Bluejay freshman guard Temi Carda has made an immediate impact on her team this year, picking up the past two Big East freshman of the week awards.

Carda is always part of the first group that comes off the bench and she has been a mainstay in the lineup all year. She has played in every game and averaged 24.4 minutes per game, 7.7 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game. She has scored in double digits during eight games and ranks fourth in points and rebounds. 

Carda has experienced ups and downs on the offensive end of the court, but her defense has been consistent all year. Coach Jim Flanery made of note of this when recruiting her. 

“Temi may be one of the best defensive players we have ever recruited,” said Flanery. “She was a multisport athlete in high school, who will continue to improve as she focuses on basketball.” 

Carda attended Lakeville North High School in Lakeville, Minnesota, and was a five-time All-South Suburban Conference selection – meaning she played on a varsity level since eight grade. She made three All-State teams, was a Miss Minnesota Basketball finalist and a Miss Minnesota Soccer finalist and somehow also made time for the track team.

Carda made her presence felt immediately, with 15 points and seven rebounds against South Dakota, the top team in the Summit League, followed by 12 points and four 3-pointers against UCLA and 16 points in a quadruple-overtime game against Drake.

“I definitely think the first few weeks especially, I was just trying to get a hang of the way Creighton plays as a whole,” Carda said. “There are times when we push and there are times when I’m going extremely fast, when I should slow down. I think it was just finding that happy medium, and I’m still finding it. It’s game by game.” 

Carda has come on strong these past two weeks, putting it together on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. The Jays played against the top two teams in the Big East, DePaul and Marquette, two weeks ago and then against Providence last week, going 2-1 with the only loss against DePaul. Carda has played three straight games with double-digit scoring, combining to score 42 points in the past three games, including a season-high 17 points against Providence. She has shown that she belongs in the Big East by picking up these past two Big East freshman of the week awards.

“It’s a big win [Marquette], DePaul and Marquette the top two in the conference,” Carda said. “Especially coming after only a 10 point loss from DePaul and coming back and winning on Marquette, it’s a big win for us to get the season going. At the same time it’s not a big win because we know we can compete with Marquette and DePaul and be one of the top contenders in the conference again. It goes both ways, it’s a boost for us as a team knowing that we can do that.”