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\nCOURTESY \/ TEMPLE ATHLETICS<\/p>\n
\nCOURTESY \/ TEMPLE ATHLETICS<\/p>\n
\t<\/p>\n \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> <\/a> \t\t\t \t<\/a><\/p>\n Head coach Diane Richardson\u00a0has\u00a0lived\u00a0by the phrase,\u00a0\u201cIf you can see it, you can be it.\u201d\u00a0She\u2019s\u00a0so passionate about the saying\u00a0that\u00a0she\u2019s\u00a0dedicated\u00a0her life to\u00a0making\u00a0it a reality\u00a0for young\u00a0girls\u00a0aspiring\u00a0to become athletes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Richardson\u00a0left\u00a0American Security Corporation,\u00a0a company she founded,\u00a0and\u00a0entered the\u00a0coaching world in 1995\u00a0to\u00a0help young women\u00a0receive\u00a0scholarships\u00a0to play\u00a0basketball\u00a0in college.\u00a0She\u00a0is still\u00a0on this path\u00a0more than two decades\u00a0later,\u00a0currently mentoring\u00a0Temple Women\u2019s Basketball.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Unrivaled,\u00a0a\u00a03-on-3\u00a0women\u2019s basketball\u00a0league,\u00a0came to\u00a0Xfinity Mobile Arena on Jan. 30.\u00a0Richardson\u00a0adjusted the team\u2019s schedule\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0middle of a road trip\u00a0so\u00a0they\u00a0could attend\u00a0Philadelphia\u2019s first women\u2019s professional\u00a0basketball game since 1998.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The Owls were far from the only ones there.\u00a0The\u00a0event\u00a0broke\u00a0the attendance record for\u00a0a regular-season\u00a0professional women\u2019s\u00a0basketball\u00a0game\u00a0and any event\u00a0at\u00a0the arena\u00a0with 21,490 fans.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[Women\u2019s basketball] has really exploded,\u201d\u00a0Richardson said.\u00a0\u201cBack when I first got into coaching, it was to help young girls get exposure, so that they could get scholarships. And now with\u00a0Unrivaled and with the WNBA and especially in Philadelphia, the\u00a0Big\u00a05.\u00a0So,\u00a0there is, like an outpouring of support for women\u2019s basketball.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Unrivaled\u00a0plays\u00a0its games in\u00a0Miami,\u00a0but\u00a0announced\u00a0Philly as its first tour stop\u00a0on Oct.\u00a02, 2025.\u00a0The\u00a0games\u00a0gave Philadelphia a glimpse into what\u00a0might\u00a0happen once the city gets its\u00a0WNBA expansion team in 2030.\u00a0<\/p>\n There was a lot of work behind the scenes before the announcement was made.\u00a0Philadelphia Sisters,\u00a0a chapter of the\u00a0organization\u00a0Sisters Sports Group\u00a0and\u00a0a group of local women\u2019s basketball fans,\u00a0contacted\u00a0Richardson\u00a0because\u00a0of her influential\u00a0presence in the women\u2019s basketball community in the area.\u00a0<\/p>\n Richardson\u00a0immediately\u00a0agreed to\u00a0help in any way.\u00a0She\u00a0informed\u00a0others\u00a0about\u00a0Unrivaled,\u00a0other\u00a0women\u2019s basketball\u00a0events\u00a0and had the team\u2019s Instagram post about\u00a0it\u00a0to\u00a0show\u00a0how\u00a0Philadelphia will embrace the WNBA\u00a0team once\u00a02030 comes around.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got to catch that lightning in a bottle and do it now, because five years from now is going to be too late, especially from a monetary standpoint,\u201d Richardson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Watch Party PHL, an organization that\u00a0facilitates\u00a0events for women\u2019s sports in\u00a0Philadelphia,\u00a0hosted\u00a0the watch parties the Owls attended.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0first watch party the\u00a0entire team and staff\u00a0attended\u00a0was\u00a0during the\u00a0WNBA\u00a0playoffs\u00a0for a\u00a0first-round\u00a0matchup\u00a0between\u00a0the New York Liberty and the Phoenix Mercury\u00a0in\u00a0September.\u00a0The\u00a0teams\u2019\u00a0rosters\u00a0include\u00a0Philadelphia natives\u00a0Natasha Cloud\u00a0and\u00a0Kahleah\u00a0Copper,\u00a0respectively.\u00a0Both\u00a0players\u00a0got to play in their hometown with Unrivaled\u00a0last\u00a0month.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never really been around in a scenery where it\u2019s all women and they\u2019re all supporting women\u2019s basketball,\u201d said\u00a0guard Drew\u00a0Alexander.\u00a0\u201cEveryone was wearing a jersey supporting somebody. So,\u00a0it was\u00a0really good\u00a0to see\u00a0that\u00a0even it was a small area, just to see how much people support women\u2019s basketball.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Richardson\u00a0made\u00a0connections throughout her years\u00a0as\u00a0a coach,\u00a0including\u00a0Copper. The WNBA player reached out last year, looking for\u00a0a\u00a0space\u00a0to work out. Richardson jumped at the opportunity to\u00a0have her\u00a0at\u00a0Temple\u00a0practices, knowing it\u00a0benefited\u00a0both Copper and her athletes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Copper went to most practices during\u00a0the 2023-24 season, giving players advice on\u00a0how\u00a0to compete with a pro. The young athletes\u00a0practiced\u00a0against\u00a0the\u00a02021 WNBA Champion and Finals MVP in Copper, something Alexander\u00a0appreciated as she dreams of being a professional athlete once she graduates.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s really important that you have someone who knows what they\u2019re doing, like an upperclassman, or a vet, that can really help you and just be there for you, because they\u2019ve done what you\u2019re trying to do,\u201d Alexander said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Women\u2019s basketball has seen a jump in support in recent years,\u00a0as\u00a0the rise of young athletes like\u00a0Angel Reese,\u00a0Paige Bueckers\u00a0and\u00a0Caitlin Clark\u00a0drew people\u2019s interest.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Temple saw\u00a0the\u00a0unwavering support\u00a0for their\u00a0sport\u00a0at the watch parties and\u00a0at the\u00a0sold-out\u00a0Xfinity Mobile Arena. The team understands\u00a0how important it is to\u00a0role models who look like\u00a0them.\u00a0They want the sport\u00a0to continue\u00a0growing,\u00a0so\u00a0there is\u00a0a larger community for the younger generation to join.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat alone\u00a0you can compare it to men\u2019s basketball, we\u00a0work just as hard\u00a0to\u00a0do all\u00a0the\u00a0things\u00a0and\u00a0that stuff,\u201d said\u00a0guard Kaylah Turner.\u00a0\u201cCome to\u00a0a\u00a0game\u00a0and\u00a0come see\u00a0us. And come to\u00a0Unrivaled\u00a0games, WNBA games.\u00a0I mean, we even have players dunking now. We have like,\u00a06\u20197\u201d\u00a0eighth\u00a0graders now. Just come watch us play.\u00a0[The narrative of women\u2019s sports is]\u00a0definitely\u00a0going\u00a0in the right\u00a0direction\u00a0now,\u00a0but\u00a0just come watch us play.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Colin Schofield contributed\u00a0reporting.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \t<\/p>\n \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> \t<\/a> <\/a> \t\t\t \t<\/a><\/p>\n
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