Posted by: Shawn Sweeney
PHILADELPHIA, PA - After leading for almost the entire first half, the La Salle men's basketball team (10-4, 2-2 Atlantic 10) could not survive Temple's second-half surge, as the Owls (8-6, 2-2) came from behind to hand the Explorers their second consecutive loss. Guard Darnell Harris (Baltimore, MD/St. Francis) was red hot early on, scoring 17 first-half points, but the Temple defense adjusted and held him scoreless in the second half.
After the Owls took an 8-2 lead, Harris hit his first five shots, all three-pointers, to spark a 25-6 Explorers run that gave them their largest lead of the game at 11 points. La Salle sank seven treys in the first half, but made only two in the second half. Fifteen of Harris' points came in the first seven minutes and after the Temple defense stepped up coverage on the sophomore, he was held to just two points the rest of the way.
After the Explorers took a 35-30 lead into the locker room at halftime, Temple came out strong in the second half, ratcheting up its defense to hold La Salle to just 17 second-half points.The Owls forced the Explorers into 19 turnovers, with 12 coming in the second half. La Salle shot just 32 percent from the floor in the second half and 41 percent for the game.
Led by Dustin Salisbury's 15 second-half points, Temple put together a 24-10 run that gave them a nine-point advantage with 7 minutes, 22 seconds to play. After a Steven Smith (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) layup with 6 minutes, 23 seconds remaining, the Owls' defense held La Salle scoreless for the next four minutes, extending the lead to 14 points.By then the game was out of reach for the Explorers.
Salisbury finished with a game-high 23 points, while teammate Mardy Collins chipped in 17 points. Smith scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Senior Jermaine Thomas (Frederick, MD/Thomas Johnson) also snared eight boards, but was held to just three points, which came on a trey just before the end of regulation. Temple's Antwayne Robinson also had a game-high eight rebounds for the Owls, who outrebounded La Salle 41-36.
Harris' five three-pointers tied a career high he set against Temple last season.
The Explorers return home to Tom Gola Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 18, to host Rhode Island at 4:05 p.m.
