Memphis women defeat Temple in record-tying five overtimes

MEMPHIS, Tenn. —  Memphis and Temple matched the longest game in NCAA women’s basketball history Thursday night, with the Tigers outlasting the Owls, 100-97, in five overtimes.

Brianna Wright scored a career-high 35 points for Memphis, including the tiebreaking basket with 6.2 seconds left in the fifth overtime.

Drexel beat Northeastern, 98-80, on Feb. 22, 2007, in the only other Division I five-overtime game. Two Division II games have gone to five overtimes.

The score was tied at 50 at the end of regulation. Both teams broke the previous record of 43 points by a one team in overtimes and the combined 97 points in the five extra periods set a record, surpassing the 83 by Kentucky and Baylor on Dec. 6, 2013, in a four-OT game.

Both teams entered game having won six of their last seven and the game was close throughout. The game featured 22 ties and 17 lead changes and the largest lead was nine by Temple late in the third quarter.

Mooriah Rowser added 21 points for the Tigers (16-10, 10-5 American). Asianna Fuqua-Bey had 13 rebounds and Wright had 10.

Feyonda Fitzgerald had 26 points for Temple (17-9, 11-4). Alliya Butts added 19 points, Donnaizha Fountain had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Tanaya Atkinson had 15 points and a career-high 20 rebounds.

Temple had four players foul out and Memphis two, with four players finishing with four fouls. The Owls went 28 of 42 from the line and the Tigers were 22 of 37.

Temple’s Ugo Nwaigwe hit the second of two free throws with 18.1 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and Brea Elmore’s 3-pointer for the Tigers with a second left rattled out.

Fuqua-Bey tied it for Memphis with 11 seconds left in the first overtime and the Owls couldn’t get a clean look at the end.

After Temple’s Atkinson tied the game late in the second overtime, which featured six lead changes, Fitzgerald blocked a Loysha Morris three-pointer at the buzzer to extend the game.

Fitzgerald twice put the Owls up by seven in the third overtime but a three-pointer by Elmore and her layup following a turnover tied the game at 80 with 46 seconds left. Temple regained the lead on a layup by Fountain with 35 seconds left but Wright tied it with 21 seconds left. Fountain’s trey bounced off the rim at the buzzer for Temple.

In the fourth overtime, Temple opened an 89-84 lead after Fountains three-point play with 2:14 to go but Memphis battled back and went up 93-91 on two free throws by Wright with nine seconds left. Atkinson again tied it for Temple with 4.5 seconds left and Elmore missed a jumper at the buzzer.

Memphis shot 42% from the field (37 of 88), including four of 18 from three-point range. The Tigers had 34 turnovers. The Owls were 32 of 86 from the floor (37%), five of 26 behind the arc, and had 33 turnovers.

In Division II in five overtimes, St. Joseph’s (Indiana) beat Northern Kentucky, 131-130, on Feb. 2, 1988, and Florida Tech topped Florida Southern, 82-81, on Jan. 28, 2006.