63-61 edge with 47 seconds left but Ricketts hit a jumper with four seconds remaining to tie the score at 63 and is fouled by Dupree. Her extra point at the charity stripe puts her team on top 64-63 with little time to play. Temple has been in this situation before, however, and uses its signature inbounds play to earn the win. Lady Comfort sends the ball down the court to Dupree, who not only makes her lay-up, but also draws a foul from Ricketts. Always cool under pressure, Dupree sinks the extra point and allows Temple to eek out the 66-64 win.
Hairston and Bowens also saw double figures for Temple, contributing 13 and 10 points respectively. Hairston narrowly missed a double-double with nine rebounds and contributed three steals. The Owls, who had been averaging 17 turnovers per game, were able to take care of the ball today, committing just nine miscues, as opposed to La Salle's 14.
Payne led three Explorers in double figures with 21 points, while Hightower and Ricketts had 16 and 11, respectively.
Temple leaves Philadelphia for the first time in over a month, when it travels to Washington, D.C. for a rematch of the 2005 A-10 title game against George Washington on Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m.
