Coming out of halftime, Temple was looking for a knockout blow for its second straight win. The Owls had struggled on the offensive end, but managed to head into halftime leading Hofstra by 13. Instead of Temple continuing to pour onto the lead, it seemed like the Pride were going to storm back into the game as they notched two quick buckets.
However, the Owls were able to counter when forward Steve Settle III knocked down a shot and guard Lynn Greer III, playing his first game of the season, followed it up with a jumper of his own. Temple rode the momentum to a 13-2 run to take the driver’s seat in the second half.
Temple only managed to score 27 points in the final 20 minutes of play, but stifled Hofstra’s offense the rest of the way. The Pride shot a brutal 26% from the field in the second half and were never within striking distance for the remainder of the game.
Temple (6-4, 0-0 American Athletic Conference) cruised by Hofstra (8-4, 0-0 Coastal Athletic Association) 60-42 Sunday afternoon at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex. The Owls’ 60 points were the fewest they have scored all year, while the 42 points they allowed was also the least a team has scored against them all season.
Hofstra struck first, burying two consecutive three-pointers to take a quick 6-0 lead. But guard Zion Stanford started Temple’s engine after multiple empty possessions with back-to-back tough buckets inside the arc.
Stanford continued to shine with his playmaking by dishing out assists on three-pointers from Settle, forward Elijah Gray and guard Quante Berry. Stanford accounted for 13 of the Owls’ first 15 points with his scoring and passing abilities.
The Pride’s early-game hot streak vanished after the first two makes, as they got cold and missed their next 11 three-point attempts. Berry extended the Owls’ lead to 19-12 with a driving layup around the midway mark of the first half.
However, the Owls failed to score for the next two and a half minutes, which left an opportunity for the Pride to close the gap to just four points. Guard Jean Aranguren headlined Hoftstra’s offense, scoring nine of its 20 first half points and finished the night with 16.
Guard Jamal Mashburn Jr. pulled Temple out of its scoring rut with a second-chance jumper to give the Owls the lead at 21-15. His high-level shot creation flourished in the mid-range as he led all scorers with 12 points on 4-9 shooting from the field at halftime. However, he went scoreless in the second half, marking just his second game this season scoring less than 20 points.
Forward Babatunde Durodola failed to score in the first half but made an impact on the glass by grabbing six rebounds. Three were off the offensive glass which made all the difference, allowing for multiple second-chance opportunities.
After serving a nine-game suspension, Greer made his Temple debut as a reserve. His first points came off a put-back layup, which capped off an eight point Temple run that put the Owls up 29-18.
Temple endured another scoring drought in the final three minutes of the first half, putting up just two points from the field. Still, the Owls led 31-20 heading into the second frame amid a 12-2 run.
Temple’s scoring woes bled into the second half as its first point came from a Duroldola free throw after three and a half minutes. Mashburn greatly struggled in the final 20 minutes as he misfired on all five of his shot attempts.
However, that lone free throw was all the Owls needed to regain momentum. Offensive rebounds, forced turnovers and a shot from beyond the arc from Berry gave Temple its largest lead of the game at the time at 14 points with 13 minutes left of play.
The Owls have struggled on the glass all season but outrebounded Hofstra 54-39 . Temple took advantage of its 16 offensive boards by converting them into 12 second-chance points.
Temple’s offense dried up once again with turnovers being the main culprit. The Owls recorded three turnovers in the first eight minutes of the second half which matched their total from the opening half. Temple turned the ball over two more times before the end of the game.
Still, the Pride were unable to take advantage of Temple’s miscues. The Owls returned to form and a three-point play from guard Aiden Tobiason cracked the game open to a 20-point lead.
The Owls’ streaky offense continued as they didn’t put the ball in the basket for a four-minute stretch. But once again, Hofstra could not chip away at its deficit, which was the common theme all game.
Greer scored Temple’s final five points with an and-one finish at the basket and a turnaround jumper from mid-range. He recorded nine points on 4-8 shooting from the field and five rebounds off the bench as Temple walked to its second consecutive victory.
The Owls will look to make it three straight wins when they return to The Liacouras Center to take on former Atlantic-10 foe Davidson (8-2, 0-0 A10) on Dec. 18 at 7 p.m.
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