Temple finally got its feet wet last night, opening with an easy 83-45 win over Central Michigan at the Liacouras Center.
The Owls will head to the deep end of the national pool with visits to No. 8 Georgia on Friday night and to Georgia Tech on Sunday.
Last night's game against the Chippewas (1-1) was one of four against Mid-American teams as part of the deal that put Temple football into the conference.
A mix of veterans and newcomers helped the Owls excel on offense and defense.
"Overall, I thought we played with a lot more discipline than we did in [last week's] exhibition game," coach Dawn Staley said. ". . . You hope you can bottle it up and take it on the road - something we're going to have to do to play Georgia and Georgia Tech."
Senior center Lady Comfort scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Point guard Ashley Morris chipped in with 15 points and eight assists in an effort reminiscent of her days as a Public League star at Central High.
Freshman Lindsay Kimmel debuted with 14 points, going 4 for 10 on three-point attempts, while junior-college transfer Shanea Cotton had nine points and 12 rebounds.
Central Michigan's Angel Chan scored a game-high 17 points.
George Washington 70, Virginia 68 - Antelia Parrish had 18 points and 10 rebounds and No. 14 George Washington (2-0) rallied to beat Virginia (1-1) in Charlottesville, Va., for its first win over the Cavaliers in 11 meetings.
George Washington trailed for most of the game but rallied behind Parrish. Her third three-pointer gave the Colonials the lead for good with 5 minutes, 30 seconds remaining.
Lyndra Littles led Virginia with 25 points and 11 rebounds.
The story contains information from the Associated Press.
Contact staff writer Mel Greenberg at 215-854-5725 or mgreenberg@phillynews.com.
Read his blog at go.philly.com/womhoops.
