The Temple Owls were literally unstoppable, scoring on 12 straight possessions in the last eight minutes of a 93-80 victory over George Washington on Sunday at The Liacouras Center. Coach Fran Dunphy’s squad shot 56 percent from the field in claiming a share of fourth place in the Atlantic 10 standings.
The Owls beat the Colonials with a spectacular and balanced offensive performance.
In the first half, senior point guard Chris Clark buried four consecutive three-pointers, which came just after Dionte Christmas made three in a row. Clark, who turned 22 on Sunday, finished with a career-high 17 points – one better than he scored in Temple’s previous contest at Fordham.
In the second half, freshman forward Lavoy Allen took charge in the paint, hitting baskets from all angles, including a putback that started a decisive 12-0 Temple run. Allen finished with a career-high 19 points.
But the biggest contribution came from Mark Tyndale, who scored 15 points in the stretch run. Sergio Olmos also hit two key baskets and finished with 10 points.
The Owls appeared to be on their way to a comfortable victory after a 7-0 run gave them a 59-42 lead early in the second half. GW Coach Karl Hobbs was whistled for a technical foul during the run, which was capped by Allen’s emphatic dunk off an inbounds pass.
Coming into the game, the Colonials led the A-10 in three-point percentage defense, holding opponents to a 31.1 percent clip. With a 17-point lead, the Owls were 11 of 20 from beyond the arc.
But the Colonials, who haven’t won a road game this season, didn’t quit. Behind an unreal shooting effort from Philadelphia products Maureece Rice and Noel Wilmore, GW went on a 28-10 run over the next nine minutes. They actually took a 70-69 lead on a Rob Diggs free throw with 7:49 to go.
With nothing else working, Dunphy switched to a big lineup, replacing Clark with Olmos, who joined Allen, Christmas, Tyndale, and Ryan Brooks on the floor. Olmos got the ball on the low block and scored. Then Tyndale took a GW miss and pushed it all the way to the basket for a layup.
After two Diggs free throws, the Owls went on their big run. The Colonials missed six straight shots and the Owls pushed ahead. Whenever they missed, they grabbed the offensive rebound, while the Colonials were one-and-done.
Suddenly, Tyndale was leading a parade to the foul line to protect a double-digit lead. He finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, and five assists in 40 minutes. Christmas was essentially a decoy in the last eight minutes, drawing two defenders whenever he touched the ball. But he still finished with 21 points on 6 of 8 three-point shooting.
Rice led the Colonials with 22 points, six assists, and no turnovers. Diggs totaled 19 points, while Wilmore sank 6 of 7 threes to finish with 18 points.
Temple improved to 11-9, 4-2 in the A-10. GW dropped to 5-12, 1-6.
If they win their next game at Richmond on Wednesday, the Owls will be three games over .500 for the first time in Dunphy’s tenure. They will also be solidly in third or fourth place in the topsy-turvy A-10. Richmond is 4-3 in league play after winning at Charlotte on Saturday.
One month ago, who would have expected Temple and Richmond to be playing a huge game at the Robins Center in early February?
Well, that’s exactly what’s ahead this week.
Quick Note. Sophomore point guard Luis Guzman returned to the starting lineup for the Owls but played just 10 minutes because Clark was so hot. Guzman said afterward that his injured hip was feeling much better than a few days ago. Guzman, who was injured against Penn on January 23rd, missed the Temple-St. Joseph’s game last week and left after a brief stint against Fordham on Thursday after getting bumped in the hip.
Coach Fran Dunphy Postgame: Listen to Audio
Chris Clark Postgame: Listen to Audio
Lavoy Allen Postgame: Listen to Audio
Luis Guzman Postgame: Listen to Audio
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