Quick Turnaround Sees Women's Basketball Play Rutgers Tomorrow

PHILADELPHIA -- With only one day of rest after an upset win over #17/16 DePaul at home on Thursday night, the Temple women's basketball team heads to Rutgers for a 2:00 p.m. Saturday contest. The 6-3 Owls are looking to snap a six-game losing streak to the Scarlet Knights (3-9). BTN Plus will stream the game online, while Temple's own OwlsTV will provide a free audio stream from the RAC.

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SCOUTING TEMPLE
Temple has won two-straight to move to 6-3 on the season, most recently upsetting #17/16 DePaul 84-74 at home on Thursday night.

Four players average in double-figures in scoring, topped by senior Feyonda Fitzgerald, who is averaging 19.6 points, 6.1 assists, and 4.4 rebounds per game. Junior Alliya Butts averages 17.7 points per game with a team-best 21 steals, while junior Donnaizha Fountain averages 12.6 points and 9.4 rebounds per contest. Junior Tanaya Atkinson contributes 14.0 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, making her return to the court after missing two games due to injury.

Junior Khadijah Berger averages 5.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game, while senior Ruth Sherrill averaged 4.3 points and 5.6 boards per game. Sherrill made her first career start at Villanova, and has recorded three-straight 10+ rebound games. Senior Safiya Martin (2.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg) has started all nine games and leads the Owls with 11 blocks on the season.

As a team, the Owls average 74.0 points per game, shooting 38.7% from the field and 34.5% from long-range. Temple has out-rebounded opponents by a 5.2 margin, while forcing an average of 16.1 turnovers per game.

LAST TIME OUT
Temple upset #17/16 DePaul 84-74 at McGonigle Hall on Thursday night. The Owls drained a season-best 11 threes, shooting 44% (11-25) from long-range, holding the Blue Demons to just 12% (3-25) from deep.

Three players finished in double figures as senior Feyonda Fitzgerald paved the way with 25 points, three assists, and four rebounds. Juniors Alliya Butts and Donnaizha Fountain joined Fitzgerald in double figures on the night, as Butts scored 20 points with six assists, and Fountain added a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds with five assists.

As a team, Temple out-rebounded DePaul 51-37. Seniors Ruth Sherrill (11 rebounds) and Safiya Martin (eight rebounds) helped lead the Owl effort on the glass, with Sherrill also adding eight points.

Juniors Khadijah Berger added nine points, two assists, and two rebounds, while classmate Tanaya Atkinson added seven points and eight rebounds. Atkinson played 30 minutes in her first game back from injury.

SCOUTING RUTGERS
Rutgers is 3-9 on the season, most recently recording a 53-45 win at home against Seton Hall.

All five Scarlet Knights starters average 6.8 points or better, led by Kandiss Barber with 9.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Shrita Parker averages 9.0 points per game, while Khadaizha Sanders adds 8.4 points and a team-high 4.6 assists per game. Aliyah Jeune chips in with 7.0 points per game, while Desiree Keeling adds 6.8 points and a team-best 6.8 rebounds a contest.

Rutgers is shooting 34.8% from the field and just 24.0% from three-point range. The Scarlet Knights score 49.7 points per game, allowing 60.1.

LAST TIME OUT
Rutgers used strong second-half defense to top visiting Seton Hall, 53-45 on Tuesday. The win was the 900th in program history for the Scarlet Knights.

Trailing by 11 points at the half, Rutgers out-scored Seton Hall, 20-8 in the third quarter, and 15-8 in the fourth to grab the victory. Khadaizha Sanders posted career-highs with 17 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds for a near triple-double, while Aliyah Jeune added in a career-best with a team-high 18 points.

THE OWLS VS. THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers has a commanding lead in the all-time series with Temple, winning 39 of the squads' 50 meetings, including six in a row.

The Owls and the Scarlet Knights were conference foes in both the Atlantic-10 and American Athletic Conference, before Rutgers moved to the Big Ten at the start of the 2014-15 season.

Game Notes (PDF)

Quick Turnaround Sees Women's Basketball Play Rutgers Tomorrow

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Players Mentioned

Tanaya Atkinson

Khadijah Berger

Alliya Butts

Feyonda Fitzgerald

Donnaizha Fountain

Safiya Martin

Ruth Sherrill

Temple University Athletics