Even from the tip-off, the Owls looked heavily out-matched by their opponent. This slow-paced game was controlled on all aspects of the floor by the super human athletes that play for the Louisville Cardinals.
The Cardinals got their 20th win of the season by a whopping score of 82-58.
Cardinal guard Russ Smith scored 9 of his 15 first points in the first half. Smith seemed to be on another level compared to the Temple players he went up against. Temple’s Dalton Pepper found his hot hand early hitting his only 3-pointer of the game during the first 10 minutes of play. However, his few minutes of glory did not shine the rest of the game as he went on to shoot 3-10 from the field and and mere 1-5 from beyond the arc.
Like in games past, what started off as a close game turned into a blowout with a blink of an eye. The shooting percentage in the first half can take partial credit for this vast score differential. While the Cardinals shot 62.5 percent from the field, the Owls shot almost half that going 10 for 29 (34.5%).
One Louisville player whose presence shook the Liacouras Center the entire game was sophomore big-man Montrezl Harrell. Harrell’s career high 22 points were made known every time he caught a behind-the-back alley-oop or while slamming one home off a fast-break. Not to mention his 10 rebounds and 4 blocks on top of all that.
Will Cummings led all Temple scorers with 16 points. Anthony Lee struggled defensively while Quenton DeCosey did not show his 3-point shooting ability going 3-12 from the field.
This loss moves the team to 6-17 overall, 1-10 in conference play.
The Owls next play when they host SMU at the Liacouras Center on Sunday at 2pm.
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