Temple University Athletics
Temple University
Saint Joseph's
Women’s Basketball to Travel Across Town to Battle Saint Joseph’s
11.22.22 | Women's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA – The Temple women's basketball team (1-3, 0-0 AAC) will face its second straight Big 5 rival tomorrow as the Owls' travel to Hawk Hill to face Saint Joseph's (4-0, 0-0 A-10). The 5 p.m. matchup will be broadcasted on NBC Sports Philadelphia and streamed on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT: No. 24 Villanova 74, @ Temple 71
> The Owls suffered a heartbreaking defeat to No. 24 Villanova at Liacouras Center.
> The game featured 18 lead changes and 10 ties. The Cherry & White had the ball with a chance to tie with as little as three second remaining on the clock but fell just short on the final possession.
> Tarriyonna Gary had the best performance of her collegiate career. The guard racked up a career-high 23 points while shooting 8-10 from the field and 7-9 from beyond the arc. Her seven threes tie for third all-time in Temple single-game history, her 77% from deep is the best shooting performance of any Owl (>5 threes attempted) since the 2014-15 season.
THE OWLS
> Aleah Nelson leads Temple in scoring this season with 14.8 points per game. She is 11th in the American Athletic Conference in scoring and ranks second in the league in assists per game (6.0).
> Following a breakout week on the court, Gary was named to the Big 5 Weekly Honor Roll. Over the course of her two games last week, she shot 10-15 from beyond the arc and averaged 17 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
> Tiarra East has continued her strong sophomore campaign. East is second on the team in points per contest (12.0) and ranks tenth in the AAC in rebounds (7.0). She also leads the squad in steals with 1.3 per game.
SCOUTING SAINT JOSEPH'S
> Saint Joseph's earned a 13-17 record last season; it was the Hawks' fourth straight losing campaign. After winning a season-opening matchup against Maryland Eastern Shore, the Hawks dropped six straight games to kick-off the season 1-6. Despite the slow start, the team advanced to the A-10 tournament semifinals.
> 2022-23 is off the program's best start in years. The Hawks currently sit at 4-0, with their most recent win coming at Vanderbilt Sunday, 67-59. Prior to taking down the Commodores, St. Joe's defeated Big 5 rival Penn, 57-50.
> Freshman forward Laura Ziegler has impressed this season. The Denmark native has scored in double figures in three of Saint Joseph's four games and is averaging 8.0 boards per contest. She has won Atlantic-10 Rookie of the Week in each of the first two weeks of the season.
> Cindy Griffin is in her 22nd season as the bench boss of Saint Joseph's. During her time on Hawk Hill, Griffin has led the Hawks to the NCAA Tournament two times and the WNIT ten times. She has earned a record of 354-294 during her time at St. Joe's.
SERIES HISTORY
> Temple and Saint Joseph's met at Temple last season, with the Hawks taking the win by a score of 73-63.
> Saint Joseph's holds a 45-37 lead in the all-time series with the Owls. The two shared a conference in the Atlantic-10 from 1982-2013.
> The two sides have a history of close matchups. Of the 11 overtime games in the history of the women's Big 5, five have been between Temple and SJU.
UP NEXT
> Temple hits the road again for another local rival in Bucknell. The game tips-off at 4 p.m. on Sunday streaming on ESPN+.
