With 16:00 left to play in the first half, Temple senior forward J.P. Moorman II connected with senior forward De’Vondre Perry for a dunk, putting the Owls ahead 15-4 against Tulane. It was a lead they would never relinquish.
Coming off an impressive win against Central Florida on Jan. 14, Temple University men’s basketball (3-3, 2-3 The American Athletic Conference) defeated the Green Wave (6-4, 1-4 The American) 65-57 on Saturday thanks to a stout defense that contained Tulane’s ball-dominant guards and a balanced offensive attack.
The game was previously scheduled for Jan. 6 before being postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test among student-athletes within the Owls’ program on Dec. 31, 2020, The Temple News reported.
The Owls got off to an excellent start, outscoring Tulane 15-4 in the game’s first four minutes. Each of Temple’s starters — freshman guard Jeremiah Williams, redshirt-freshman guard Damian Dunn, Moorman II, Perry and junior forward Jake Forrester — scored at least two points during this period, and the Owls assisted all six of their made field goals.
Similarly, the Owls had a productive stretch in the beginning of the second half, this time performing well on the defensive end. It took nearly 10 minutes for the Green Wave to score their first field goal of the second half.
Offensively, the Owls managed to generate points from behind the 3-point line, making eight 3-point shots. Six of them came from the trio of Perry, Moorman II and graduate student guard Brendan Barry.
Dunn played a pivotal role in engineering the offense, scoring 18 points. Dunn also pulled down seven rebounds and had two assists.
Perry’s impact was crucial in the win as well, scoring 10 points and getting seven rebounds and three assists.
The Owls had a significant advantage on the boards, out-rebounding the Green Wave 48-32 in total. Forrester and Moorman II led the team with 10 and nine rebounds respectively.
Throughout the game, Temple effectively spread the ball around the floor, having five different players with multiple assists and three who scored in double-figures.
More than anywhere else, the Owls performed exceptionally well on the defensive end of the floor, as they contained Tulane’s three leading shot-takers, who made only 11 of their 36 combined field goal attempts.
The Owls will play next on Jan. 20 at 9 p.m. against Cincinnati (3-7, 1-4 The American) at the Liacouras Center.
Be the first to comment