The team left Orlando with a 3-2 record on the season.
There was little Disney magic when the men’s basketball team traveled to Orlando, Fla., during Thanksgiving break for the Old Spice Classic, where the team compiled a 1-2 record to bring its record to 3-2 on the season. The three game tournament featured losses to California and Texas A&M and a win over Georgia.
CALIFORNIA
The Owls took themselves out of the winner’s bracket portion of the Classic with a 57-50 loss to the Golden Bears. The rust from the 10-day break since the team’s last game was apparent as
Temple had its worst shooting night of the season, shooting a season-low 33.3 percent from the field. Starting junior guards Juan Fernandez and Ramone Moore struggled as they finished with nine and five points, respectively. Fernandez went 2-for-14 from the floor and did not make any of his seven three-point attempts. He got five points from the free-throw line. Moore went 2-for-11 and one-for-five from beyond the arc.
Only two Owls finished in double digits – senior forward Lavoy Allen finished with 13 points and sophomore forward Rahlir Jefferson nearly had his second double double of the season with 10 points and eight rebounds. For the Golden Bears, the starting five did all the heavy lifting as they won despite getting only four points off the bench. Four of California’s starting five finished with double-digit points, with junior forward Harper Kamp leading the way with 13 points.
GEORGIA
The Owls rebounded from the opening loss with a 65-58 consolation round win over the Bulldogs. The newest addition to Temple’s starting five, junior forward Scootie Randall, led the way from beyond the arc as he went four-for-six beyond the arc en route to an 18-point performance. The team’s shooting percentage also improved as it shot at a 49 percent clip from the floor. In a fairly tight game in which the lead changed eight times between the two teams, the Owls received a boost from the bench to put them over the top. Sophomore guard Khalif Wyatt would drop 10 points on the Aggies off the bench. Junior guard Gerald Robinson was the leading scorer for the Bulldogs with 16 points.
TEXAS A&M
Even though this game included the Owls having a 20-6 run in the second half, the team couldn’t overcome poor shooting and the Aggies’ rebounding prowess to lose, 54-51. The Owls had a worse shooting game than they did against California, shooting 31.3 percent from the floor, and they were outrebounded by the Aggies, 45-30. This led to the Aggies scoring 16 points from second baskets. The top scorers for Temple were Fernandez and Allen, who each had 10 points. Junior forward David Loubeau led the Aggies with 13 points, and junior forward Ray
Turner was a force on the glass as he pulled in 12 rebounds.
Brian Dzenis can be reached at brian.dzenis@temple.edu.
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