The last time Temple Women’s Basketball made it to the tournament, Barack Obama was still in his first term as President, Lebron James had yet to win his first NBA title, and Temple was still in the A10 conference.
The year was 2011, and since then the Owls have appeared in the NIT tournament three times including a deep tournament run last year which ended in the quarter finals, losing to Michigan.
This year, hopes and expectations are high for Temple. The Owls are returning nine letter winners, four starters, and all four of their lead scorers from last season.
The Owls will be lead by their Head Coach and former UConn assistant Tonya Cardoza who will be coaching in her 9th year for the Owls.
Cardoza looks to end the tournament drought and finally play in the National Tournament.
“Definitely the next step is to make it to the NCAA tournament” said Cardoza.
The Owls are coming in to the season with many different scoring options as well. In fact, last year the Owls managed to produce four players who averaged over 10 points per game. All four of those players will be returning this season.
One of the main key players returning is Senior Guard Feyonda Fitzgerald, who averaged around 13 points and 5 assist per game.
Fitzgerald, who is a captain of the team, has expressed her high hopes for a tournament bid and looks to lead an offense that ranked third in the conference last year.
“I think we have a lot of key weapons, and offensively we can be a great team” said Fitzgerald. “I think we can make it to the NCAA tournament, because I really want to get there, and I’ve yet to be there since I’ve got here.”
Another key piece for the Owls is Junior Guard Alliya Butts who was the only unanimous all AAC selection last year. Butts also lead the Owls in scoring by averaging over 15 points per game.
Though the Owls have declared expectations for making the NCAA tournament, they still will need to account for the #1 team in the country, UConn, who just so happens to be in the same conference as Temple. The Owls will play the UConn Huskies twice this year including a Feb. 1 matchup at the Liacouras Center.
The Owls will kick off the season Friday against Saint Joes at 7pm.
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