Men's Basketball Loses to Memphis in Overtime Heartbreaker

Saturday, January 13

Liacouras Center

2:00 p.m.

Temple University

8-9, 1-5

Memphis

12-6, 3-2

OT 1

Memphis

Temple

Men's Basketball Loses to Memphis in Overtime Heartbreaker

1.13.18 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

PHILADELPHIA - Memphis' Kareem Brewton, Jr. hit a dagger of a three-pointer with one second remaining in overtime to hand Temple men's basketball a heartbreaking home loss, 75-72. The Owls (8-9, 1-5) had chances to increase a two-point lead with 28 seconds left, but couldn't get a shot to go and Memphis (12-6, 3-2) ultimately closed out overtime on a 7-0 run.

Keys to the Game
> The first half was very much a back-and-forth contest, while the second turned into a game of runs. Memphis led by as many as nine with six minutes left before a 9-0 Temple run made it a close contest the rest of the way.
> Freshman Nate Pierre-Louis had a truly breakout game for the Owls, scoring a career-high 23 points. In one of Temple's second-half runs, Pierre-Louis scored nine straight points.
> The Owls tied their season high with 12 three-pointers, but were outscored by 20 in the paint.
> Despite forcing 19 turnovers by the Tigers while committing only 10, Temple was unable to take enough advantage, finishing with just a 15-11 edge in points off turnovers.

Individual Highlights
> Pierre-Louis added a game-high three steals and five rebounds to his career-high 23 points.
> Shizz Alston, Jr. scored 19 points and hit 5-of-8 from long range while tying his career high with a game-high seven assists.
> Earning his fifth career double-double was Obi Enechionyia with 11 points to go with 10 rebounds, while Ernest Aflakpui grabbed a career and game-high 11 boards.
> Four players scored in double figures for Memphis, led by Jeremiah Martin with 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field.

First Half
> Neither team ever led by more than five in a period that saw two ties and eight lead changes.
> The Owls led for over 16 total minutes, while the Tigers only led early and only by as many as two points.
> With a 6-0 run started by back-to-back Rose jumpers, the Owls led 25-20 at 5:50. Memphis responded with a 10-4 run to briefly lead by one before an Aflakpui layup at the buzzer put Temple up 31-30 at the break.
> Temple shot just 35 percent compared to 45 percent for Memphis, but the Owls forced 10 turnovers while committing just three.

Second Half
> The Owls again led by five early in the second half after an Enechionyia three-pointer at 18:21, but Temple did not score again for nearly seven minutes.
> Meanwhile, Memphis used a 13-0 run to take an eight-point, 45-37 lead with 11:44 left.
> Starting with a pair of free throws, Pierre-Louis exploded for nine straight points to put Temple back up by one, 46-45 at the 9:36 mark.
> The game of runs continued, this time with a 10-0 spurt by the Tigers that gave them their largest lead of the contest, 55-46 at the six-minute mark.
> Down by nine, Temple then had four different players score in a 9-0 run to tie the game for the first time in the second half with three minutes left, 55-55.
> Memphis was able to take four and three-point leads, but Alston hit a trey after the four-point Memphis lead, and Enechionyia drained his third shot from long range to tie it after the three-point lead.
> Knotted up at 61-61, Temple missed two opportunities to take the lead, giving the Tigers the ball back with 20 seconds left. The Owls' defense held strong, and a last-second shot by Memphis missed the mark.

Overtime
> Pierre-Louis wowed the crowd with two three-pointers and Alston hit another, with the third of those putting the Owls up 72-68 with 48 seconds remaining.
> Memphis got a layup from Martin to cut the deficit to two, and the Owls missed the front end of a one-and-one after being fouled.
> The Tigers got two chances at the other end with an offensive board, and the second paid off with the last-second trey by Brewton to put Memphis up 73-72.
> Attempting a long inbounds pass, a turnover on the Owls forced them to foul the Tigers who hit two more free throws for the final score.

Up Next
> Temple remains at home for its next game, a 6 p.m. contest against Tulsa on Wednesday, Jan. 17.