The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
TEMPLE at No. 5 UCONN
When: Saturday, 1 p.m.
Where: Gampel Pavilion, Storrs
Records: Temple (8-14, 4-5 AAC); UConn (20-2, 9-0 AAC)
TV: SNY/ESPN3
Radio: UConn/IMG Sports Network — 97.9 ESPN-Hartford, WINE 940 AM-Brookfield, WGCH 1490 AM-Greenwich, WICC 600 AM-Bridgeport, WAVZ 1300 AM-New Haven, WXLM 980 AM-New London, WATR 1320 AMWaterbury, WILI 1400 AM-Willimantic
KEEP AN EYE ON
⏩ THERE’S LOU: Katie Lou Samuelson snapped out of her funk by scoring 31 points in Wednesday’s 118-55 victory over ECU. It was her first 30-point game since Dec. 22, 2017, when she scored 33 in a victory over Duquesne, and the fifth of her career.
The question is, What will the senior do for an encore? “Lou was bound for a game like that,” guard Crystal Dangerfield said following Friday’s practice at Gampel Pavilion. “It was good to see because I know she’s been really frustrated in practice. That’s the player that we’re going to need her to be as we move forward in tournament play. She’s capable of doing it whenever she wants to.”
Samuelson followed up a three-game stretch where she shot 11-of-37 (4-of-20 from 3) by going 9-of-11 against ECU.
“I don’t know how she got in (her funk), but I’m sure she’s out of it now,” coach Geno Auriemma said. “It’s a long season. You go through a lot of ups and downs. Sometimes, you don’t know how you get into something and you don’t know how you get out of something.”
⏩ TOP OWLS: Alliya Butts and Mia Davis have formed one of the better one-two punches in the American Athletic Conference. The duo has accounted for nearly 54 percent (combined 34.9 points per game) of the Owls’ offense this season.
“They’ve got a couple kids that can score,” Auriemma said. “They’re quick, they shoot the ball well, and they get out in transition pretty well. They’re playing way better now than the last time we played them.”
Temple (8-14, 4-5) has won four of five since losing 88-67 at home to UConn on Jan. 20. Davis, a sophomore forward, was recently named AAC Player of the Week and leads the conference in scoring (19.4).
⏩ REMEMBERING KAY: UConn hosts its annual Play4Kay Pink Game honoring breast cancer survivors. The Huskies are holding an auction at www.uconnhuskies.com/PinkAuction. Proceeds will go to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, which is named in memory of the former NC State coach.