The Massachusetts women’s basketball team saw recent struggles in its most recent 76-48 loss to Atlantic 10 powerhouse Temple.
UMass (6-15, 2-4 A-10) tied its season low in points and turned the ball over 32 times to the Owls (14-6, 5-0 A-10).
“It seems to me like when our offense begins to struggle, every other aspect of our game gets bad and we lose it,” UMass coach Sharon Dawley said.
The Minutewomen currently average 64.1 points per game while their opponents are averaging 70.5 per game. Despite scoring fewer points, the UMass defense has stepped up, allowing a lower shooting percentage and a lower 3-point percentage.
Statistically, the Minutewomen match up well with their opponents. The one persistent problem that has hindered the Minutewomen’s success this winter has been their turnover dilemma. UMass is averaging nearly 20 turnovers a game, six more than its opponents. The Minutewomen turned the ball over 23 times in the first half to the Owls on Wednesday, with the Owls scoring 35 points off turnovers. UMass averages nearly six less steals per game than its opponents.
“You know, 32 turnovers, you’ll lose to any team that way,” Dawley said. “That’s 32 less trips that you have a chance to put points up, and that’s due in part to lousy passes, lots of travels and good defense by the other team.
“We need more urgency and we’re going to run in practice for every turnover that we committed,” Dawley continued.
Starting Five Questions
Another problem facing the Maroon and White was their lack of production from their starting five. During Wednesday’s game, young bench players such as Talen Watson, Marisa Stabile and Kelly Robinson all saw quality minutes on the floor. The bench contributed for 22 points.
“[The starters] just were no good,” Dawley said. “When you have a bad starter you need to look for something else that works so you go to the bench. If the starters continue to play this poorly than we’ll look for something else that works.”
The Minutewomen are 5-5 at home and 1-8 on the road with their next two of three games at the Mullins Center. Both those games at home come against A-10 powerhouse teams Duquesne and Charlotte. UMass still will have a tough conference game against Dayton before the Minutewomen match up against the bottom of the A-10, playing Rhode Island, Fordham, George Washington and La Salle.
Michael Counos can be reached at [email protected].
