Men's Basketball Outlasts USF in Overtime Thriller

Saturday, January 12

Philadelphia, Pa.

2:00 p.m.

Temple University

13-3, 3-1

USF

12-4, 2-2

OT 1

South Fla.

Temple

Photo by: Carli Showmaker

Men's Basketball Outlasts USF in Overtime Thriller

1.12.19 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - In a wild game of runs, Temple men's basketball was able to come out on top in overtime for a third time this season, posting an 82-80 win over visiting USF (12-4, 2-2). The Owls (13-3, 3-1) had four players score in double figures, led by Nate Pierre-Louis with a season-tying 22 points and Shizz Alston, Jr. with 20.

Game Summary
> Huge swings defined the game, with Temple using a 20-4 first-half run for a 17-point lead, and USF using a 27-5 run for an eight-point lead in the second half.
> The Owls then recovered with a 9-0 run and held a slim lead for most of the remaining time, but the game saw four more ties including one at 68-68 at the end of regulation.
> Temple saw a six-point overtime lead narrow to one point with 36 seconds left, but the Owls' free-throw performance made the difference for a second game in a row as they hit 23-of-28 including 4-of-4 in the final 30 seconds.
> USF's Laquincy Rideau posted the first-ever triple double at the Liacouras Center with an arena-best 10 steals to go with 18 points and 10 assists. As a team, the Bulls recorded 17 steals and forced a season-high 22 turnovers by the Owls.
> Temple remains undefeated at home with a record of 7-0, and improves to 3-0 in overtime games this season.

Individual Highlights
> Pierre-Louis went 8-of-8 at the line and added a career-high three blocks to his season-tying 22 points.
> Alston hit 8-of-9 free throws and dished nine assists to go with his 20 points.
> Recording his second career double-double for the Owls was J.P. Moorman II with a career- and game-high 13 rebounds to go with 12 points (career-high 3-of-4 from long range).
> Also perfect at the line was Quinton Rose who finished with 16 points and four assists.
> The Owls were without the services of both Alani Moore II and Damion Moore, both out with left ankle sprains and listed as day-to-day.
> Justyn Hamilton and Quentin Jackson, Jr. both saw their most significant playing time while filling in for the injured Moores, with Hamilton tying his career-high of six points and Jackson scoring his first three-pointer.

First Half
> The Owls were up a point at 9-8 before using a 13-1 run to go up by double digits near the eight-minute mark, and they held at least that lead for nearly the rest of the half.
> Justyn Hamilton came off the bench and hit back-to-back shots late in the run, while it was back-to-back Alston buckets that started the run.
> The first career three-pointer for Jackson capped the Owls' run at 7:17 and gave them a 22-9 lead.
> Temple's largest lead of the half came at 4:18 on a Moorman three-pointer, turning the run into a 20-4 swing that put the Owls up by 17, 29-12.
> USF picked up the pace with an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to nine, but only briefly before Moorman closed out the half scoring five points for the Owls.
> Moorman's final bucket was a buzzer-beating shot from long range that gave Temple a 14-point halftime lead, 37-23.
> Pierre-Louis was Temple's most consistent threat in the opening period, hitting 4-of-5 to lead all players with 12 points.

Second Half
> USF scored the first seven points of the half and turned it into a 27-5 run, completely turning the game around and hitting 12-of-12 from the field over the first nine minutes as the Owls struggled mightily.
> The Bulls took their first lead of the contest at the 13-minute mark and went on to lead by as many as eight, 50-42 at 11:03.
> An Alston three-pointer at 10:40 was the catalyst for the Owls to get back on track. Rose followed with another trey, and Alston converted an old-fashioned three-point play to put Temple back in the lead at 9:25, 51-50.
> Other than two 20-seconds or fewer stretches in the last four minutes, Temple held a lead or had the game tied, but could not extend its lead any greater than three points.
> The game slowed as two USF players fouled out, and 11 of the final 29 points in regulation were scored at the free throw line.
> Two free throws by Alston put the Owls up 68-65 with 47 seconds left, but Rideau drained the game-tying three-pointer with 28 seconds to go. Alston took Temple's final shot at four seconds but his long range attempt missed the mark and the game went to overtime.

Overtime
> Two Alston steals helped the Owls start the extra period on a 6-0 run, capped by a Pierre-Louis layup at 3:25.
> After a USF three-pointer, the Bulls' second-leading scorer David Collins became their third player to foul out, and Moorman later fouled out for Temple.
> Two USF free throws made it a two-point game, 75-73 at 1:33, but an old-fashioned three-point play converted by Rose gave Temple a five-point cushion and the Owls would need it.
> USF scored the next four before Pierre-Louis was fouled in a mid-court scramble for the ball and hit his two free throws for an 80-77 lead at 27 seconds.
> The Owls were whistled for a foul on USF's next possession, but the Bulls missed both and were forced to foul Rose, who stayed perfect at the line for an 82-77 lead with six seconds left.
> Xavier Castaneda hit a corner three for USF with 1.6 seconds left, but the Owls ran out the time on their inbounds play.

Up Next
> Temple heads to ECU for an AAC road game at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 16 (ESPN3 / 1210 AM WPHT).