Throughout non-conference play, slow starts on offense had been synonymous with Temple and it cost them close games. In their conference opener Sunday, the Owls overcame that narrative within the first five minutes of the first quarter.
Temple connected on its first five field goal attempts and jumped out to an eight-point lead in the first four minutes of the first quarter and extended its first-quarter lead to as many as 20 points. Temple continued to bombard the Blazers with baskets in the second quarter and entered halftime with an 18-point lead.
The Owls put the game into cruise control once the second half started. UAB never managed to bring its deficit to below 15 points in the second half as Temple coasted to its sixth straight conference opener win.
Temple (7-5, 1-0 American Athletic Conference) cruised by UAB (9-4, 0-1 AAC) 97-74 Sunday afternoon at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. Temple’s 97 points is the most it has scored in a conference matchup in head coach Diane Richardson’s tenure.
The Owls opened the game by making their first five field goal attempts to immediately take control against the Blazers. UAB could not keep up with Temple’s offense and found itself down 20-7 halfway through the first quarter after a 7-0 Temple run. The Owls dominated the turnover battle, forcing six turnovers in the first quarter, turning those into nine points.
The Owls’ run forced the Blazers to take a timeout but the stoppage did nothing to slow Temple’s offensive onslaught. Temple went on a 9-2 run following the timeout to push its lead to 20 at 29-9. Guard Savannah Curry finished the quarter by hitting Temple’s second three-pointer to put the Owls up 34-16.
Curry remained the hot hand to start the second quarter and nailed another three-pointer to give Temple a 21-point lead, its largest of the day at that point. The Owls continued their high efficiency as they went on a 10-0 run to push the lead to 47-19.
UAB finally started to gain momentum toward the end of the half as it went on a 13-2 run but still found themselves down by 16. As the halftime buzzer sounded, the Owls held a 55-37 lead and had three players scoring in double figures. Coming into the game, Temple averaged just 62 points per game but nearly matched that number with 55 first-half points against the Blazers.
Temple finally started to come back down to earth in the second half. The Owls missed their first three shot attempts which forced Richardson to call an early timeout. The timeout reignited Temple’s offense as it embarked on a 12-3 run to cement its lead.
The Blazers entered the day tied for 14th in the NCAA in three-pointers made per game and continued their great shooting with ten made threes through the first three quarters. Despite the Blazers’ impressive shooting, it wasn’t enough to keep up with Temple’s offense. The Owls scored 20 or more points for the third straight quarter to maintain its 25-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
UAB started the fourth quarter on fire from three-point range with three straight threes to open the final quarter of play. Richardson called another early timeout to slow the Blazers’ momentum. Following the timeout, the Owls’ defense improved greatly, holding UAB scoreless for nearly four minutes.
After the Blazers managed to bring the Owls’ lead down to 15 points, Temple went on a 10-0 run to push its lead back to 25 and crush any hopes of a comeback for UAB. With four minutes left in the fourth quarter guard Tarriyonna Gary made a layup to reach 1,000 career points.
The Owls had four players reach double figures led by guard Tiarra East’s 21 points. Forward Jaleesa Molina was also impressive for the Owls, recording a career-high in points with 17 and rebounds with 10. Temple’s defense forced 17 turnovers and turned them into 24 points. The Owls also outrebounded UAB by 14, including five more offensive rebounds.
The Owls return to The Liacouras Center for its first matchup of 2025 as they host East Carolina (8-4, 0-0 AAC) on Jan. 1 at 4 p.m.
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