Men’s Basketball Falls After Tulsa’s Second-Half Comeback

Thursday, March 13

Fort Worth, Texas

7:00 P.M.

Temple University

17-15,9-9AAC

Tulsa

13-19,6-12AAC

Tulsa

Temple

Photo by: Robin Hsiao

Men’s Basketball Falls After Tulsa’s Second-Half Comeback

3.13.25 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

FORT WORTH, Texas – It was a tale of two halves in the American Men's Basketball Championship second-round matchup, as the Temple University men's basketball team fell to Tulsa, 75-71, Thursday night at Dickies Arena.

The Owls complete the 2024-25 season with a 17-15 record. The Golden Hurricane (13-19) advance to the quarterfinal round and will face No. 2 seed North Texas on Friday night.

Temple built a 42-30 halftime lead after shooting 53.8 percent from the floor in the opening half but could not find its rhythm in the final 20 minutes, going 7-of-29 from the field. Tulsa outscored the Owls 45-29 in the second half to move on to the next round.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Temple opened the game strong, shooting 3-for-3 from beyond the arc in the first five minutes to take an 11-8 lead at the first media timeout.
The Owls used a 15-6 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Shane Dezonie at the 5:28 mark, to build a game-high 14-point lead with 2:13 left in the half. They headed into the break up 42-30, fueled by six 3-pointers on 13 attempts.
Tulsa made incremental gains early in the second half, trimming Temple's lead to eight by the first media timeout. After trading baskets, a Tulsa layup cut the Owls' advantage to four, prompting a Temple timeout with 12:20 remaining.
Although the Owls held the lead past the midway point, the Golden Hurricane tied it on a free throw at the seven-minute mark.
Two late 3-pointers by Tulsa's Jared Garcia gave the Golden Hurricane a four-point edge with 53.6 seconds to go. Temple split two trips to the foul line down the stretch, sealing a 75-71 defeat.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Steve Settle III paced the Owls with a Temple career-high 22 points, including 15 in the first half on 5-of-6 shooting. He also grabbed six rebounds, dished two assists and tallied three steals in his final game in the Cherry and White.
Zion Stanford, coming off back-to-back AAC and Philadelphia Big 5 weekly honor roll accolades, contributed 17 points, seven boards and five assists. He scored in double figures for the fifth consecutive game to close his sophomore season.
Shane Dezonie added 10 points and five rebounds in his final collegiate game.
Temple scored 15 points off turnovers and posted 16 fast-break points.
The Owls had an uncharacteristic night at the foul line, shooting 23-of-34 (67.6 percent). They entered the contest converting 73.8 percent from the stripe and had been shooting 75.8 percent since the start of February.
Plagued with injuries throughout the season, the Owls had just nine scholarship players available against Tulsa, with both Jamal Mashburn Jr (lower body) and Quante Berry (finger) unable to play.
With a 17-15 record, Temple posts its first winning season since the 2021-22 season.