Women's Basketball Tops Villanova in Big 5 Action

Tuesday, December 10

Philadelphia, Pa.

5:00 PM

Temple University

6-5,0-1AAC

Villanova

4-5,0-0Big East

Villanova

Temple

Photo by: Zamani Feelings

Women's Basketball Tops Villanova in Big 5 Action

12.10.19 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

PHILADELPHIA — The Temple women's basketball team held off a furious fourth quarter Villanova rally to pick up a 74-69 win over the Wildcats in Philadelphia Big 5 action on Tuesday night at McGonigle Hall. The win pushes Temple to 6-5 overall (1-1 Big 5), while Villanova falls to 4-5 (1-1 Big 5).

Keys to the Game
> After a tight first quarter, Temple took over in the second and third and led by nearly 18 points.
> Villanova rallied to cut the deficit to just one point late in the fourth quarter, but Temple got timely baskets and was perfect from the line in the final frame to seal the win.
> Temple out-shot the Wildcats, 41.7% to 37.7%, including going 9-17 from three point range (52.9%).
> The Owls also held a huge lead on the glass, out-rebounding Villanova, 47-34.

Individual Highlights
> Freshman Asonah Alexander tallied her second career double-double, with a stacked stat line of 19 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists.
> Junior Mia Davis also notched a double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds.
> Sophomore Marissa Mackins had 15 points with seven assists, while graduate student Lena Niang also finished in double figures in scoring, adding 14 points and seven boards.
> Rounding out the box score, sophomore Alexa Williamson had eight points while senior Shannen Atkinson had six rebounds.

First Quarter
> An action packed first frame saw both teams take leads before settling on a 22-22 tie after 10 minutes of play.
> Villanova struck first, opening on a 9-5 run. Temple answered with a 13-5 spurt, as Mackins struck for nine points to give Temple an 18-14 advantage.
> The Wildcats went on to score eight unanswered points to lead by four with under two to play, but Temple closed the quarter with four straight to knot things up once again.

Second Quarter
> The teams traded blows to start the second quarter before Temple created separation.
> The Owls got threes from Alexander and Niang to open with a 28-22 advantage. Villanova countered with a 7-2 run to close the gap to 30-29.
> From there, Temple got hot, closing the half with a 14-4 run to put the Cherry and White up by 11, 44-33, at the break.

Third Quarter
> Villanova got two back after the third quarter, outscoring the Owls 18-16 in the frame.
> Temple appeared to be putting the game out of reach, opening with a 12-5 run that pushed the lead to 18 points (56-38) with five to play.
> However, the Wildcats got hot from three following the Temple surge, closing the frame on a 13-4 run to narrow the gap to 60-51.

Fourth Quarter
> An offensive minded game turned defensive early in the fourth as the teams combined for just eight points in the first five minutes.
> Temple pushed the lead back to 11 after a pair of Alexander free throws at the 6:31 mark, but Villanova answered with seven straight to get the lead down to 64-60.
> The Owls broke a long scoring drought with an Alexander drive to the basket, but Villanova hit a three to make it 66-63 with just over two minutes to play.
> Temple pushed the lead back up to seven, but Villanova again rallied, cutting it to 70-69 with under 20 seconds remaining.
> A pair of Mackins free throws made it 72-69, but Villanova was fouled with six seconds on the clock. However, the Wildcats came away from the line with no points, allowing the Owls to seal the win with another set of Mackins free throws.

Up Next
> Temple will break for final exams and hit the court again on Sunday, December 22. The Owls will square off against Florida Gulf Coast at McGonigle Hall at noon.