Men's Basketball Falls 76-58 at Tulsa in Final Regular Season Game

Sunday, March 4

Tulsa, Okla.

2:00 p.m. CST / 3:00 p.m. EST

Temple University

16-14, 8-10

Tulsa

19-11, 12-6

Temple

Tulsa

Men's Basketball Falls 76-58 at Tulsa in Final Regular Season Game

3.4.18 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

TULSA, Okla. - A strong comeback effort got Temple men's basketball to within seven after trailing by 24, but the Owls (16-14, 8-10) could come no closer and eventually lost 76-58 at Tulsa (19-11, 12-6) in the final game of the regular season. Temple will be seeded seventh in the American Athletic Conference Championships, and will play 10th-seeded Tulane at 7 p.m. in first-round action on Thursday, March 8 (ESPNU / 1210 AM WPHT).

Keys to the Game
> The Owls were unable to fully recover from their worst start of the season, as Tulsa jumped out to a 24-0 lead in the first 10 minutes.
> Temple did get within seven points on two occasions in the second half, but could come no closer.
> While the number of field goals ultimately ended up close (Temple with 21, Tulsa with 23), it was the Golden Hurricane's 23-of-26 performance at the free throw line that made the difference.

Individual Highlights
> Sophomore Quinton Rose was the lone Owl to reach double figures in scoring with 17 points.
> Freshman J.P. Moorman II came off the bench for nine, including eight in the Owls' first-half comeback over the final 10 minutes.
> Scoring eight points apiece were senior Obi Enechionyia, junior Shizz Alston, Jr. and freshman Nate Pierre-Louis.

First Half
> The Owls found themselves down by 24 after 10 minutes of action, going 0-for-12 from the field in that stretch and committing five turnovers.
> Meanwhile, Tulsa started out 8-for-10 from the field including 3-of-3 from long range.
> The latter part of the period was a different story. The Owls' first bucket by Rose at 9:56 started a 6-0 run, and they closed out the half outscoring the Golden Hurricane 18-7.
> Tulsa did not score a single field goal in the final 6:44 of the half, while Moorman came in hot off the bench for Temple.
> Moorman hit 2-of-2 three-pointers and 2-of-2 free throws while also grabbing three rebounds. He led Temple at halftime with eight points as the Owls trailed 33-18.

Second Half
> Enechionyia capped an early 9-0 run with a three-pointer, bringing the Owls to within seven, 34-27 at 16:41.
> Rose became a major factor in the second period, scoring 13 of his 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting.
> Tulsa pulled back ahead by as many as 13, but Temple continued to stay within striking distance and made it a seven-point game yet again at 8:04, 51-44.
> The lead went back to double digits and stayed that way for the Golden Hurricane, who went up by as many as 21 points in the final minutes.

Up Next
> The Owls will be the No. 7 seed at the American Athletic Conference Championships, facing No. 10 Tulane or SMU at 7 p.m. in first-round action on Thursday, March 8 (ESPNU /1210 AM WPHT).