Temple University Athletics
Thursday, November 16
Charleston, S.C.
1:30 p.m.
Temple University
1-0
76
vs
65
Old Dominion
2-1
1
2
F
Old Dominion
29
36
65
Temple
46
30
76
Men's Basketball Holds Off ODU for Season-Opening Win at Charleston Classic
11.16.17 | Men's Basketball
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Led by 23 points from Shizz Alston, Jr. and 20 from Quinton Rose, Temple men's basketball held off Old Dominion (2-1) for a 76-65 win in the Owls' first game of the Gildan Charleston Classic on Thursday afternoon. It was the first game and first win of the year for Temple (1-0), the last team in NCAA Division I to open its 2017-18 slate.
Keys to the Game
> Temple shot over 50 percent in a strong first half that saw the Owls hit 8-of-12 from long range.
> The Owls led by as many as 19 points early in the second half and would need every one of them to hold off ODU's comeback attempt.
> The Monarchs used a 9-0 run to make it a one-point game (54-53) with nine minutes left.
> After the Owls went back ahead by six on three occasions, ODU got it back to two with just over two minutes left (67-65) before the Owls closed out on a 9-0 run including 6-of-6 free throws.
> Temple hit 20-of-25 at the charity stripe, going 16-of-18 in the second half to help balance a lackluster performance from the field.
Individual Highlights
> Alston made 5-of-8 three-pointers on his way to a game-high 23 points, while also tying for the team high in rebounds with six.
> Hitting 4-of-4 free throws in the final minute, Alston has now made 32 free throws in a row dating back to December of 2016.
> Rose added a team-high five assists along with two steals to his 20 points.
> Obi Enechionyia also reached double figures in scoring with 15 points, adding six boards.
> In his first game back since early December of last season, Josh Brown scored seven points, grabbed five rebounds and dished three assists.
> Xavier Green led three ODU players who reached double figures, scoring 15 points.
First Half
> The Owls stormed out to an early, 23-9 lead after the first eight minutes, and hit six of their first nine attempts from the field including 5-of-7 from three-point range.
> Temple hit a rough stretch midway through the half as ODU used a 14-4 run to come within four points, 27-23 with 6:49 to go.
> With six different players scoring down the stretch, the Owls recovered and closed out with a 13-3 run over the final three and a half minutes.
> Temple shot 51.5 percent while holding the Monarchs to 32.3 percent shooting, and the Owls led 46-29 at halftime.
> Alston hit 4-of-4 from long range on his way to a game-high 14 points in the opening period, while Rose had 13 points at the break and Enechionyia scored nine.
Second Half
> Alston made it a 19-point game by hitting the first shot of the half, but the Owls struggled from there.
> ODU used a 10-0 run to cut the margin to single digits, and later went on a 9-0 run to trail by just a point, 54-53 with 9:05 left.
> Temple had a stretch of making just one of 12 attempts from the field before Alston stopped the bleeding with a three-pointer at 8:07 to make it 57-53.
> The Owls stayed in the lead thanks to their free-throw shooting, but led just 67-65 with 2:10 on the clock.
> Rose gave Temple some breathing room with his first made three-pointer of the game, and the only points the rest of the way were 6-of-6 free throws by the Owls (four by Alston).
Quotable
> "Obviously we played very well in the first half; ran our offense well and made shots. We did everything we needed to do in the first half. You know they're going to make a run; they're too well-coached of a team not to. We lost our poise a little bit and I thought we took some difficult shots. They turned the screws up a little bit which you knew was coming. I thought they played terrific in the second half and we didn't keep them off the glass very well...I give them a lot of credit. I thought Shizz made a huge three, and Quinton did as well - those were two huge shots." - Temple head coach Fran Dunphy
Up Next
> Temple will face Auburn, 83-64 winners over Indiana State, at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17. The game will be televised live on ESPN2, and broadcast locally on 1210 AM WHPT.
Keys to the Game
> Temple shot over 50 percent in a strong first half that saw the Owls hit 8-of-12 from long range.
> The Owls led by as many as 19 points early in the second half and would need every one of them to hold off ODU's comeback attempt.
> The Monarchs used a 9-0 run to make it a one-point game (54-53) with nine minutes left.
> After the Owls went back ahead by six on three occasions, ODU got it back to two with just over two minutes left (67-65) before the Owls closed out on a 9-0 run including 6-of-6 free throws.
> Temple hit 20-of-25 at the charity stripe, going 16-of-18 in the second half to help balance a lackluster performance from the field.
Individual Highlights
> Alston made 5-of-8 three-pointers on his way to a game-high 23 points, while also tying for the team high in rebounds with six.
> Hitting 4-of-4 free throws in the final minute, Alston has now made 32 free throws in a row dating back to December of 2016.
> Rose added a team-high five assists along with two steals to his 20 points.
> Obi Enechionyia also reached double figures in scoring with 15 points, adding six boards.
> In his first game back since early December of last season, Josh Brown scored seven points, grabbed five rebounds and dished three assists.
> Xavier Green led three ODU players who reached double figures, scoring 15 points.
First Half
> The Owls stormed out to an early, 23-9 lead after the first eight minutes, and hit six of their first nine attempts from the field including 5-of-7 from three-point range.
> Temple hit a rough stretch midway through the half as ODU used a 14-4 run to come within four points, 27-23 with 6:49 to go.
> With six different players scoring down the stretch, the Owls recovered and closed out with a 13-3 run over the final three and a half minutes.
> Temple shot 51.5 percent while holding the Monarchs to 32.3 percent shooting, and the Owls led 46-29 at halftime.
> Alston hit 4-of-4 from long range on his way to a game-high 14 points in the opening period, while Rose had 13 points at the break and Enechionyia scored nine.
Second Half
> Alston made it a 19-point game by hitting the first shot of the half, but the Owls struggled from there.
> ODU used a 10-0 run to cut the margin to single digits, and later went on a 9-0 run to trail by just a point, 54-53 with 9:05 left.
> Temple had a stretch of making just one of 12 attempts from the field before Alston stopped the bleeding with a three-pointer at 8:07 to make it 57-53.
> The Owls stayed in the lead thanks to their free-throw shooting, but led just 67-65 with 2:10 on the clock.
> Rose gave Temple some breathing room with his first made three-pointer of the game, and the only points the rest of the way were 6-of-6 free throws by the Owls (four by Alston).
Quotable
> "Obviously we played very well in the first half; ran our offense well and made shots. We did everything we needed to do in the first half. You know they're going to make a run; they're too well-coached of a team not to. We lost our poise a little bit and I thought we took some difficult shots. They turned the screws up a little bit which you knew was coming. I thought they played terrific in the second half and we didn't keep them off the glass very well...I give them a lot of credit. I thought Shizz made a huge three, and Quinton did as well - those were two huge shots." - Temple head coach Fran Dunphy
Up Next
> Temple will face Auburn, 83-64 winners over Indiana State, at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17. The game will be televised live on ESPN2, and broadcast locally on 1210 AM WHPT.
Team Stats
ODU
TU
FG%
.403
.426
3FG%
.263
.526
FT%
.588
.800
RB
35
39
TO
12
13
STL
8
6
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
7
3FGM
5
FTM
4
Pts
20
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
7
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
7
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
4
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