Jan. 31, 2013

There were two A-10 women's basketball games Thursday night with Temple and Saint Louis coming away with wins.

SAINT LOUIS 66, XAVIER 49

CINCINNATI -- Saint Louis women's basketball picked up a 66-49 decision over Atlantic 10 foe Xavier Thursday night at Cintas Center. With the loss XU fell to 6-14 overall and 0-6 in the A-10 while the Billikens improved to 9-12 and 3-3 in the conference.

Saint Louis's Desire Ball led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-11 from the field and 4-of-5 from behind the arc. As a team, the Billikens went 24-of-46 from the field for a 52.2 percent clip including a 61.5 percent mark from 3-point land.

SLU used an 11-6 run to take a 51-44 lead that was capped with a Billiken layup with 8:28 left to play in the second half.

Juniors Shatyra Hawkes and Ashley Wanninger led the Musketeers with 12 points each. Hawkes' dozen came on 5-of-11 from the field and 1-of-1 from the free-throw line while Wanninger went 5-of-9 from the field including 2-of-5 from behind the arc.

The Billikens continued their strong offensive showing as they out-scored XU 38-20 in the second half to come away with the win.

TEMPLE 61, RICHMOND 48

PHILADELPHIA – Four players scored in double figures for Temple women's basketball in a 61-48 win over Richmond (12-10, 2-4) in Atlantic 10 action on Thursday night at McGonigle Hall. Tyonna Williams scored a game-high 17 points while dishing a game-high six assists to lead the Owls (9-11, 2-3).

Temple got 12 points apiece from Sally Kabengano, Victoria Macaulay and Rateska Brown. Macaulay and Kabengano added nine rebounds apiece, while Macaulay also blocked four shots. Brown hit 4-of-8 from behind the arc and Williams hit 3-of-5 treys and 4-of-4 at the line.

Becca Wann led the Spiders with 15 points off the bench, while Kristina King recorded a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds. Richmond nearly did not hit a three-pointer for the first time all season, but Rachael Bilney drained one with three seconds remaining as Richmond finished 1-for-15 from behind the arc. The Spiders fared much better at the free throw line, going a perfect 17-for-17.

The Owls got off to a hot start, forcing five Richmond turnovers in the first eight possessions. Six of Temple's early points came off turnovers as the Owls jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the first five minutes. Temple held the Spiders without a field goal for over five minutes to start the game, and the Owls had their first double-digit lead at 13:21 after a three-pointer by Brown made it 15-4.