Women’s Basketball Drops a Road Game at Kent State, 71-62

Thursday, December 6

Kent, Ohio

7:00 PM

Temple University

5-3

Kent State

1-7

Temple

Kent State

Victoria Macaulay notched her fifth double-double of the season

Photo by: Mitchell Leff

Women’s Basketball Drops a Road Game at Kent State, 71-62

12.6.12 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

KENT, Ohio – What had become a trademark for Temple women's basketball, a strong second half, was not on display this time as the Owls (5-3) suffered a 71-62 loss at Kent State. Free-throw and three-point shooting made the difference as the Golden Flashes (1-7) got their first win of the season.

Temple held an 11-point lead early in the second half, but fouls and turnovers down the stretch were the Owls' undoing. The Flashes got 24 of their points at the free throw line, hitting 24-of-29. Temple also shot well but had far fewer opportunities, going 7-for-9. From behind the arc the Flashes were better than advertised, hitting five more three-pointers than they had previously averaged.

Trisha Krewson led Kent State with 18 points, and was one of four to reach double figures. She hit 4-of-6 from behind the arc.

Victoria Macaulay led all players with a double-double of 25 points and 13 rebounds. Tyonna Williams also scored in double figures for Temple with 14 points.

Temple struggled early and found itself in a 12-4 hole, but the Owls were able to climb out quickly. Five points from May Dayan and four for Williams were part of a 13-0 run over a three-minute stretch that gave Temple a 17-12 lead near the midway point of the first half.

The teams traded buckets for a few more minutes but it was all Macaulay for the Owls as she reached double figures with over nine minutes remaining in the half.

The defensive effort was not up to the usual standards for Temple as the Owls allowed Kent State to stay close, and then tie the game twice in the final three minutes.

After the final tie at 29-29 with two and a half minutes remaining, Williams hit 2-of-2 at the line to start a 6-0 closing run for Temple. She hit a jumper less than a minute later, and Macaulay ended the half with a fastbreak layup for a 35-29 lead.

Macaulay's 16 points and six boards led all players at halftime, and she reached the mark by hitting 8-of-11 from the field. Williams went 3-of-4 for eight first-half points.

With two quick buckets as part of an 8-3 run to open the second half, Macaulay reached the 20-point mark. Her second bucket gave the Owls an 11-point, 43-32 lead, but it would prove to be their largest of the game.

Kent State came into the game averaging just two three-pointers per contest, but in the first seven minutes of the second half they reached six total treys, hitting three in a row to narrow Temple's lead to 43-41 at 13:06.

Foul trouble and turnovers for the Owls helped the Flashes keep it close and ultimately take the lead. Temple had turned the ball over just five times in the first half, but committed eight more turnovers in the first 10 minutes of the second half. The Owls held onto a slim lead until Kent State's Tamzin Baroilhet hit 2-of-2 at the line with 6:41 remaining to tie the score at 50-50.

After a three-point play by Macaulay, the Flashes scored the next five for their first lead since the early going. Macaulay tied the game with a layup at 3:25, but after a pair of made free throws for Kent State, the Flashes did not relinquish the lead the rest of the way. They widened the margin to seven with just over a minute left, and Temple never got within fewer than five.

The Owls got a trey from Sally Kabengano and a layup from Meghan Roxas in the final minute to get within five at 67-62, but Kent State hit 4-of-4 at the line to seal the win.

Temple has a week off for final exams before heading to Auburn for a 2:00 p.m. game on Sunday, Dec. 16.