Temple University Athletics
Saint Joseph's Ends Temple's Season With 66-62 Win In A-10 Championship
3.8.07 | Men's Basketball
March 8, 2007
Atlantic City, NJ - Temple played perhaps its best defensive game of the season, but it was not enough to overcome its nemesis, Saint Joseph's, as the Hawks scored on their final eight possessions for a come-from-behind 66-62 win in the opening round of the 2007 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Championship at Boardwalk Hall. Sixth-seed Saint Joseph's (18-13) defeated 11th-seed Temple (12-18) for the third time this season and the 11th time in the past 12 meetings.
"It would have been a terrific win for us," said first-year Temple coach Fran Dunphy. "I thought for most of the game we did a pretty good job defensively. We lost our poise a couple of times late in the game both on offense and defense and that proved to be our downfall."
The Owls took the lead by the first media timeout and did not relinquish it until freshman guard Jawan Carter converted two free throw attempts with 1:05 remaining to give the Hawks a 59-58 lead. That was part of a 12-2 SJU run that turned a 56-51 Temple lead into a 63-58 deficit with 11 seconds to play.
Junior guard Mark Tyndale, who led all scorers with 22 points, went the length of the floor for a lay-up with six seconds to play to cut the margin to three, 63-60. Carter, who scored all 13 of his points in the second half, then made one of two free throws. Senior guard Dustin Salisbery quickly slammed one home with 2.5 seconds on the clock, making it 64-62. SJU was able to inbound the ball to freshman Darrin Govens, who converted both free throws to seal the game.
Saint Joseph's scored all of its points in the final two minutes at the charity stripe, hitting 10 of 12 from the line during that stretch.
Sophomore guard Dionte Christmas, limited to just seven points on three-of-nine shooting, had a chance to tie the game with 12 seconds to play. Following two free throws by SJU senior guard Pat Calathes (13 points, 8 rebounds) which put SJU in front 63-60, Christmas came around a screen and launched a three pointer that went in and out. Christmas did become the tenth Temple player to score 600 points in a season and with his 20.0 scoring average he should become the fifth Owl to lead the A-10 in scoring, joining David Hawkins (24.4 ppg., 2003-04), Aaron McKie (20.6 ppg., 1992-93), Mark Macon (22.0 ppg., 1990-91) and Terence Stansbury (24.6 ppg., 1982-83).
Freshman guard Ryan Brooks picked up the scoring load with Christmas being held in check, tallying a career-high 15 points. The second all-time leading scorer at Lower Merion High, trailing only Kobe Bryant, made six-of-11 field goal attempts while playing a career-high 34 minutes.
"I thought Ryan (Brooks) was terrific," said Dunphy. "He gave us great help off the bench. Fifteen points off the bench is terrific. He's going to be a real good basketball player and I was happy for him with his performance tonight. He shot the ball well and played pretty good defense."
Senior Dion Dacons again did yeoman's work inside, grabbing a team-high nine rebounds while helping to limit first team all-conference performer Ahmad Nivins to just 10 shots. Nivins made six of those shots for a team-high 18 points. He also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.
Salisbery, who drained a three-pointer at buzzer to give Temple a 32-28 lead, finished his final game in Cherry and White with 12 points. He made four-of-nine from the field, and three-of-six from three-point range. It was his 27th double-figure game of the season, tying Christmas for the team lead, and his 63rd career double-figure game. He ends his four years on North Broad Street with 1,276 points, good for 27th place on the school's all-time list.
"There were no preconceived expectations," said Dunphy on his first season. "I was coming in with my eyes wide open but it was a terrific opportunity for me personally. I enjoyed coaching these guys. I wish we could have played a little bit better throughout a number of stretches this year. We'll look forward to moving ahead."
Temple shot 42.9 percent from the field, making three more field goals that St, Joe's. The Hawks, however, made 18-of-23 attempts from the line (78.3%) while the Owls went to the line just nine times, converting five.
SJU next plays third-seed George Washington in the A-10 Quarterfinals Thursday (9:00 p.m.).
