Temple Falls in NIT Semifinals

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Miami 60, Temple 57 – Box Score

Tournament runs are difficult. I don’t care if you’re in the NIT, the NCAA tournament, or your local. One injury at the wrong time, one minor shooting slump, and weeks worth of good play can go out the window. Unfortunately, a swirl of those things happened to Temple all at once in the second half of their NIT semifinals contest against the Hurricanes.

Things started out well for the Owls. Tonya Jekiri, Miami’s leading rebounder, left the game in the first half with an apparent eye injury and Temple built itself a 5-point halftime lead. Fran Dunphy’s squad still led by 6 with 12:30 remaining in the game when everything began to fall apart. The Owls went cold from the field (they would shoot below 23% in the 2nd half) and the Hurricanes took the lead with a 14-4 run. Then with 8 minutes left, Jaylen Bond, the Owls’ best rebounder and the backbone of the defense left the game with severe cramps in his quad.

The lone exception to Temple’s unraveling was freshman Obi Enechionyia, who stepped up on the biggest stage of his young career to record a career-high 17 points, 8 rebounds, and a career-high 5 blocks. At one point in the second half, Obi had scored 11 of the Owls’ last 15 points to keep Temple hanging around.

As the Owls continued to battle, with 22 seconds left, Quenton DeCosey missed a pair of free throws which could have cut the Hurricanes’ lead to 1 point. Still, a couple of possessions later, DeCosey had a chance to redeem himself when Miami’s Deandre Burnett missed the front end of a 1-and-1 to leave the deficit at 3. Unfortunately for the Temple faithful at the Garden and watching at home, DeCosey’s potential game-tying three drew iron at the buzzer, ending the Owls’ tournament run and their season.

A missed three-pointer was a fitting way for the game to end, as the Owls struggled from deep all night long, making just 2 of 19 attempts from behind the arc. Will Cummings, playing his final game in a tremendous career for the Owls, didn’t go out how he might have liked, shooting 3-15 from the field (0-3 from three) for 11 points. Fellow senior Jesse Morgan also struggled from the field, shooting 3-10 for 7 points, although he did chip in 7 rebounds and 4 steals.

career-high 17 points for Obi Enechionyai career-high 5 blocks 8 rebounds.

Despite the loss, the Owls can hold their heads high, as the team made tremendous strides this season.

A 17 win difference from a year ago. No other program had a bigger turnaround in men’s hoops the past year than @TUMBBHoops. We’ll be back.

— Kevin Negandhi (@KNegandhiESPN) April 1, 2015

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Certainly, Temple will have to overcome the loss of their formidable starting backcourt to graduation, but that’s a story for another day. Until then Owls fans, hope you enjoyed the ride.