Men's Basketball Wins Final Regular Season Game at USF, 72-60

Sunday, March 5

Tampa, Fla.

2:00 p.m.

Temple University

16-15 (7-11)

USF

7-22 (1-17)

Temple

USF

Photo by: Joseph V. Labolito/Temple University

Men's Basketball Wins Final Regular Season Game at USF, 72-60

3.5.17 | Men's Basketball

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TAMPA, Fla. - Pocket-picking and three-point shooting led Temple men's basketball to a 72-60 win at USF in the final game of the regular season for both teams. Senior Daniel Dingle added five assists to 17 points, leading four Owls in double figures, and Temple held a lead for the final 27 minutes of the contest.

Temple (16-15, 7-11) swiped a season-high 16 steals and hit 11-of-25 shots from long range (44 percent). It was the most steals for the program since a 19-steal effort in a home win vs. UMass on Feb. 26, 2003. The Owls forced 19 miscues by USF (7-22, 1-17), finishing with a 20-9 edge in points off turnovers.

Quinton Rose and Obi Enechionyia both recorded career-highs in steals with six and five, respectively. Enechionyia also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and scored 14 points, draining 4-of-8 buckets from long range. Rose scored 13 points, as did Shizz Alston, Jr., who dished a game-high six assists.

Temple hit three of its seven first-half treys in the first four minutes, jumping out to a 12-6 lead on Enechionyia's second triple at 16:37. USF came back with an 8-0 run for a 14-12 lead two minutes later, and four ties followed over the next seven minutes.

After the final tie of the opening period at 20-20 with 7:05 remaining, Temple took a lead on an Alani Moore II three-pointer and remained ahead for the rest of the game.

Dingle and Alston added the Owls' sixth and seventh buckets from long range in the final two minutes, and Temple took a 35-26 lead into the break. Overall, Temple hit 7-of-12 three-pointers while the Bulls were just 2-for-10. Dingle drained both of his attempts from beyond the arc and led all players with 10 points at halftime.

With a three-point play just three minutes into the second half, Dingle gave the Owls their first 10-point lead of 44-34. After Temple matched that lead again at 50-50 with 12:34 remaining, USF came within no fewer than seven points for the rest of the contest.

Alston's second of three treys gave Temple its largest lead of 13 points, 58-45 just before the midway point of the second half. Despite three and a half minutes without another point, the Owls' advantage was never fewer than seven, and they went on to match their 13-point lead twice more down the stretch.

USF's Geno Thorpe led all players in the game with 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field including 3-of-5 three-pointers.

Next up for Temple is its first round game in the American Athletic Conference Championships, set for March 9-12 in Hartford, Conn. The Owls will take on East Carolina in the 8/9 game at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 9 (ESPNU /1210 AM WPHT).

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