The Owls (4-4) turn their attention to Saint Joseph's in the Toyota Big 5 Classic third-place match Saturday at 4:30 p.m. inside Xfinity Mobile Arena. The Wildcats (6-1) advance to the Toyota Big 5 Championship against Penn on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a tightly contested start on the Main Line, with defense setting the tone on both sides. The Owls limited the Wildcats to 50% shooting through the first 10 minutes, trailing by five.
The defensive standstill continued until Temple found its footing through a key block from Gavin Griffiths, which turned into two points on a fastbreak layup by Derrian Ford. A quick back-and-forth closed the first half with Villanova holding a one-point lead.
The second half opened the same way, with both teams locking in defensively. Aiden Tobiason connected on a long-range shot to lift Temple to a 35–33 lead four minutes into the frame.
Both sides continued to trade baskets, but Villanova seized momentum with a 9–0 run to take a five-point lead. Tobiason led the Owls to that point with a game-high 15 points.
Villanova maintained its edge, pushing the lead to as many as nine with eight minutes remaining. Duke Brennan led the Wildcats to that point with 12 points.
The Wildcats held steady down the stretch, keeping their advantage intact and closing out an 18-point win to advance to the Toyota Big 5 Championship.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- Aiden Tobiason led the Owls with 15 points, marking the third time this season he has paced Temple in scoring.
- Joining Tobiason in double figures were Derrian Ford (14) and Jordan Mason (12). Ford has scored in double digits in every game this season.
- Gavin Griffiths grabbed a team-high six rebounds and has collected 16 boards over his last three games.
- Temple made 13 of 18 free throws, marking the seventh time in eight games the Owls have led in free throws made. The Cherry and White entered the game ranked 36th nationally in free throws made per game and 28th in free throw attempts.
