Game #12: Akron Zips (6-5) vs. Temple Owls (9-2)Rhodes Arena • Akron, Ohio Mon., Dec. 28, 2009 • 7 p.m. (EST)
On the Radio
Monday's game will be broadcast live locally on 1350 AM (WARF). UA play-by-play veteran Bill Morgan will have the call.
On the Web
Fans can listen on-line on www.GoZips.com as part of the Zips Zone subscription package.
Series Breakdown
Series: First meeting
UA Series Streak: n/a
Notes: The Zips and Owls will be meeting for the first time Monday ... Akron is 10-21 all-time versus schools from the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Coaches
• Jodi Kest (Slippery Rock, '84) is in her fourth season at Akron and 18th season overall as a head coach. She is 34-66 (.340) in 100 games at UA and 260-219 (.543) in 479 games for her career. She led the Zips to an 11-19 record, Including a 6-10 mark in MAC play, last winter.
• Tonya Cardoza (Virginia, ‘91) is in her second season at Temple Where she has a career record of 30-12 (.714) with the Owls. Cardoza led TU to a 21-10 record, including a 11-3 mark in the Atlantic 10 last winter.
The Opening Tip
The University of Akron women's basketball team will close out the caladar year Monday night when it hosts Temple at 7 p.m. (EST).
The Last Time Out
The Zips saw their four-game win streak come to an end after a 71-60 defeat at Niagara in their last game on Dec. 20 at the Gallagher Center.
Sophomore Kyle Baumgartner and freshman Rachel Tecca each recorded double-doubles in UA's first defeati n nearly a month. Baumgartner paced the Zips with 17 points and 12 rebounds while Tecca chipped in with 11 and 13. It was fifth double-double of Baumgartner's career while Tecca accomplished the feat for the second time in three games.
Akron had no answer for Niagara's Liz Flooks, who led all scorers with 27 points - on 11-for-14 shooting, including 5-for-6 from 3-point range.
Flooks sparked a hot-shooting Niagara squad that connected on 45.5 percent (25-for-55) of its attempts from the floor and 56.3 percent (9-for-16) from 3-point range. Conversely, UA shot 31.6 percent (24-for-76) from the field and 11.5 percent (3-for-26) from long range.
About The Owls
Temple (9-2), an NCAA Tournament participant a season ago, enters the game boasting a 9-2 record on the season, including an impressive 62-51 victory over nationall-ranked Rutgers on Dec. 2.
The Owls are coming off just their second loss of the year however, a 44-32 defeat at home to Villanova. Among TU's nine victories, four have come against MAC opponents, Eastern Michigan (64-46), Buffalo (65-55), Ohio (65-43) and Kent State (68-63).
Temple has won its last three games on the road and is 5-1 overall. The Owls are led offensively by Shaqwedia Wallace (13.9 ppg) and Kristen McCarthy (11.1 ppg) and are averaging 61.5 points per game while holding their opponents to an average of 53.3.
Temple, which received eight votes for the WBCA Top 25 this week, was picked to finish fifth in the competitive 14-team Atlantic 10 Conference in a preseason poll of its coaches.
Offensive Surge
In addition to their four-game win streak, the Zips have won five of their last six contests. During that stretch, UA is averaging 70.7 points per game while posting +4.8 rebounding and +5.3 turnover margins. Kara Murphy (16.5 ppg, 5.8 rpg), Kyle Baumgartner (11.3, 6.0) and Rachel Tecca (11.2, 6.7) have been key contributors for Akron during that time.
Home Cookin'
The Zips will put their perfect 4-0 record at Rhodes Arena on the line Monday. Akron has defeated four opponents by an average of 13.3 points thus far on its home floor where it is shooting 41.3 percent from the field - nearly three points better than its mark on the road (38.4). A trio of UA players are averaging double-figures in scoring at Rhodes Arena this season, Kara Murphy (17.8 ppg), Rachel Tecca (12.5) and Kyle Baumgartner (11.5).
Dating back to last season, Akron - which recorded the second-highest home win total in program history (8) in 2008-09 - is 7-1 in its last eight games on its home floor.
Tecca continues to Impress
Speaking of Tecca, the true freshman enters play after having recorded two double-doubles in her last three games. The native of Tallmadge, Ohio, posted 20 points and 18 rebounds in her last home game (vs. Lake Erie College) on Dec. 5 and netted 11 points to go along wtih 13 rebounds at Niagara on Dec. 20.
Her 18 rebounds against the Storm was the 12th-highest single-game total in school history.
Furthermore, she shot 52.9 percent from the floor (9-for-17) and also recorded an assist, a block and three steals in the 25-point victory. Seven of her 18 rebounds came off the offensive glass.
She has now reached double digits in scoring in five of her last seven games and enters Monday's game ranked highly among her peers in the MAC, including scoring (28th), rebounding (11th), field goal percentage (10th) and offensive rebounds (7th).
Record Watch
Following her 11-point effort at Niagara, junior Kara Murphy moved into fourth place on the school's all-time scoring list. With 1,196 career points, the all-conference first-teamer now trails Casey O'Connor, who scored 1,228 points in 106 games from 1979-83, by 32 points for third place on the prestigious list. Murphy, who began the season ranked 10th all-time, has led the Zips in scoring six times in 11 games this season and 41 times in 72 games (56.9 percent) for her career.
Cheryl Bowles is the school's all-time scoring leader with 1,712 points in 115 games from 1997-01.
Zips Notebook
• UA was defeated in its last game at Niagara (Dec. 20) despite out-rebounding the Purple Eagles by 20, 53-33.
After being out-rebounded in their first four games of the season, the Zips have won the battle of the boards in their last four contests and six times in their last seven games overall.
• UA officially earned its first victory on the road Thursday night at Chicago State. The Zips' only other victory away from Rhodes Arena came in a 79-43 rout of Rider in Ft. Myers, Fla., which was technically on a neutral court.
• Murphy enters Monday's game ranked highly in the MAC in a number of categories, including scoring (9th, rebounding (19th) and minutes played (4th).
• Senior guard Ayla Guzzardo matched the ninth-highest, single-game assist total in school history with nine helpers against Lake Erie College on Dec. 14. Lori Anderson (vs. Ashland, 1981) and Abby Hoy (vs. Bowling Green, 1998) share the school record with 12.
Guzzardo has led the Zips in assists eight times in 11 games this season.
• UA set season highs for points (79), field goal percentage (.459), 3-pointers (10), assists (21) and steals (13) in its 79-43 win against Rider on Nov. 27.
Courtesy: Scott Horstman
