Men's Basketball Undone by ECU's Big Second Half in 78-64 Loss

Wednesday, February 15

Greenville, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

Temple University

14-13,5-9AAC

East Carolina

12-14,4-9AAC

Temple

East Carolina

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Men's Basketball Undone by ECU's Big Second Half in 78-64 Loss

2.15.17 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina broke open a tightly-contested game with a big run midway through the second half, and handed Temple men's basketball a 78-64 loss at Minges Coliseum. The Owls (14-13, 5-9) held a one-point lead at halftime, but the Pirates (12-14, 4-9) outscored Temple 41-26 in the second period.

Senior Mark Williams tied his season high of 15 points to lead Temple, while freshman Quinton Rose finished with 14 to mark his third straight game in double digits. Senior Daniel Dingle reached double figures for the 15th time in the last 17 games, scoring 12 points.

ECU got a game-high 19 points and 13 rebounds from Kentrell Barkley, who hit 3-of-6 from long range as did teammate Caleb White who finished with 17 points.

Neither team led by more than five points in a tight first half. The Owls shot 40 percent and committed just a single turnover, but the defense struggled as ECU shot over 46 percent.

In just their second straight starts, Damion Moore scored six of the Owls' first nine points while Rose had eight points in the first 11 minutes. Williams came off the bench to hit 4-of-8 from the field in the opening period, leading Temple with 10 points at halftime.

The Owls led by their largest margin of five with 1:27 left in the first half, but the Pirates scored the final four points to make it a one-point game at the break, 38-37.

Over eight minutes into the second half, there had still not been more than a five-point lead for either team. ECU started to gain some momentum, turning a four-point deficit into a five-point lead with a 9-0 run ending at 15:34, and the Pirates really picked up the pace a few minutes later.

Temple was within a point at 50-49 with 12:43 remaining before a 19-3 East Carolina run put the game out of reach. With 4:36 to go, the Pirates were up by 17 points, 69-52. They later led by as many as 19, and the Owls came within no fewer than 14 points in the final six minutes.

East Carolina outrebounded Temple 44-35 and scored 18 second-chance points to Temple's 10. After their strong ball-handling in the first half, the Owls turned the ball over eight times in the second, leading to a 17-2 advantage in points off turnovers for the Pirates.

Next up for Temple is a three-game homestand, starting with a 4 p.m. contest against UConn on Sunday, Feb. 19 (ESPN / 1210 AM WPHT).