Quick Report: Temple 77, South Florida 65

Jaylen Bond (above) had 18 points and 14 rebounds as Temple won its fifth straight, 77-65 over USF. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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Temple avoided a let-down game with a matchup against the No. 1 team in the country looming on Wednesday, starting out hot against hapless South Florida and surviving a cold spell in the middle to close out its fifth win in a row, 77-65.

At First…
Temple came out of the gates quickly against the last-place team in the American Athletic Conference, utilizing a 12-0 run to take a 15-4 lead not even six minutes into the game. The Owls held a 15-point margin lead twice, only for it to be cut down to nine by the end of the half on a Jahmal McMurray buzzer-beating triple. The Owls made 14 of their first 18 shots but closed out the half 3-of-18 to lead 40-31 at the break. Temple only gave up the ball twice in the first half, and benefited from seven points off turnovers.

Turning Point…
USF managed to narrow the margin to four twice in the second half, making it 51-47 with 14:58 remaining on another McMurray 3-pointer. Then the turnover woes struck again for the Bulls, who coughed it up four times in a row to help the Owls go on a 13-2 run, capped by a Jaylen Bond layup with 9:10 remaining that made it 64-49 Temple.

Standout Stars…
Senior forward Jaylen Bond led Temple with 14 rebounds and also added 18 points, giving him his seventh double-double of the season. His scoring output tied him with sophomore forward Obi Enechionyia, as the pair led five Owls in double figures.

McMurray played extraordinary well, despite not starting for USF this afternoon. The freshman guard led all scorers with 24 points and shot 8-for-17 from the field.

Noteworthy Number(s)…
9: Temple junior Josh Brown dished out nine assists (to go along with 11 points) for the second time this season, tying his career high. That was part of a 21-assist effort by the Owls--a new season high, topping their season high of 18 over Fairleigh Dickinson; senior wing Quenton DeCosey added six dimes and three other players had two apiece.

12: Temple, who came into the game second in the nation in fewest turnovers per game (9.3), only gave it away 8 times to USF’s 20 miscues, giving them a plus-12 margin in turnovers that helped them take 67 field goals to USF’s 49 shots from the floor. The Owls turned those into 27 points off turnovers, compared to just seven in the same category by the Bulls.

Up Next…
Temple (16-8, 10-3 American) vs. Villanova (22-3, 12-1 Big East) (Feb. 17, 7 PM)
South Florida (5-21, 2-11 American) @ East Carolina (Feb. 16, 7 PM)