Temple University Athletics
Sunday, March 22
Liacouras Center
11:00 a.m.
Temple University
25-10
90
vs
77
George Washington
22-13
1
2
F
George Washington
30
47
77
Temple
38
52
90
Photo by: Joseph V. Labolito/Temple University
Men's Basketball Rolls to 90-77 NIT Second Round Win Over GW
3.22.15 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA - It was a true team effort that led Temple men's basketball to a 90-77 win over George Washington (22-13) in the NIT Second Round on Sunday, with the Owls (25-10) taking an early lead and never trailing in the contest. Temple now advances to the NIT Quarterfinals and will host a game on Wednesday, March 25 against the winner of a Texas A&M/Louisiana Tech game set for 7 pm on Monday night. Game time at the Liacouras Center on Wednesday is TBA.
Temple led by double digits for over eight minutes to close the game, shooting 60 percent from the field in the second half to keep GW out of reach. It was the Owls' first 90-point effort of the season, and their sixth time scoring 80 or more points.
For a fifth time in the last seven games, senior point guard Will Cummings led the Owls in scoring, hitting 8-of-8 free throws and finishing with 21 points. After his 30-point performance lifted Temple to victory in the NIT First Round against Bucknell, this time Cummings had plenty of help, including a season-high 20 points from senior Jesse Morgan who hit 4-of-7 from long range.
Junior Devin Coleman came up huge off the bench for the Owls in the second half. Over a six-minute stretch starting just past the midway point, Coleman scored 13 of the Owls' 19 points to keep them safely in the lead. Also finishing in double figures for Temple was sophomore Josh Brown, who hit 7-of-8 free throws and totaled 11 points in the win.
Temple finished with a strong, 38-26 advantage on the glass, led by junior Jaylen Bond with 15 rebounds.
The Owls were hot early, taking a 9-0 lead in the first four minutes and never letting GW come closer than six for the rest of the half. Temple went on to make seven of its first 10 attempts from the field including four of six from long range. Morgan's third three-pointer capped an 8-0 run that gave the Owls a 15-point lead, 20-5, at 14:23.
Temple continued to lead by double digits for much of the half, and still led by 12 with a minute and 20 seconds remaining before back-to-back GW treys cut the margin to six, 36-30. Quenton DeCosey was fouled on a three-point attempt with one second left in the half, and hit 2-of-3 at the line to give Temple a 38-30 lead at the break.
Morgan led all players with 15 first-half points, while Bond had already grabbed 11 boards by halftime.
The Colonials used a 7-2 run to make it a three-point game early in the second half, but the Owls answered with an 11-4 run, capped by Morgan's fourth three-pointer, to get their lead back to double digits just over five minutes in.
Turnovers on consecutive possessions down the stretch gave GW chances, but Temple was aggressive at the other end in coming up with steals which led to a couple of fast break layups for Cummings. Freshman Obi Enechionyia also gave Temple a spark with back-to-back buckets, and he finished the game with six points in addition to two blocks.
Coleman came in off the bench at 11:30 and made a huge impact, scoring seven points in a row for the Owls to give them a 66-54 lead with just under eight minutes left. He went on to score 11 of the next 15 points for Temple, and the Owls were solid at the free throw line to hold their double-digit lead the rest of the way.
NOTES:
-Temple scored 90 points for the first time this season, and 80 or more for the sixth time. The Owls are now 15-0 when scoring 70 or more points.
-The Owls have now set the program record for wins in the Liacouras Center in a single season with 15 (15-2 overall). They had previously reached the 14-win mark twice (2012-13 and 2010-11), going a perfect 14-0 in 2010-11.
-Will Cummings has now scored in double figures in 15 of 16 games since returning from injury against USF (1/22) after sitting out Temple's game at Cincinnati (1/17).
-Cummings has scored 20 or more points in four of the last five contests.
-Temple has recorded fewer than 10 turnovers in 11 of the last 15 games and ranks in the nation's top 10 in turnovers per game (9.7).
Box Score l Photo Gallery l Players Postgame l Coach Dunphy Postgame l Highlights
Temple led by double digits for over eight minutes to close the game, shooting 60 percent from the field in the second half to keep GW out of reach. It was the Owls' first 90-point effort of the season, and their sixth time scoring 80 or more points.
For a fifth time in the last seven games, senior point guard Will Cummings led the Owls in scoring, hitting 8-of-8 free throws and finishing with 21 points. After his 30-point performance lifted Temple to victory in the NIT First Round against Bucknell, this time Cummings had plenty of help, including a season-high 20 points from senior Jesse Morgan who hit 4-of-7 from long range.
Junior Devin Coleman came up huge off the bench for the Owls in the second half. Over a six-minute stretch starting just past the midway point, Coleman scored 13 of the Owls' 19 points to keep them safely in the lead. Also finishing in double figures for Temple was sophomore Josh Brown, who hit 7-of-8 free throws and totaled 11 points in the win.
Temple finished with a strong, 38-26 advantage on the glass, led by junior Jaylen Bond with 15 rebounds.
The Owls were hot early, taking a 9-0 lead in the first four minutes and never letting GW come closer than six for the rest of the half. Temple went on to make seven of its first 10 attempts from the field including four of six from long range. Morgan's third three-pointer capped an 8-0 run that gave the Owls a 15-point lead, 20-5, at 14:23.
Temple continued to lead by double digits for much of the half, and still led by 12 with a minute and 20 seconds remaining before back-to-back GW treys cut the margin to six, 36-30. Quenton DeCosey was fouled on a three-point attempt with one second left in the half, and hit 2-of-3 at the line to give Temple a 38-30 lead at the break.
Morgan led all players with 15 first-half points, while Bond had already grabbed 11 boards by halftime.
The Colonials used a 7-2 run to make it a three-point game early in the second half, but the Owls answered with an 11-4 run, capped by Morgan's fourth three-pointer, to get their lead back to double digits just over five minutes in.
Turnovers on consecutive possessions down the stretch gave GW chances, but Temple was aggressive at the other end in coming up with steals which led to a couple of fast break layups for Cummings. Freshman Obi Enechionyia also gave Temple a spark with back-to-back buckets, and he finished the game with six points in addition to two blocks.
Coleman came in off the bench at 11:30 and made a huge impact, scoring seven points in a row for the Owls to give them a 66-54 lead with just under eight minutes left. He went on to score 11 of the next 15 points for Temple, and the Owls were solid at the free throw line to hold their double-digit lead the rest of the way.
NOTES:
-Temple scored 90 points for the first time this season, and 80 or more for the sixth time. The Owls are now 15-0 when scoring 70 or more points.
-The Owls have now set the program record for wins in the Liacouras Center in a single season with 15 (15-2 overall). They had previously reached the 14-win mark twice (2012-13 and 2010-11), going a perfect 14-0 in 2010-11.
-Will Cummings has now scored in double figures in 15 of 16 games since returning from injury against USF (1/22) after sitting out Temple's game at Cincinnati (1/17).
-Cummings has scored 20 or more points in four of the last five contests.
-Temple has recorded fewer than 10 turnovers in 11 of the last 15 games and ranks in the nation's top 10 in turnovers per game (9.7).
Box Score l Photo Gallery l Players Postgame l Coach Dunphy Postgame l Highlights
Team Stats
GW
TU
FG%
.455
.500
3FG%
.500
.368
FT%
.654
.875
RB
26
38
TO
8
8
STL
6
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
8
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Players Mentioned
F
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