Temple Outlasts Georgetown 68-65

        In a rematch of last season's one-point Hoya win, Temple made the most of their opportunity to play on their home court. Behind a career-high from junior guard Ramone Moore, the sellout crowd stormed the court when the buzzer sounded, giving Temple a 68-65 victory. It was a much-needed victory not just for Fran Dunphy and Temple, but also for the Atlantic 10 conference as a whole.

        Coach Dunphy collected his 400th career win for the Owls, who began the season ranked 20th in the country before dropping two of three games in the Old Spice Classic; since then, Temple has won back-to-back games against Maryland and Georgetown. For a conference such as the A-10, where four, possibly five teams were hyped up as NCAA Tournament-caliber teams, but Temple, Richmond, Xavier, Dayton and Rhode Island all suffered through early struggles. This win over Georgetown gives the A-10 its second monumental win this season (Richmond over Purdue), although victory could give the Owls they need to get back on track.

        Moore was the best player on the court; he was hitting from inside and out, on slashes and back-cuts and step-backs and spot-ups from the perimeter. Combined with the Owls' suffocating defense and slowed-down pace, Georgetown couldn't stage a comeback to give them the lead in this one. Jason Clark hit some big 3s for the Hoyas to keep them close. Austin Freeman had a quiet 14 points. Julian Vaughn was probably their go-to scorer in the low blocks where he often established excellent position, but Temple would collapse hard on the senior forward.

        Lavoy Allen, the face of the Temple program, really struggled to get going offensively; he finished 2-of-9 from the field for just 6 points. Allen missed several easy lay-ins from just feet away, but defensively, he paced the interior presence along with junior Michael Eric to prevent Georgetown's trio of guards from penetrating.

        Playing their first home game in nearly a month, Temple will stay at home for a week and tips off against cross-town rival Villanova before the New Year. Georgetown has one last test in the nation's toughest nonconference schedule, taking on Memphis on the road before Big East play starts on December 29th for the Hoyas.


By Corey Ruff - 12-9-10