Seniors Go Out with a Bang in 86-76 Double OT Victory Against Tulane

“I’m happy for them individually, for their families, and for the rest of the team too, that we were able to get a win,” said Fran Dunphy after a back and forth battle to the end against Tulane. Dunphy was able to commend his seniors on their hard work throughout the years, as well as their hard work in their last game at the Liacouras Center.

 

Temple may have won by double digits, but this game went down to the wire…twice. The Owls led the 50-minute contest for 42:31, but in the final minutes of regulation found themselves trailing the Green Wave. After Shizz Alston Jr. knocked in the offensive rebound to put the game into OT, the Owls were able to contain Tulane enough to grind out an 86-76 win in the second overtime.

 

Thank You Seniors:

For Dan Dingle, Mark Williams, and Mike Robbins, this was their last chance to ball out on Broad Street. Each of the seniors had considerably large games, and were all able to have a meaningful impact on the game. Mike Robbins, the walk on reserve, had a career high in minutes played with 22 minutes. He dropped 7 points (3-4 FG%) and grabbed 4 rebounds. Dan Dingle had a standard game, he contributed 13 points and had 8 rebounds. Dingle also played all of 3 minutes in the extended game. Mark Williams is the senior that shined. In his first start of the season, Williams went out firing. He led the Owls on the offensive for the majority of the game before fouling out in the second OT. He notched 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.

 

Shizz Still Sizzlin’:

It may have been senior day, but Shizz Alston still led all players on the court. The sophomore guard tapped in the put back that sent the game into its initial overtime. Alston recorded 25 points on the night, but he picked up 13 of those points in overtime alone. He also had 8 rebounds, 2 steals, 5 assists and no turnovers.

 

Too Close for Comfort:

Temple fans are getting too familiar with these close games. In Temple’s last 3 matchups they have all been decided by the final seconds of the game. Temple has had 12 games decided by 6 or less points, in addition to their 10-point victory over Tulane in double overtime. Both teams shot the ball exactly 76 times, but Temple was 40.8% from the field (31-76) while Tulane was only 30.3% (23-76). The Green Wave did have several chances to secure a win, especially from the free throw line. They went to the line 33 times, and 29 times in regulation alone. Temple went to the line only 20 times in the entirety of the game, making it to the line only 8 times in regulation.

 

Catch Them Next:

With an 86-76 victory, the Owls are now 6-11 in the AAC, and 15-15 overall. They are looking to continue this momentum into their last game against USF on Sunday March 5^th at 2:00 pm.