Temple University Athletics
MEN'S BASKETBALL DEFEATS RICHMOND 66-52 TO EARN SEMIFINAL MEETING WITH TOP-SEEDED XAVIER ON FRIDAY
3.13.03 | Men's Basketball
Temple, the No. 2 seed in the East, will meet Xavier (25-4), the tournament's overall No. 1 seed, in a 7:00 p.m. semifinal contest on Friday. The Musketeers defeated George Washington 78-73 in Thursday's early game. The Owls have now reached the semifinal round of the A-10's 20 times in the 21 seasons they have been a member of the Conference.
The lead changed hands three times in a tightly contested first half that saw neither team shoot well. The Owls deposited just 25.9 percent (7-27) of their attempts from the field prior to the break while the Spiders made 36.0 percent (9-25) of their shots. Temple jumped out to a 6-0 lead after a pair of three-pointers courtesy of Maurice Collins and Brian Polk. UR's Patrick O'Malley reduced TU's advantage to one (8-7) at 14:59 before the Owls went on a 6-0 run, capped by a pair of Keith Butler free throws at 13:35, to take a 13-7 edge.
Temple established its largest lead of the half, 15-8, on a Butler jumper at 11:58. The Owls matched that advantage just over three minutes later when Alex Wesby hit a jumper to register a 17-10 score. It would be TU's last points for over five minutes on the clock as the Spiders went on an 8-0 run to take a 18-17 edge on a Jonathan Collins lay-up. Maurice Collins stopped the drought at 3:01 with a trey to give the Owls a 20-18 lead at 3:01. Richmond took a 24-20 at 1:23 on a Mike Sckrocki jumper before David Hawkins and Wesby each converted pairs of free throws in the final minute to send the clubs to the locker rooms tied at 24.
After the break, the lead changed hands five times in the first three minutes on the game clock. A Wesby jumper at 17:00 gave the Owls a 31-30 advantage and the Cherry & White led for the remainder of the contest. Temple established two, nine-point leads before a Polk three-pointer at 8:18 increased the advantage to double-digits at 46-34.
Richmond reduced the lead to eight, 46-38, on a Jamaal Scott lay-up at 6:59 but it would be the closest the Spiders would come. Temple ran its advantage to 18 points, at 2:01 and 1:24, before exiting the premises with the 66-52 win.
Hawkins scored 14 second half points to finish with 16. Collins and Wesby scored 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Scott was the only Spider in double-digits, scoring 19 points, including 18 in the second half.
For the first time this season, Temple was not credited with a steal. The Owls out-rebounded Richmond, 37-29, while committing just six turnovers and 12 personal fouls.
Temple's nineteen-year (1984-2002) post-season appearance streak is on the line Friday against Xavier. If the Owls are unable to win the conference tournament and gain an automatic NCAA Tournament bid, they must at least get to the championship final to ensure a .500 record to be eligible for selection into the National Invitation Tournament.
Friday's game is being produced by the Atlantic 10 Television Network and can be seen in the Philadelphia region on CN8.
