The women’s basketball team will look to stop a two-game losing skid in their first Big 5 meeting of the season tonight.

Coming off a bad loss to Kent State (1-9) and a 22-point loss to Auburn (9-2) the Owls will have no easy time tonight against rival Villanova.

The Wildcats will enter tonight at 8-1 and 3-0 at home. Coach Harry Perretta’s squad are winners of their last seven games. Laura Sweeney, averaging 12 points and six rebounds per game, and Rachel Roberts, averaging 11 points and 3 rebounds, lead a balanced Villanova offense.

Although they’ll be playing on the outskirt of the city, tonight will be Temple’s third game of a six-game road swing. Losers of their last two, the Owls have fallen to 5-4 and just 1-3 in away games.

Perhaps the most alarming difference between these two teams is their turnover ratios. Temple has been plagued by turnovers all season, averaging 23 giveaways per game. Villanova, on the other hand, does a great job of protecting the ball. The Wildcats average just 12 turnovers per game.

Villanova is also shooting .364 from three-point range on the season, while Temple is shooting .254 from beyond the arc. However, the Owls will have sophomore guard Rateska Brown available off the bench tonight. Brown, arguably the team’s best three-point shooter, missed the previous game against Auburn due to a violation of team conduct.

Temple coach Tonya Cardoza admitted earlier in the week that Villanova is a team the Owls typically have a tough time defending. They’ll look to break that notion tonight in their first Big 5 affair of the season.

The Owls and Wildcats are set to tip off at 6 p.m. in Villanova.

-Tyler Sablich