Instant Replay: SMU 60, Temple 55

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BOX SCORE

Temple allowed a lead to slip away in the final minutes of the second half of a 60-55 loss to Southern Methodist University at the Liacouras Center on Wednesday night.

SMU’s Nic Moore drilled a midrange jumper and a deep three-pointer on back-to-back possessions with just over a minute left to put the Mustangs ahead for good. Villanova transfer Markus Kennedy followed that with a monster dunk off a loose ball to cap a brilliant performance and the win for SMU (13-4, 4-1 American Athletic Conference).

The loss was the second in a row for Temple (12-6, 3-2 AAC).

Turning point
Temple played frontrunner during most of the second half, but SMU kept chipping away.

With the Mustangs down just one and 2:05 remaining on the clock, Moore knocked in a midrange jumper to give them their first lead of the period.

After Temple’s Quenton DeCosey split a pair of free throws to tie the game, Moore lifted up off a pick-and-roll to nail the three-pointer that gave SMU the lead for good.

Kennedy’s dunk put the exclamation point on the Mustangs’ comeback.

Big men on campus
Villanova would have certainly liked to see this from Kennedy when he was on the Main Line. The big man dominated Temple down low, finishing with 21 points and seven rebounds.

Moore had 10 points, five rebounds, five assists and seven turnovers in the game. Fellow guard Ryan Manuel added 10 points.

Jesse Morgan led Temple with 15 points and DeCosey had 13.

Devin Coleman scored 10 points in a spot start for Will Cummings, who came off the bench because of a strained muscle in his leg.

Numbers game
• Temple stayed in the game during the first half by making 6 of 16 three-pointers. The Owls finished the game 8 of 26 from long range, while the Mustangs were just 2 of 10, the final one being Moore’s game-winner.

• The Owls were handled inside during the game. They were outrebounded 33-23, including 20-8 in the second half.

• Jaylen Bond saw his double-double streak come to an end at three games. He had seven points and seven boards against SMU.

• Cummings fought through the pain, but he clearly wasn't himself. The senior guard scored just one point on 0 for 3 shooting in 27 minutes of action.

History lesson
Temple still holds a 3-2 advantage in the series after Wednesday night’s loss.

The two schools met just twice before becoming members of the same conference a season ago and splitting their two regular-season clashes.

What’s next?
Temple gets another test when it goes on the road to face Cincinnati at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.

SMU returns home to face East Carolina on Saturday at 4 p.m.

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