By Abbey Gotham
CINCINNATI, OH — Tuesday night featured the Atlantic women’s matchup of the Xavier Musketeers and the Temple Owls. Xavier opened up the game by winning the tip, but the Owls stole the ball and took control of the game.
Kristen McCarthy and Shey Peddy combined for 37 points as Temple defeated Xavier 64-38 in A-10 action at the Cintas Center.
Temple went on a run and scored six more points before the Musketeers could finish any shots. Of those eight points, four came from senior McCarthy.
Xavier started their scoring with Tyeasha Moss, who made a three from the left side. Throughout the half, the Musketeers were only able to come within three of Temple’s lead which got as large as 13.
Turnovers proved to play a large part in the game with Temple scoring 17 points off of Xavier miscues. X could only come up with four points off Temple turnovers. Between Moss and Shatyra Hawkes, there were nine turnovers with a team total of 15 in the half by comparison to Temple’s eight. The first half ended with a score of 27-19, with Xavier out-rebounding Temple 14-13.
The second half opened with more Temple scoring. McCarthy scoring seven straight points a few minutes in.
Around the ten minute mark, Xavier forward Jessica Pachko made a pull-up jumper around the free throw line and had a steal in the following possession, which gave Moss an opportunity for a layup. This combination gave Xavier a sense of momentum, and they held Temple scoreless for almost two and a half minutes.
From there, Temple pulled away and scored 20 more points to Xavier’s seven. In the last seven minutes, Peddy scored nine points and finished with 19. Kristen McCarthy added 12 second half points, finishing the game with 18.
Pachko led Xavier with 12 points and Tyeasha Moss added 10 points and 4 assists. Xavier out-rebounded Temple 31-30, but the deciding factor in tonight’s game was Xavier’s 26 turnovers and Temple’s ability to score 34 points off them.
On Xavier’s issue tonight with turnovers, Coach Amy Waugh commented that Temple did play good defense, but the Musketeers have had problems all season valuing the ball. Moss and Hawkes combined for 15 turnovers, while Temple as a team finished with 13.
Another problem the Owls gave Xavier was their ability to go 60% from behind the arc, four coming from Shey Peddy. Waugh expected them to do well from three-point range, but was disappointed that they were allowed to get comfortable, which we can see in their 18 points coming from behind the arc.
Xavier player to watch: Sophomore guard Ashley Wanninger. At 5’10″, she is very versatile and gets the job done on the court. Anticipates the ball very well and is very good with help defense. On Wanninger, Coach Waugh commented that she is constantly defending the opposition’s best players, is expected to handle the ball more than she is used to while trying to score. Wanninger comes through and does all the little things that a team needs whether it is hitting a clutch shot or defending a team’s best player.
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