Diane Richardson turns to Temple’s bench but finds little production in loss to George Mason
The Owls' reserves logged more minutes compared to last season, but couldn’t match the starters' level of production, with three starters finishing in double figures.
Temple opened its women’s basketball season similarly to how it closed 2025-26.
The Owls lacked depth and defense last season, and they didn’t make much progress at George Mason on Monday night. Temple crumbled to the Patriots in the second half, when they went on a 22-0 run to seal the Owls’ 91-71 loss..
Guard Kaylah Turner led Temple with a team-high 21 points, but the same problems coach Diane Richardson saw last season persisted.
Next, Temple will host Navy in its home opener on Nov. 7 (2 p.m., ESPN+).
A short rotation
Richardson attributed last year’s shortcomings to a lack of depth. Progress was made Monday night, but not nearly as much.
The Owls’ bench scored 15 points to the Patriots’ 27. Richardson made it a point to give the reserves more minutes. Four of them logged more than 10 minutes. Though, production from the bench didn’t follow, as the second-stringers shot just 25%.
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Transfer guard Taliyah Logwood showed promise. She scored eight of her nine points in the third quarter.
It still wasn’t enough. Temple’s only double-digit scorers were starters, including Turner, Tristen Taylor (12), and Saniyah Craig (10).
Troubles on the glass
The Owls showcased their full-court defense that Richardson emphasized over the offseason. Directly under the basket, however, they faltered.
Temple conceded 18 offensive rebounds that led to 21 second-chance points. Four of those boards came in the first five minutes. When shots went up, the Owls lost their assignments and let George Mason sneak to the baseline and grab rebounds.
The Patriots shot 54.2% on two-pointers and scored 34 points in the paint. In the fourth quarter, George Mason scored nine points off of second chances, while Temple tallied zero.
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But Temple’s kryptonite was its lack of tendency to grab rebounds.
Threes, threes, and more threes
After going 1-for-6 in three-pointers in the first period, George Mason shot 5-for-8 in the second to finish with 11 threes total.
Patriots guard Mary Amoateng, who finished with 21 points, made the difference. She went 4-for-7 in three-pointers and led her team to a 22-0 second-quarter run.
