Temple University Athletics
Temple Wins At George Washington To Tie For Second In A-10 Standings
3.7.09 | Men's Basketball
March 7, 2009
WASHINGTON, DC - Lavoy Allen scored 17 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead Temple to a 63-53 win at George Washington Saturday Night to close out the regular season. With the Win the Owls (19-11, 11-5 A-10) forge a three-way tie with Rhode Island and Dayton for second place in the conference standings. Temple earns the fourth seed in the A-10 Tournament and will open play Thursday at 2:30 p.m. against the winner of Saint Joseph's (#5 seed) and Charlotte (#12 seed).
"I did not think we played great but we were good enough to get a win on the road and we will take it," said Temple coach Fran Dunphy.
The Owls attempted a season-high 74 shots, but connected on just 32.4 percent of them. Allen, who grabbed a career-high 11 offensive caroms, led an Owl team that pulled down 25 offensive rebounds, the most by a TU team since 2005.
George Washington (10-18, 4-12), who failed to qualify for the A-10 Tournament for the second straight season, also was firing blanks. The Colonials made just 35.2 percent from the field. GW was not as strong on the glass, as the Cherry and White dominated the backboard, 55-35.
"We are not going to get too many nights where we are going to get 25 offensive rebounds, just one of those freaky times - a lot of long threes," Dunphy said. "I thought Lavoy was very good on the glass. In the second half he was dominant."
Both teams started sluggishly with GW, playing on Senior Night, taking an early 6-4 lead. The Owls then proceeded to connect from the outside, with Ryan Brooks, Juan Fernandez and Craig Williams hitting from long-range and Micheal Eric converting a three-point play to cap a 14-2 Temple run to make it 18-8 with just under 10 minutes to play.
The teams traded baskets the remainder of the half with Damian Hollis, who scored a game high 21 points, draining two free throws just before intermission to cut the Owl lead to 32-24 at the break.
Allen then came out on fire in the second half, scoring six of TU first eight points, making it 40-26. Temple would hold a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest, extending it to 19 on two occasions, the last a jumper by Dionte Christmas with 4:17 to play that made the score 61-42.
Christmas, who ended the game with nine points and tied for the A-10 scoring lead with St. Joe senior Ahmad Nivins (19.2 ppg.), made just three-of-15 shots from the field. Williams and Brooks each hit just three-of-10 from the field while Semaj Inge, who tied his career high with eight rebounds, was three-of-11.
Rob Diggs, one of four GW seniors, ended his career with a double-double, tallying 12 points and grabbing a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Owl Club, along with the Temple Alumni Association, will be hosting a Pre-Game Reception for Temple alumni, fans and friends two hours prior to Thursday game (2:30 p.m.) against the St. Joe-Charlotte winner in the Atlantic 10 Tournament in Atlantic City. The reception will be held in the Trump Plaza, adjacent to Boardwalk Hall. All guests are welcome to join fellow fans to rally before the Owls' first tournament game. Cost is $20 per person and includes buffet and prizes; a cash bar is available. Details and registration are available at www.MyOwlSpace.com or by calling the Owl Club at (215) 204-2582.
