Temple Women’s Basketball (1-2, 0-0 American Athletic Conference) slipped up and down the stretch, falling 66-54 to Saint John’s University (3-0, 0-0 Big East Conference) in Queens, New York on Wednesday night. The Owls shot 37.5 percent from the field and ended the game missing their final five attempts in the loss.
Following a layup from senior center Denise Solis at the five minute and 17 seconds mark, the Owls went scoreless for the remainder of regulation.
St. John’s went on an 11-0 run to close out the game, with seven of those points coming from senior guard Unique Drake. The Red Storm was very efficient in the final quarter of the game, shooting 8-of-15 from the field and forcing five turnovers. Those takeaways led to nine points for the Red Storm, en route to closing out the victory.
St. John’s movement in the paint led the Red Storm to outscore Temple 24-12 down low in the second half. One of the major contributors to the scoring attack was redshirt senior Rayven Peeples, leading the Red Storm with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Peeples also tied her career-high in rebounds with 17. Two more players finished in double figures for St. John’s as redshirt seniors Kadaja Bailey and Jayla Everett scored 14 and 12 points, respectively.
St. John’s was disciplined on the defensive end by not allowing the Owls many trips to the free-throw line. At halftime, the Owls had yet to attempt a free throw, but still led the game. Temple finished the day going 7-for-10 from the stripe while St. John’s shot 10-of-18.
While Temple struggled in the fourth quarter, there were a few Owls that stood out. Sophomore guard Tiarra East led the team with 15 points, shooting 6-of-15 from the field. Junior guard Tarriyonna Gary scored 11 points, most of which came from beyond the arc as she shot 3-of-6 from the three-point line. Senior guard Aleah Nelson tallied up 11 points but also dished out six assists and chased down six rebounds.
The Owls will look to get back on track on Nov. 20 as they begin Big 5 play against No. 24 Villanova University (2-0, 0-0 Big East Conference). Tip-off will be at 5 p.m. at The Liacouras Center.
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