Temple University Athletics
HAWKINS SCORES CAREER-HIGH 36 POINTS TO LEAD MEN'S BASKETBALL TO 75-62 N.I.T. FIRST ROUND WIN OVER BOSTON COLLEGE
3.21.03 | Men's Basketball
Temple, after beginning the season with 0-5 and 3-11 records, has won 10 of its last 12 games. The Owls are the only Division I men's basketball team in Philadelphia still scheduled to hit the hardwood after both Saint Joseph's and Pennsylvania lost Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
After opening the game with a trio of free throws by Hawkins, Big East Player of the Year Troy Bell tied the contest with a three-pointer at 19:00. Temple answered with an Alex Wesby lay-up to take a 5-3 lead, an advantage it would not relinquish for 21 minutes on the game clock. The Owls established a 10-point (20-10) buffer at 13:40 on a Hawkins lay-up. BC reduced the lead to six points before a Hawkins trey at 9:43 gave TU a 28-16 lead, one of two Temple 12-point advantages in the first half.
Trailing 30-18 after a Hawkins dunk at 7:53, Boston College scored 13 of the game's next 15 points to trim the edge to one point (32-31) at 2:25 on a Ryan Sidney lay-up before entering the locker room at the midpoint behind by a single digit, 36-35.
After the break, Temple got on the scoreboard first with a Wesby three-pointer before Boston College went on a 10-point run, capped by a pair of Craig Smith free throws at 15:46 to take a 45-39 lead. In the next two minutes, the Eagles established two more six-point advantages. The Owls re-gained the lead (50-49) at 11:39 on a Maurice Collins lay-up.
The lead changed hands four times in the next five minutes on the game clock. A Collins basket a 6:10 provided the Cherry & White a 56-55 advantage it would not return, as it was part of an 8-0 run. The Owls increased their late lead to double-digits (69-59) at 1:18 on a pair of Collins free throws. The 75-62 score, on the heels of a Hawkins slam dunk, was TU's largest advantage of the evening.
Temple shot 40.0 percent (24-60) from the field, including 46.2 percent (12-26) in the second half. Boston College deposited 42.9 percent (24-56) of its shots, including a 43.5 mark (10-23) after the break. The Owls, however, made five more three-pointers than the Eagles (8-26; 3-15). Temple also made 10 steals resulting in 16 Boston College turnovers.
For only the fourth time this season, Temple had more assists than its opponent, generating 13 assists to Boston College's 12.
Craig Smith led three Eagles in double-figures, scoring 24 points while grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds.
