Temple University Athletics
Clark's Three-Pointer Lifts Men's Basketball To 90-88 Win Over Ohio In Home Opener
11.29.07 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 29, 2007
PHILADELPHIA - Senior Chris Clark hit the game-winning three-pointer with 1.9 seconds left to propel the Temple to a thrilling 90-88 victory over Ohio in the Owls' home opener at the Liacouras Center Thursday night.
After Ohio's Bubba Walther sank three free throws to give the Bobcats an 88-87 lead with 7.6 seconds remaining, senior co-captain Mark Tyndale drove the ball the length of the floor and found a wide open Clark standing at the three-point line for the game winner.
"Mark did a great job of penetratring, " said Clark, "I told Mark I was going to knock it down if he gave me a pass. It was a great drive to the basket and I was able to knock the shot down. That definitely was the biggest shot of my life, mostly because we needed that win."
"I just thought we were going to make a shot to win the game," said Temple head coach Fran Dunphy. "I mentioned that to our guys (at the timeout prior to the play). I just was not sure who was going to do it. It was just one of those things that was going to happen for us. It was our turn. Mark made a great play...and as soon as it left Chris's hands I knew it was going to be good. It was great for Chris, I am really happy for him."
Temple's One-Two punch of Tyndale and junior Dionte Christmas were nearly unstoppable for the night. The duo combined for 55 of the Cherry and White's 90 points. Christmas did his damage from behind the arc, hitting seven three-pointers and finishing with 29 points. Tyndale played an excellent all-around game, scoring a season high 26 points, and pulling in 10 rebounds for a double-double. He also added five assists and made 12-of-14 from the free throw line.
But on a night when Temple's One-Two Punch was outstanding, it was the clutch shooting of reserve guards Clark and sophomore Ryan Brooks that was the difference for the Owls. Before Clark's heroics, it appeared as if Brooks had won the game for Temple with his three-pointer with 21 seconds remaining. Brooks finished with nine points, all on three pointers. Clark finished with six points on two three-pointers. The reserve duo combined for five three-pointers in the final 7:00 minutes.
The offenses shined for both teams with Temple finishing the game shooting 51.9% from the field and the Bobcats finishing at 49.1%.
The turnaround for the Owls happened with less than seven minutes remaining. With the Bobcats leading 72-66 and seeming to take control of the game behind the play of forward Leon Williams, Clark nailed a three-pointer from the corner that would trigger a three-point barrage for the Owls. Christmas would hit one moments later and Brooks would hit consecutive three-pointers all in a three-minute span to give the Owls a 78-77 lead with 4:24 to play.
Williams played excellent for the Bobcats in defeat, scoring a game-high 31 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Forward Jerome Tillman and guards Walther and Bert Whittington IV also scored in double figures for the Bobcats.
For the Owls, freshmen forward Lavoy Allen added 10 points and five rebounds.
It was all Tyndale and Christmas from the start for the Cherry and White. The duo combined for 30 of the Cherry and White's 38 first half points, with Christmas connecting on four three-pointers. The Owls and Bobcats would play even basketball for the first 12 minutes, before the Bobcats used a 12-2 run behind the hot hand of Whittington IV to build a seven-point lead midway through the first half.
But the Owls would fight back behind the play of Tyndale. He would score eight consecutive points for the Owls, cutting the lead to 26-25 with 6:21 to play in the first half. The Owls finally took back the lead with 1:27 remaining in the first half behind another Tyndale shot. The lead would not last for long. A foul on Brooks under the bucket and technical foul on coach Fran Dunphy would lead to four Ohio free throws. The Bobcats took a 42-38 lead going into the locker room.
After the teams traded baskets to open the second half, Temple took the lead with 15:17 remaining in the second half when Tyndale hit Allen with a beautiful no look pass under the basket. Allen made the basket and was fouled. After missing the free throw, Tyndale grabbed the offensive board and made his way back to the foul line.
Temple (3-4) next hosts Towson, Thursday December 6 (7:00 p.m.). It will be broadcast live by The BigTalker, 1210 WPHT AM and can be seen on OwlAccess.
