PHILADELPHIA- The Bearcats came to Philly with a vengeance to say the least. After the Owls defeated the Bearcats on the road, and knocked Cincinnati out of the Top-25, it was bound to be a good game. From the outside looking in, the game appeared to be one of the best of the season. It was a good game, no doubt, but the game lacked quality. Both teams struggled from both the field and free throw line. Temple shot below 50% from the field, foul line, and from behind the arc. Cincinnati shot below 40% from the field and only 6% from the 3.
Temple’s offense may have struggled, but Devin Coleman sure did not. Coleman shot 50% from the 3. In addition to being on fire, Coleman nailed a 3 to tie the game back up with under a minute to go in the second overtime, 65-65. This shot fueled Temple’s momentum throughout the final minute of the game. In the transition from former starter to “spark off the bench” Coleman has been demonstrating true leadership on the floor. Dunphy believes, “…we are probably married to this arrangement for the rest of the season.” Coleman professes his trust in not only his coach, but his teammates, and is humbly willing to do whatever is best for the team.
Devin Coleman may have been draining 3s, but it was Jaylen Bond who sealed the deal for the Owls. With just under 20 seconds to go several Owls tried to sink the game winning shot. With sixteen seconds remaining on the clock, Jaylen Bond grabbed the offensive rebound and nailed the put-back. And that would be the icing on the cake. In addition to the game winning shot, Bond also picked up 9 offensive rebounds and tallied 12 for the night. Quenton DeCosey should not go unmentioned either, he was just 2 points shy of is career high of 24 points. DeCosey finished the game with 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals.
Recently Coach Dunphy has been switching up the lineup in hopes of giving different players opportunities to prove themselves. Ernest Aflakpui certainly proved himself. This game served as Alfakpui’s second start for the Cherry and White. After a lot of speculation on whether or not he would redshirt, Dunphy explained “…Ernest is what changed that…he works the hardest and nobody wants it more than him.” Aflakpui drew two charges and dropped 6 points, he gave the Owls quality minutes to say the least and most definitely “erned” his spot on the court.
The Owls record improves to 9-7 and 4-2 in the American Athletic Conference. After a gut-wrenching loss on the road against Memphis, and an adrenalin rushing victory against Cincinnati, the Owls next game is another big one…a Big 5 game to be exact. Quenton DeCosey acknowledges how they “…can’t take LaSalle lightly, it’s a Big 5 atmosphere so we have to come here ready to play.”
Be the first to comment