Wichita State (15-12, 5-9) vs. Temple (10-16, 5-9)
Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023 | 2:00 PM CT | Charles Koch Arena
ESPN+  | ShockerStats.com

ON THE AIR
The game will be televised on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. There will be no audio stream available.

LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State followed up one of its best performances in a win vs. Tulsa with one of its worst in a 69-51 loss at SMU on Wednesday. Wichita State trailed by seven at halftime, but was outscored 18-9 in the third quarter and never recovered. SMU shot 47.6 percent from the floor despite missing 17-of-20 attempts from beyond the arc. That nearly 48 percent shooting was a season high for an opponent. One of the better rebounding teams in the country, Wichita State was crushed on the glass. They were minus-15 - a season worst. Jane Asinde scored eight of her 11 points after halftime, while Curtessia Dean also added a team-high 11. Trajata Colbert and DJ McCarty both chipped in 10 points apiece.

SCOUTING THE OWLS
Led by first year head coach Diane Richardson, Temple enters Wednesday's matchup at 10-16 this season and 5-9 in American play. The Owls started conference play 5-4, but have lost five in a row. Temple is led by Aleah Nelson and Tiarra East. Nelson leads the team in scoring (15.6 points) and assists (109), while East adds 11.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 41 steals. Nelson is a two-time American Athletic Conference Player of the Week. Temple ranks at the top of the conference in free throw shooting at 73.1 percent. The Owls won the first matchup in Philadelphia, 72-59, as Wichita State turned in one of its' worst shooting performances of the season in the loss.

THE SERIES VS. TEMPLE
Wichita State and Temple have met 11 times prior to Saturday's matchup, with Temple winning the last four meetings. The first ever meeting came all the way back in Nov. 1983 on a nuetral court that Temple won, 83-79. Wichita State is seeking its first win at home vs. the Owls since 2020. The Shockers are 2-2 all-time vs. Temple in Wichita.

LAST MEETING
Temple led for essentially the entire game in the first meeting this season on Feb. 1 in Philadelphia. The Owls led by six after 10 minutes and ran away with a 72-59 win. Wichita State shot a season-low 27.8 percent, including 2-for-11 from beyond the arc. Temple shot 46.4 percent on the other end to go with 8 three-pointers. Trajata Colbert scored a career-high 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a losing effort. DJ McCarty and Shamaryah Duncan each added 10 points.

PAINT POWER
Over Wichita State's last eight games the duo of Jane Asinde and Trajata Colbert have taken their game to another level. Asinde has four double-doubles and is averaging 16.8 points and 10.6 rebounds, while Colbert is playing the best basketball of her career. During that span Colbert has six double-doubles and is posting 16.1 points and 9.5 rebounds. Combined they are responsible for 32.9 points and 20.1 rebounds over the last seven outings.

TALENTED TRIO
Jane Asinde, DJ McCarty and Trajata Colbert are forming a potent trio for the Shockers. All three are averaging double figures on the season and combine for 54.0 percent of Wichita State's points on the offensive end. On the glass, they combine to pull down 21.6 rebounds a game. On the defensive end, the trio makes up 61.6 percent (130 steals) of the team's steals this season and 60.8 percent (48 blocks) of the team's blocks.

RARE AIR ASINDE
Jane Asinde is one of only three players in the country averaging at least 10.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game. DePaul's Annesah Morrow and Texas A&M Corpus Christi's Alecia Westbrook are the only other players putting up those stats in 2022-23.

SEEING DOUBLE
Wichita State senior Jane Asinde is averaging a double-double through 27 games this season at 13.2 points and 10.6 rebounds. The Uganda native is on pace to finish the season with a top 10 single season rebounding mark. Her current 10.6 boards per game would rank as the 8th most in school history. She is also trying to become the first Shocker to average a double-double over the course of a season since Antionette Wells during the 2006-07 season when she posted 13.0 points and 10.4 rebounds.

WANTED FOR THEFT
Junior guard DJ McCarty and senior forward Jane Asinde have been a pest on defense for opposing offenses through 27 games. McCarty has recorded at least one steal in all but five games, and has multiple in 16 of the 27 games. Her 57 steals are the most on the team. Asinde is second on the team with 50 steals and averages 2.00 steals a game and has multiple steals in 14 games this season. They rank 4th and 7th in the American in steals.

COLBERT CASHING IN      
Trajata Colbert has improved dramatically the last two years at the free throw line. The Georgia native began her career shooting 42.1 percent as a freshman, 61.1 percent as a sophomore and 50.9 percent as a COVID sophomore. In 2021-22 she shot a career-high 76.0 percent and so far through 27 games in 2022-23, she is 92-for-112 (82.1 percent). Colbert ranks fifth in the American in free throw percentage.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Through 27 games Wichita State ranks in the top 70 nationally in the following categories: No. 27 in free throws made per game (14.93), No. 29 in rebound margin (7.2), No. 38 in rebounds per game (40.93), No. 50 in free throw attempts per game (20.07), No. 55 in offensive rebounds per game (13.6), No. 65 in three point defense (28.7), No. 66 in defensive rebounds per game (27.3) and No. 70 in field goal percentage defense (37.9). Jane Asinde ranks 15th nationally in rebounds per game, No. 25 in total rebounds and No. 25 in defensive rebounds per game.

A SHOCKER WIN WOULD...
... make them 16-12 on the season
... make them 6-9 in conference play
... make them 11-4 at home this season
... move them to 4-8 all-time vs. Temple
... snap a four-game losing streak vs. the Owls
... bring Keitha Adams' record to 78-90 at Wichita State
... make Adams 362-299 at the Division I level
... run Adams' career coaching record to 489-336
... improve their record in Charles Koch Arena to 397-252
... make Wichita State 648-738 all-time

A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD...
... make them 15-13 this the season
... make them 5-10 in conference play
... drop them to 10-5 at home this season
... make them 3-9 all-time vs. Temple
... bring Keitha Adams' record to 77-91 at Wichita State
... make Adams 361-300 at the Division I level
... lower Adams' career coaching record to 488-337
... drop their record in Charles Koch Arena to 396-253
... make Wichita State 647-739 all-time

UP NEXT
Wichita State heads to Houston for the regular season finale on Wednesday, March 1.