SMU (13-13, 7-7 AAC) vs. Temple (13-14, 8-8 AAC)
Dickies Arena - Fort Worth, Texas
Tuesday, March 8, 2022 – 2 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: KAAM 770 AM | Audio Streaming: SMU App (Google Play | Apple App Store)
Live Stats
Game Notes: SMU | Temple | The American
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SETTING THE SCENE
•    No. 5-seed SMU takes on No. 4-seed Temple in the quarterfinals of the Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Championship Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
•    This is the first time in program history SMU has earned a bye in the AAC tournament, finishing tied for fourth in the league.
•    This is the third straight game between the two teams after a back-to-back in Dallas to finish the regular season. SMU won the first and lost the second against Temple.
•    SMU won the first contest on last Monday, 65-61 in overtime, before losing, 56-48, on Wednesday in Moody Coliseum. 
•    This is the third straight conference tournament in which the Mustangs are facing the same team they played in the regular-season finale. It is the fourth time in eight AAC tournaments in which SMU competed. 
•    SMU did not compete in the 2021 American Athletic Conference Championship. The Mustangs canceled the season after six games (0-6) due to concerns over Covid-19.

ABOUT SMU
•    The Mustangs are 13-13 overall and 7-7 in The American.
•    In head coach Toyelle Wilson's first season, SMU finished the regular season with a .500 record for the first time since 2016-17 when SMU advanced to the third round of the WNIT Tournament. 
•    Savannah Wilkinson and Kayla White each earned All-American Athletic Conference honors.
•    Savannah Wilkinson is 35th in the NCAA with 12 double-doubles, averaging 14.1 points and 9.4 rebounds.
•    Kayla White scored a career-high 34 against ECU, the most by a player in The American this season. 
•    White became the 25th player with 1,000 points scored at SMU, finishing with 20 points at Tulane.

SERIES HISTORY
•    SMU is 5-9 all-time against Temple.
•    This is the first neutral-site meeting in the series.
•    The series started on Jan. 14, 2014, with the inception of the American Athletic Conference. Temple won the first matchup at home, 80-66. 

SAVANNAH WILKINSON
Savannah Wilkinson recorded double-doubles in the first five games of the season, setting a program record for most consecutive double-doubles. She ranks 35th in the NCAA with 12 this season. She averages 9.4 rebounds per game, 53rd in the NCAA, and is 19th in the country with 7.6 defensive rebounds per game. The Florida State transfer scores a team-best 14.1 points per game, reaching double digits in 21 of 23 games played this season with a career-high 24 points against Oklahoma. Wilkinson scored 20 points against both Arkansas and North Texas, and grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds against Tulane. She played in more than 70 games in three seasons at Florida State with career highs of 14 points and nine rebounds.

WILKINSON DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Opponent    Date    Points    Rebounds
UMKC    Nov. 9, 2021    10    10
Oklahoma State    Nov. 14, 2021    11    11
Oral Roberts    Nov. 17, 2021    13    10
at Arkansas    Nov. 22, 2021    20    10
vs. Seattle    Nov. 25, 2021    15    10
Delaware    Dec. 7, 2021    14    15
UAPB    Dec. 28, 2021    18    11
TCU    Jan. 2, 2022    16    15
at Memphis    Jan. 8, 2022    16    12
ECU    Jan. 13, 2022    16    13
Tulane    Jan. 15, 2022    14    17*
at ECU    Feb. 3, 2022    16    14
& - Five straight double-doubles from Nov. 9-Nov. 25 and again Dec. 28-Jan. 15 is a program record.

WILKINSON 20-POINT GAMES
Opponent    Date    Points
at Arkansas    Nov. 22, 2021    20
Oklahoma    Nov. 30, 2021    24*
at North Texas    Dec. 3, 2021    20
* - Career high

WILKINSON NCAA and CONFERENCE RANKINGS
Category    NCAA    AAC    Value
Points/Game    231    3    14.1
Rebounds/Game    53    2    9.4
Defensive Rebounds/Game    19    2    7.6
Total Rebounds    138    5    216
Double-Doubles    35    1    12
Field Goal Percentage    209    2    40.8%

SYDNE WIGGINS 
Sydne Wiggins scored a career-high 26 points against Seattle in the South Point Shootout, and was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 21.0 points in the event. She has scored at least 10 points in 13 of 22 games on the Hilltop and 39 times in her career. Wiggins won a WNIT championship during her four-year career at Rice. This season at SMU, Wiggins is shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 32.1 percent with 25 made 3-pointers. She is third on the team with 10.0 points per game.

JASMINE SMITH
Jasmine Smith leads the team in assists, 109, steals, 41, and 3-pointers made, 40. She scored a career-high 25 points against UAPB and tied the program single-game assists record with 11 at TCU. Smith averages 9.8 points and 4.4 assists per game. She totaled eight assists in the season opener, and now has at least eight assists in five games throughout her career. She tallied what was a career-high 10 assists during Rice's run to the 2021 WNIT championship. Smith's career high was 21 points during the 2019-20 season at Rice. She reached 20 points for the third time in her career against Memphis at home.

PAIGE BAYLISS
With 12 points and 10 rebounds against Oral Roberts, Paige Bayliss posted her third career double-double. Bayliss posted the first double-double of her career as a sophomore with 14 points and 10 rebounds against UC-Irvine. She also had a double-double against Tulane in the same season, scoring 13 points with a career-high 15 rebounds. This season, Bayliss is averaging 2.7 points and 3.4 rebounds in 12.0 minutes per game.

DANIELLE SANDERLIN
Danielle Sanderlin scored a game-high 20 points in the season opener. She averages 4.4 points, shooting 43.0 percent from the field, and is second on the team with 4.7 rebounds per game. 

REAGAN BRADLEY
Reagan Bradley is second on the team with 87 assists, averaging 3.4 per game. She is scoring 5.1 points and matched her career high with 18 points at Memphis (George Mason - 12/31/19). She dished out a season-high eight assists against Tulane and again at Cincinnati. She scored 10 points at Tulsa, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season and third time in conference play.

KEYANNA WARTHEN
A graduate transfer from Indiana, Keyanna Warthen shoots 45.9 percent from the field, averaging 2.9 points and 2.9 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per game. She posted her second career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds at Tulsa. Warthen had 10 points and 11 rebounds against Tulane for her first double-double. She is averaging six points over the last five games.

KAYLA WHITE
Kayla White became the 25th 1,000-point scorer in program history. She eclipsed 1,000 with 20 points at Tulane. White scored a career-high 34 points against ECU, the most by a Mustang since McKenzie Adams scored 35 on Nov. 26, 2017. She also scored what was a career-high 25 points against UAPB and finished with 21 at TCU. In conference games, White is scoring a team-best 14.0 points. She is second on the team averaging 13.7 points overall and ranks third in The American shooting 40.4 percent. The returning starter's previous season-high was 20 points against Oklahoma. White has reached double figures 15 times this season. She has scored more than 10 points 41 times in her career and eclipsed 20 points 10 times. 

WHITE 10-POINT GAMES
Opponent    Date    Points
Oral Roberts    Nov. 17, 2021    15
at Arkansas    Nov. 22, 2021    12
Oklahoma    Nov. 30, 2021    20
at North Texas    Dec. 3, 2021    16
Delaware    Dec. 7, 2021    17
at Colorado    Dec. 17, 2021    11
UAPB    Dec. 28, 2021    25
at TCU    Jan. 2, 2022    25
ECU    Jan. 13, 2022    34*
Tulane    Jan. 15, 2022    19
at ECU    Feb. 3, 2022    15
at Cincinnati    Feb. 9, 2022    16
at Wichita State    Feb. 12, 2022    15
Memphis    Feb. 16, 2022    15
at Tulsa    Feb. 19, 2022    13
at Tulane    Feb. 23, 2022    20
Temple    Feb. 28, 2022    22
* - Career high; Bold - 20+ points

CHASING THE CENTURY MARK
SMU has four players with at least 800 career points. Kayla White leads the group with 1,034 points, all scored while at SMU.

Name    Class    Points    Needed
Kayla White    Senior    1,040    -
Sydne Wiggins    Senior    997    3
Jasmine Smith    Senior    881    119
Danielle Sanderlin    Senior    859    141

BOLD: Big Opportunities Live in Dallas
As part of its goal of Shaping Champions and preparing students for life, SMU Athletics proudly announces the addition of its BOLD (Big Opportunities Live in Dallas) Program to its suite of student-athlete development tools, with the goal of helping student-athletes navigate and capitalize on new Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) legislation.
BOLD will provide SMU student-athletes with the means to navigate the evolving NIL landscape. The BOLD program will incorporate INFLCR, a comprehensive NIL education and compliance solution, and campus resources from the Cox School of Business, the Dedman School of Law, and the Meadows School of the Arts.

ALL-AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
IRVING, Texas (SMU/AAC) – Savannah Wilkinson and Kayla White were named to the All-American Athletic Conference team after leading the Mustangs to a top-four finish in the league for the first time. It is just the second time since the inception of the league in 2013 and first time since the 2013-14 season that multiple Mustangs earned All-AAC accolades.

Wilkinson earned second-team honors after finishing tied for the league lead with 12 double-doubles, and she ranked third overall in scoring with 14.1 points per game and second with 9.4 rebounds per game. Her 40.8 shooting percentage was second in the league. 

The London, England, native started the season with a program-record five consecutive double-doubles and had 19 straight games with at least 10 points before suffering an injury at Wichita State. She finished the regular season with double-digit scoring in 21 of 23 games played. Wilkinson scored a career-high 24 points against Oklahoma and posted a career-high 17 rebounds with 14 points in a win against Tulane. 

White was named to the third team after leading SMU and ranking sixth in conference games with 14.0 points per game while averaging 13.7 overall. She was tied for third in the league with a 40.4 shooting percentage and shot 38.4 against The American opponents to rank fifth.
 
She scored a career-high 34 points against ECU, the most by an AAC player this season. White scored at least 10 points 17 times overall and nine times against conference opponents. She ranked 10th overall with a 72.3 free throw percentage and shot 76.9 percent at the charity stripe in league games to rank eighth. White averaged double-figures scoring all four seasons on the Hilltop, and the Desoto, Texas, native earned all-freshman team accolades after scoring 11.4 points per game during the 2018-19 season.