Web only: Men’s basketball ends losing streak, for now

One bad game is sometimes followed by a great game. That was the case for Temple men’s basketball superstar Lynn Greer. Following a lowly four points in a loss to N.C. State last weekend, Greer

One bad game is sometimes followed by a great game.

That was the case for Temple men’s basketball superstar Lynn Greer. Following a lowly four points in a loss to N.C. State last weekend, Greer exploded for a Liacouras Center record 43 points in a 91-74 drilling of Fordham on Wednesday.

Greer connected on a career-high seven three-pointers. He seemed to hit them from all over the court with hands in his face all game. Greer passed Temple great Guy Rodgers as the third all-time leading scorer in school history with a whopping 1,805 points. Greer trails only Terence Stansbury (1,811) and Mark Macon (2,609).

The win stops a four-game losing streak for the Owls (7-12, 4-3 Atlantic 10). Temple hosts St. Joseph’s (12-6, 6-0) on Saturday at noon. The Hawks sit atop the A-10 Eastern division.

Other than Greer’s hot shooting, Temple got a surprise lift from freshman forward Hawley Smith. Smith, getting extra playing time because of junior forward Greg Jefferson’s suspension, and injuries to big men Ron Rollerson and Kevin Lyde, made the most of his hustle minutes.

The Owls were also without senior swingman Alex Wesby for the fourth straight game (wrist).

Hawley had a career-high 12 points on 3-for-3 three-point shooting in 17 minutes. David Hawkins added 16 points and 9 rebounds. Brian Polk, last week’s A-10 Rookie of the Week, shot 4-8 from downtown for 12 points.

On the downside, freshman guard Nile Murry left the game with a separated shoulder in the second half. He will most likely be out for Saturday’s game, according to coach John Chaney.

For the visiting Rams (8-11, 4-4), they continued their struggle against Chaney’s Owls. Chaney has a career 14-0 record against Fordham. They came into the game riding a three-game winning streak, which included a win over St. Bonaventure, and were led by the hot hand of Smush Parker who scored a team high 27 points with 9 treys.

Michael Haynes had some highlight film dunks for the Rams and finished the game with 12 points. Mark Jarrell-Wright also added 13 points for the Rams.

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