Temple wants a little get-back in this year’s AAC women’s tourney. Here’s how they do it.
The feeling of an early exit last season has fueled the Owls. They want redemption, and proof to themselves that they can win the tournament
When the final buzzer sounded in Dickies Arena last March, capping Temple’s loss to Rice as the No. 3 seed and the highest-rated remaining team, the Owls lost a shot to win the tournament and head to the NCAA women’s tournament for the first time since the 2017 season.
This year, the Owls have been fueled by that losing feeling. They want redemption, and to prove to themselves that they can capture the AAC tournament title.
“Honestly, we’ve been waiting for this moment since the day the buzzer went off last year,” Temple guard Tiarra East said after defeating Rice in a regular season clash on Feb. 28.
This year, the Owls return to Fort Worth, Texas, as the No. 4 seed after finishing 19-10 on the season and closing the year 13-5 in conference, including a season-high six-game winning streak in AAC play.
Next up, the AAC quarterfinals, with Temple playing No. 12 Charlotte, a 71-66 winner over Tulsa on Sunday. Here are three keys that will determine whether they emerge victorious in tournament play.
Commanding the glass
Temple fell to South Florida on Feb. 8 at the Liacouras Center, dropping a fourth game in five tries for its worst stretch of the season. Following the loss, head coach Diane Richardson said they needed to rebound better to have success this season.
Since that moment, rebounding has been one of the Owls' strengths and was key in Temple winning its final six games. Temple outrebounded five of its final six opponents and tied Rice in rebounds with 36 apiece.
“We’ve been concentrating on [rebounding],” Richardson said. “Our losses that we had, had a lot to do with rebounding, or the lack thereof. Our staff has really put in a lot of work on rebounding and boxing out every day in practice to pair that with our defense.”
Defense wins championships
Defense has become a staple of Temple’s play since Richardson arrived on North Broad back in 2022. The Owls pride themselves on turning defense into offense, forcing turnovers and scoring in transition.
It’s something that has worked exceptionally well for Temple this season, sitting at the top of the AAC in turnover margin at plus 3.48 and forcing over 19 turnovers per game. Temple also sits at sixth in the conference in points allowed per game at just over 63 points.
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“If we can stop them from scoring, that helps us,” said Richardson. “Our defense really then turns into our offense, because we get hyped up when we get turnovers on defense. It’s just that feeling when you’re doing well defensively, you have your confidence offensively.”
Defense is what helped the Owls land the fourth seed and a double-bye in the AAC tournament, but they will have to stay persistent on that end of the floor to hoist the conference trophy
Stars have to show out
Last season in the Owls’ loss to Rice in the semifinals, East and Tarriyonna Gary struggled. Theycombined to shoot just 5-of-21. If the Owls want to make a run in the tournament, they will need those two.
East and Gary have both been pivotal to the Owls’ success and were selected as first-team All-AAC recipients for their efforts.
East averaged a team-high 14.3 points, while Gary averaged 12.2 points. Gary was lethal from three-point range at 46.7% in conference play.
And while East and Garyhad strong years, they also had dry spells and struggles, which was a major factor in Temple’s tough stretch in the middle of the season.
If the Owls want to come out on top when this year’s final buzzer sounds, their stars need to perform under the bright lights.
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