Women's Basketball Travel to No. 1 Connecticut on Saturday for Noon Game

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THIS WEEK
Temple continues its two-game road trip. The second game is against No. 1 Connecticut on Saturday, Jan. 11 at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn.

SNY and ESPN3.com will televise the game live at Noon with Eric Frede calling the action and Meg Culmo providing color analysis.

SCOUTING TEMPLE
The Owls, under sixth-year head coach Tonya Cardoza, stand 8-6 overall and 2-2 in American Athletic Conference play after a 64-51 loss at USF on Jan. 7.

After 14 games, freshman Feyonda Fitzgerald (Norfolk, Va.) is the Owls' leading scorer with 14.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Senior Natasha Thames (Port Huron, Mich.) follows with 13.4 ppg and a team-best 7.6 rpg. Senior Shi-Heria Shipp (Salisbury, N.C.) rounds out the double figures with 10.3 ppg and 7.2 rpg. Sophomore Erica Covile (Detroit, Mich.) adds 9,9 and 6.0 rpg. Junior Tyonna Williams (Fort Washington, Md.) also adds 9.7 points and a Conference-best .903 shooting from the free throw line.

NEW CONFERENCE, NEW TRADITIONS, NEW RIVALRIES
American Athletic Conference play is here!

This season, Temple women's basketball competes as a member of the American Athletic Conference after 30 seasons with the Atlantic 10 Conference. For the first time in school history, the majority of Temple's sports teams will compete in the same conference.

In the American opener, Temple captured a 63-56 win at Memphis on Dec. 29. In conference openers, Temple stands 17-14 overall (since 1983-84) and is currently riding a four-game winning streak.

SCOUTING UCONN
The No. 1 nationally ranked Huskies, under the guidance of 29th-year head coach Geno Auriemma, stand a perfect 16-0 overall and 4-0 in American play after a 90-40 win over Houston on Jan. 7.

Sophomore forward Breanna Stewart is the Huskies' top scorer with 18.4 ppg and 8.1 rpg. Senior center Stefanie Dolson follows with 13.7 ppg and a team-best 10.0 rpg.

SERIES VS. HUSKIES
Temple leads Connecticut in series action, 2-1, since the teams first met in 1981. Saturday's contest is their first in American Athletic Conference play.

The Owls won the first two games of the series, a 71-68 win at McGonigle Hall (1/16/81) and a 62-49 decision in Storrs (1/16/82).

TU's sole loss came during the NCAA?Second Round in Norfolk, Va., on March 23, 2010, as No. 8 seed Temple fell to No. 1 seed Connecticut, 90-39. The Huskies went on to win the national championship that season.

UCONN CONNECTIONS
Temple head coach Tonya Cardoza spent 14 seasons as an assistant coach at Connecticut under Geno Auriemma. During her tenure in Storrs, Cardoza was a part of five national championships. She worked primarily with the guards, producing numerous All-America performers, including WNBA?stars Sue Bird, Renee Montgomery, and Diana Taurasi.

Assistant coach Willnett Crockett is a 2006 Connecticut alumna. She helped the Huskies to two BIG EAST regular-season titles, two BIG EAST Tournament titles, and two National Championships. She was also a part of the Division I-record 70-game winning streak from 2001-03.

Director of Operations Stacey Nasser graduated from UConn in 2008. She served as the Huskies' manager for four seasons and followed Cardoza to Temple as a graduate extern in 2008 before being promoted to her current position in 2010.

Athletic communications' Cathy Bongiovi promoted Connecticut women's basketball in 1990-91 during the team's inaugural Final Four appearance.

VS. RANKED FOES
Temple stands 0-3 against nationally ranked teams so far this season. But the Owls have put up good fights.

TU fell at No. 23 Syracuse, 82-76, on Dec. 16. TU came back from an 18-point deficit to take a six-point lead in the second half, but ran out of gas in the game's final minutes.

Temple dropped a 74-70 decision to No. 21/18 Michigan State on Nov. 26. The Owls led by seven points in the second stanza, but MSU surged in the final 37 seconds of action.

The Owls hung with No. 7 Louisville on Jan. 1 through the first half of play. Trailing by 21 points in the second half, Temple made a come back but couldn't get closer than nine points in the 77-68 loss.

Since 1976, Temple has upset 12 teams ranked in the Top 25. The Owls' last upset came against No. 13 Xavier on Feb. 25, 2009, with a 74-65 victory at the Liacouras Center. TU?has faced the nation's No. 1 team six times and is still looking for an upset.

Temple has been nationally ranked twice in its history. Under head coach Dawn Staley, the Owls earned their first national ranking during the 2004-05 season and were ranked for eight weeks, reaching as high as No. 15 in both polls. The following season (2005-06), TU was ranked the entire season, reaching as high as No. 16.

UP NEXT
Temple returns home to Philadelphia on Tuesday, Jan. 14 to host SMU at Noon at the Liacouras Center in the annual "Shoot for Success" game with area school students in attendance.

Temple University Athletics

Women's Basketball Travel to No. 1 Connecticut on Saturday for Noon Game

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