Maddy Siegrist’s 41-point performance leads Villanova to a 74-71 win over Temple

Villanova forward Maddy Siegrist made all the difference.

The Wildcats, ranked 24th in the nation, defeated the Temple Owls, 74-71, at the Liacouras Center on Sunday night, led by Siegrist’s performance on both sides of the court.

Siegrist, the Big East player of the year last season, slashed through Temple’s defense for 41 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Temple had no answer for stopping Siegrist, especially in the final quarter.

Villanova outscored Temple, 25-14, in the fourth, including 18 points from Siegrist.

“Temple played a really, really good game of basketball,” Villanova coach Denise Dillon said. “So it’s a tough way for them to finish, but extremely proud of our group for finding a way, coming from down double digits. And Maddy led the way for us again. So really excited to get a big win in the Big 5.”

» READ MORE: Villanova ranked No. 24 in AP women’s basketball poll; men unranked for first time since 2019

Siegrist finished with a double-double after shooting 14-of-25 from the field.

Guards Aleah Nelson and Tarriyonna Gary led Temple’s offense. Nelson hit 7 of 14 shots for 20 points, including three three-pointers. Gary went 7-of-9 from three-point range for a career-high 23 points.

Villanova struggled from three-point range, finishing 2 of 14 to end the first half. Overall, the Wildcats shot 26 of 60 and relied too much on Siegrist to generate points.

The Owls (1-3) finished 27 of 65 from the field and 11 of 24 from beyond the arc.

In the third quarter, Temple outscored Villanova, 21-16, but the Wildcats stepped up on defense and generated just enough offense to prevail. Villanova’s experience proved too much for first-year coach Diane Richardson’s squad.

“I am disappointed that we’re losing, obviously, but we’re working on things,” Richardson said. “And as long as they are coachable and we can start working on those things, I am satisfied with that. We’ve got to work on our rebounding. But I thought we defended well. I thought we defended as a team.”

In the third quarter, Villanova went on an 8-0 run to close Temple’s lead to 52-49. The Owls gained the momentum back when Nelson made a pull-up jumper with 47 seconds remaining in the quarter. Forty seconds later, Gary made a three-pointer to give the Owls an eight-point lead.

The momentum was short-lived. The Wildcats went on a 12-0 fourth-quarter run, which gave them a slight edge in a close game.

» READ MORE: Temple women’s basketball has big plans under Diane Richardson despite outside expectations

Temple takes on St. Joseph’s (4-0) on Wednesday at Hagan Arena (5 p.m., ESPN+). Villanova (4-0) travels to Naples, Fla., to face Belmont (1-3) in the opening round of the Gulf Coast Showcase (1:30 p.m., FloHoops).