Temple University Athletics
Temple University
1-2
Towson
3-0
Lead Slips Away From Men's Basketball in 75-69 Loss at Towson
11.14.13 | Men's Basketball
TOWSON, Md. - After leading by eight points near the midway point of the second half, turnovers and missed opportunities caught up to the Temple men's basketball team down the stretch in a 75-69 loss at Towson (3-0) on Thursday night. The Owls (1-2) got 20 points and nine rebounds from Anthony Lee in the loss, their second straight. The Tigers' Jerrelle Benimon scored a career-high 32 points including 10-of-12 at the line, and made it a double-double with 10 boards.
Temple committed 16 turnovers to Towson's seven, and the Tigers capitalized with 26 points off the Owls' miscues. Towson also finished with a 47-37 advantage on the glass, including a 22-10 lead in offensive rebounds, and the Tigers scored 15 second-chance points to Temple's six.
Will Cummings scored 18 points for Temple while dishing five assists, and Quenton DeCosey also finished in double figures with 12 points.
It was the second game in a row in which Temple let a solid second-half lead slip away. The Owls still led the game with five minutes to go, but an 11-2 run for Towson put the Tigers in the lead for good. The Owls trailed by six before cutting the margin to two on two occasions in the final minute, but could get no closer.
The first half was marked by eight lead changes over the first 17 minutes. Temple led by as many as five over that stretch, but never allowed Towson to lead by more than three.
Lee had a strong start with eight points in the first 12 minutes, playing in front of friends and family from his hometown of Columbia, Md. His fourth bucket broke a four-minute scoring drought for the Owls at 8:05 to give them a 19-18 lead, with the Tigers having been unable to take more than a one-point advantage.
The teams battled over the next few minutes with the lead continually changing hands. Cummings began to pick up the pace, and scored back-to-back buckets near the four-minute mark to give Temple a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the half.
Daniel Dingle and Cummings both hit 2-of-2 at the line with 1:30 remaining in the half, capping an 11-0 run and giving Temple a 34-26 lead after both flagrant and technical fouls were called on Towson.
Both teams hit a field goal in the final minute, and Benimon went to the line for Towson with four seconds remaining where he hit 2-of-2 to pull his team within five, 36-31 at the break.
Cummings led Temple with 10 points, four rebounds and three assists in the first half, while Benimon led all players with 11 points for Towson.
Lee and Cummings combined to extend Temple's lead to nine in the first 34 seconds of the second half, but it would be the Owls' largest lead of the game. Benimon continued to inch his team closer, and hit 7-of-8 from the free throw line in the second half to help Towson eventually pull away.
The final minute and 15 seconds saw DeCosey hit a big three-pointer and Lee hit 2-of-2 at the line, but each time the Owls were forced to foul Towson, the Tigers hit their shots.
Temple will have a week off before its next game, a 8:00 p.m. contest vs. Clemson in the opening round of the Charleston Classic on Thursday, Nov. 14. The game will air live on ESPN3.
