Women's Basketball Travels to Two-Time Defending NCAA Champion UConn

Wednesday, January 14

Storrs, Conn.

7:00 p.m.

Temple University

UConn

Junior Erica Covile averages a team-best 9.1 rebounds per game

Photo by: Joseph V. Labolito/Temple University

Women's Basketball Travels to Two-Time Defending NCAA Champion UConn

1.13.15 | Women's Basketball

PHILADELPHIA -- The Temple women's basketball has a tall order on Wednesday, heading to two-time defending NCAA Champion, UConn, for a 7 p.m. American Athletic Conference match-up. The Owls (7-10, 3-1 American) will be looking to upset the Huskies (14-1, 4-0 American), who are ranked No. 2 in both the AP and USA Today national polls.

Temple has dropped two straight, including Sunday's 70-58 American Athletic Conference match-up against USF, a team receiving votes in the latest national poll. In that game, the Owls couldn't keep pace with USF, who shot over 50% from the field, to move to 4-0 in the conference, 13-3 overall. The loss snapped Temple's three-game conference win streak, and saw Temple dip to 7-10, 3-1 in the American.

Freshman Alliya Butts had a career-day, recording 24 points, including knocking down 5-8 from three-point range. Sophomore Feyonda Fitzgerald also had good day from the field, picking up 17 points. Freshman Tanaya Atkinson had seven points and four boards, while junior Erica Covile pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. Rounding out the Temple action, junior Mama Traore had five points and five boards.

For the season, four players are averaging in double-figures for the cherry and white, who score 65.8 points per game. Fitzgerald leads the group with 12.5 points per game, while tallying 2.8 assists per contest. Atkinson is second on Temple in both scoring (11.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.1 rpg), while Erica Covile averages 10.7 points and a team-best 9.4 boards per game. Butts chips in with 10.6 points and a team-high 2.1 steals per game, while senior Tyonna Williams averages 9.4 points and a team-best 3.1 assists per game.

Temple shoots 35.4% from the field and 32.5% from three-point range, while connecting on nearly 70% of its free throws. The Owls are on averaging, out-rebounding their opponents, but are being out-scored, 66.1 to 65.8 on the season.

Two-time defending NCAA Champion UConn is 14-1 overall and 4-0 in American Athletic Conference play. The Huskies have won 13-straight since a mid-November loss to then No. 6 Notre Dame. UConn, ranked as the No. 2 team in the latest AP/USA Today polls, is coming off a rout of SMU, winning 87-28 on the road on Sunday night. Senior Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis broke Diana Taurasi's UConn career record for 3-pointers, hitting the record-breaking shot from the top of the 3-point circle just 3:18 into the game. No UConn starter played more than 25 minutes, as junior Breanna Stewart led the Huskies with 19 points, while freshman Gabby Lewis notched a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.

For the season, five players average in double-figures for the high-scoring Huskies, led by Stewart's 16.7 points per game. She also averages 7.3 rebounds per outing and is second on the team with 31 total blocks. Sophomore Morgan Tuck scores 14.1 points per game, while Mosqueda-Lewis averages 13.4. Freshman Kia Nurse (12.8 ppg) and junior Moriah Jefferson (12.3) round out the double-digit scorers, with Jefferson contributing a team-best 5.0 assists per contest. Senior Kiah Stokes contributes off the bench for UConn, leading the team with 7.9 rebounds per game and 59 total blocks.

UConn scores a conference-best 88.8 points per game, second nationally to only DePaul's 90.0, while holding opponents under 52 points per game. The Huskies are shooting a conference and national-best 53.3% from the field, and out-rebound opponents by over 10 boards per game.

Temple is 2-3 all-time against UConn, with the Owls dropping the last three meetings between the programs. The Owls won the first two match-ups, winning in 1981 and 1982. After those meetings, the teams didn't play again until the 2010 NCAA tournament, where UConn topped Temple, 9-36. UConn also took both meetings in 2014, sweeping the American Athletic Conference regular-season match-ups.

Game Notes (PDF) | Watch Live on ESPN3 (Outside New York-Connecticut) | Live Stats