Dazzling Debut

Senior center Lady Comfort had 16 points and eight rebounds and senior point guard Ashley Morris had 15 points, eight assists, and no turnovers as the Temple women’s basketball team opened the 2007-08 campaign with an 83-45 romp over Central Michigan on Monday night at The Liacouras Center.

Against the only “easy” opponent on a murderous November schedule, the Owls got a significant contribution from three members of what Coach Dawn Staley called her “deepest” recruiting class.

Freshman guard Lindsay Kimmel drilled 4 of 10 three-pointers and finished with 14 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes. Junior forward Shanea Cotton had nine points and 12 rebounds in 17 minutes. Freshman guard Shaqwedia Wallace added nine points and five assists.

While those three put up big numbers, freshman forward Marli Bennett was the only rookie in the starting lineup. Bennett had two points, two rebounds, and two blocked shots in 18 minutes.

Leading 20-15 towards the end of the first half, the Owls took control of the game with an 18-5 run, earning a 38-20 halftime lead. They absolutely crushed the Chippewas in the paint, earning a 51-21 rebounding advantage. Temple shot 55 percent from the floor and held CMU to 28 percent shooting.

One note: Sophomore guard LaKeisha Eaddy left the game after tweaking her ankle and never returned to the floor. But Staley said afterward that Eaddy won’t miss the next game.

Now comes the murderous part of the schedule.

Beginning with a trip to 10th-ranked Georgia on Friday, the Owls will face at least three Top 25 teams in a 10-day stretch. They’ll visit Georgia Tech, which is just outside the Top 25, before heading to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands, where they’ll face 9th-ranked Duke, 20th-ranked Purdue, and another opponent (UConn, Stanford, or Old Dominion).

Postgame Press Conference: Listen to Audio