Owls Win Triple Overtime Thriller Against La Salle in Big 5 Instant Classic

Wednesday, November 29

Philadelphia, Pa.

7:00 P.M.

Temple University

4-2,0-0AAC

106

La Salle

5-2,0-0Atlantic 10

OT 1

OT 2

OT 3

La Salle

Temple

106

Photo by: Jesse Garber

Owls Win Triple Overtime Thriller Against La Salle in Big 5 Instant Classic

11.29.23 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA – In just the fifth triple overtime game in Big 5 history, the Temple University men's basketball team outlasted the La Salle Explorers 106-99 on Wednesday night, sending the Owls into the Big 5 Classic championship game.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

The game was just the fifth three overtime game in Big 5 history and the first since 1980.
It was the first time Temple played three overtimes since February 11, 1990, an 83-82 win at UMass.
Temple hit the century mark for the first time since a 108-61 victory against Saint Joseph's on December 10, 2019.

BY THE NUMBERS

Steve Settle III recorded the seventh double-double of his career and his first in a Temple uniform, posting 19 points and a career-high 16 rebounds.
Hysier Miller scored 20 in the game, his third contest in a row with 20 or more.
Zion Stanford tallied 15 in the game with seven rebounds. Nine of his points and six of his boards came after halftime.
Temple also placed Jordan Riley (16), Quante Berry (13) and Matteo Picarelli (11) in double figures.
TU had a season-high 65 rebounds. In addition to Settle and Stanford, Sam Hofman pulled 11 off the glass.

HOW IT HAPPENED

In the third overtime, Temple showed its grit, scoring the first five points in frame, never looking back. Berry and Taj Thweatt were both essential in the final five minutes, combining for nine of the Owls 15 points.
It was a close contest early as the score was tied at 7-7 at the first media timeout before a 7-2 run by the Explorers pushed La Salle ahead 14-9 with 12:45 remaining in the opening half. The Owls countered with back-to-back acrobatic baskets by Shane Dezonie and Riley before a hanging bank shot by Stanford gave TU a 15-14 lead in just 80 seconds.
The game remained close as neither team held more than a six-point lead heading into the final media timeout of the frame. The Owls finished hot, led by Miller, taking a 31-30 lead into intermission.
Starting the second stanza, Settle picked up his offensive game, scoring the opening points of the frame on a driving dunk and then following that with an off-balance layup. With the Owls up by three, the Explorers went on a 12-3 run, opening a 46-40 lead at the 13:21 mark.
Undeterred, Temple followed with a 14-4 run of its own, five of the points coming from Stanford as TU claimed a 54-50 edge with 8:02 remaining. La Salle kept within striking distance though the remainder of the game. It looked like the Owls would pull away as three free throws from Riley put TU up by eight, but the Explorers scored the next six points, pulling to a 70-68 score with 19 seconds left. TU made one of two at the line before La Salle hit a tying three-pointer to force OT.
In the first overtime, La Salle took the lead and was up 83-79 when Quante Berry hit a trey, cutting the edge to one with 12 seconds left. The Explorers hit a pair at the line. Calling timeout to draw up a final play, the ball was inbounded to Stanford who handed to Settle. The Glendarden, Md. Native drained it from 28 feet away, forcing another five minutes.

UP NEXT
The Owls take on Saint Joseph's in the Big 5 Classic championship game, presented by MHS Lift at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday, December 2. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.