Balanced Effort Lifts Women's Basketball Past St. Francis, 73-53

Tuesday, November 9

Philadelphia, PA

7:00 PM

Temple University

1-0,0-0AAC

St. Francis (PA)

0-1,0-0NEC

Saint Francis (PA)

Temple

Photo by: Zamani Feelings

Balanced Effort Lifts Women's Basketball Past St. Francis, 73-53

11.9.21 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Postgame Press Conference Game Book Photo Gallery

PHILADELPHIA - The Temple women's basketball team opened the 2021-22 season with a statement, topping St. Francis (Pa.) 73-53 at home Tuesday night.

How It Happened
> Temple's balanced attack led the way, with the Owls shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 66.7 percent at the charity stripe.
> The Owls forced 28 turnovers and limited what the Red Flash could do from three-point range.
> Temple opened the game on fire, entering the season with a bang after the modified 2020-21 season, and never stopped until the game was over.

Statistical Leaders
> Jiselle Thomas is the first player to score 20 points in a Temple debut since Mia Davis in 2017.
> 11 players scored points, with Thomas (20) and Davis (18) scoring in double-figures.
> Davis and Alexa Williamson led the team with three of Temple's 14 steals each.
> Both teams were even in rebounds with 29, and Jada Dapaa of St. Francis led both teams with five.

First Quarter: Temple 23, St. Francis (Pa.) 18
> Temple struck first, scoring on a fast break layup from Jalynn Holmes in her Cherry and White debut.
> Both teams traded the next few buckets, with neither team seeing more than three points of separation until SFU went up 11-6.
> The Owls took a 12-11 lead with a Mia Davis jumper and teams would go back and forth until the game was tied 16-16.
> TU took the largest lead at the end of the quarter with a layup and free throw from Tiarra East.

Second Quarter: Temple 40, St. Francis (Pa.) 30
> SFU got within one (28-27) with just under six minutes left in the half, draining four of five field goals.
> Temple widened the lead to 35-27 with a trey from Jiselle Thomas, going on a 7-0 run in 56 seconds.
> The Owls took their first double-digit lead of the half (40-29) on a layup from Kyra Wood with 2:30 left in the quarter.
> The Flash was held to a nearly four-minute scoring drought to close out the half, with the Temple defense forcing six turnovers in the last four minutes.

Third Quarter: Temple 59, St. Francis (Pa.) 45
> The Owls kept their foot on the gas coming out of halftime, leading by at least seven throughout the quarter.
> Back-to-back buckets from Jenna Mastellone and Emani Mayo put TU up 50-39 with just under five minutes left in the third quarter.
> An Aniya Gourdine layup and free throw gave Temple a 15-point lead (54-39) in her first collegiate points at the three-minute mark.
> The Cherry and White defense remained stout, allowing just one basket in the last five minutes of the frame.

Fourth Quarter: Temple 73, St. Francis (Pa.) 53
> Temple took a 16-point lead (63-47) with 8:22 left in the game.
> The Owls capped a 6-0 run with a bucket from Mia Davis to lead 73-53 with less than three minutes on the clock.
> Temple's defense closed out the game strong, holding the Red Flash to a scoring drought in the last five minutes and forcing four turnovers in the last six minutes.

Up Next
> The Owls will hit the road to face FGCU in Fort Myers, Fla. on Nov. 12 before returning to North Broad for a three-game home stand.