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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Temple got what it usually gets from its
zone defenses. The Owls also got some impressive performances from
a couple of players who have been struggling.
All that meant the 19th-ranked Owls beat Maryland (No. 22 ESPN/USA Today, AP 23) 73-65
Sunday in a February non-conference game played with the intensity of a March tournament matchup.
|  | | Temple's Lynn Greer backs down Maryland's Steven Blake. |
Lamont Barnes, who had scored in double figures only twice in
the last nine games, had 23 points and Lynn Greer, who was 2-for-11
from the field in his last game and 0-for-5 in the first half of
this one, scored all 14 of his points in the second half as the
Owls (18-4) won their ninth straight game overall and 20th in a row
at home.
The defense provided its usual numbers, holding Maryland to 38
percent shooting (24-for-63) while forcing 27 turnovers.
"It was good to play a team like this," Temple coach John
Chaney said. "You have to face a team like that to play good
defense."
The Terrapins (17-7), who were coming off their upset win at No.
3 Duke, had no answer down the stretch as Temple started pulling
away.
"It wasn't our defense that lost this game it was the way we
executed our offense against the zone," Maryland coach Gary
Williams said. "Twenty-seven turnovers, you don't have to look any
farther."
Greer scored 10 straight points for Temple as it took the lead
for good. His consecutive 3-pointers made it 53-49 with 7:23 left.
Consecutive jumpers by Mark Karcher, who finished with 18
points, gave the Owls a 59-54 lead with 4:33 left. Maryland got
within 64-60 on a rebound basket by Terence Morris with 59 seconds
left, but the Owls went 9-for-10 from the free throw line over the
final 52 seconds.
"We got some good looks in the first half but maybe we were
rushing too much," Greer said. "In the second half we took our
time a lot more. That was a good test for us. It's a big change
from Atlantic 10 teams."
It was also quite a change for Maryland from what it is used to
seeing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
"We never see zones in the ACC and they play a good one,"
Williams said.
Morris finished with 17 points -- 11 over final six minutes -- and
12 rebounds for the Terrapins, who had won four straight games and
six of seven. Juan Dixon had 21 points for Maryland, which finished
with a 48-30 rebound advantage, while Lonny Baxter had 11.
The 27 turnovers were one off Maryland's season high.
"They played good defense but a lot of our turnovers were
careless," Dixon said. "We played well in the first half and had
a little run in the second half but they had the last run.
Pepe Sanchez had five points, 11 assists and a career-high nine
steals for the Owls, who lead the nation in scoring defense at 53.9
points per game and are second in field goal percentage defense at
35.1.
Temple used a 14-0 run to take a 27-20 lead, but Maryland
answered with a 10-0 run. The game was tied 30-30 at halftime, only
the third time this season a team reached 30 points at the half
against Temple.
Chaney has been hard on Barnes in recent weeks and didn't back
down after the senior forward went 7-for-9 from the field and
grabbed eight rebounds.
"He just showed up today. We gave the ball like we always do.
He was the old Lamont today," Chaney said. "He's been wandering
through the desert for the last three years."
Barnes has his own way of dealing with Chaney's style of
criticism.
"Whenever I leave here and I'm in my dorm, I find myself
thinking about the stuff he says to me," Barnes said. "It makes
sense. He's taught me a lot. You can't just pinpoint one thing."
Chaney said that before the game the team found out that Steven
Wesby, the older brother of freshman reserve Alex Wesby, had died
Saturday night in nearby Bristol. Steven Wesby died of an
"apparent drug overdose" at a party in a Bristol motel, Bucks
County coroner Joseph Campbell said Sunday. Toxicology tests are
scheduled.
"It was a tough situation for us," Chaney said. "Bill Cosby
came in and sat the kid down and we said some prayers."
Cosby was the main speaker in a pregame ceremony that saw
Temple's building renamed from the Apollo to the Peter J. Liacouras
Center after the school's president, who is retiring on June 30.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Maryland Clubhouse
Temple Clubhouse
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Lynn Greer hits the fallaway jumper and gets the foul.
avi: 416 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Juan Dixon feeds Terence Morris for the alley-oop.
avi: 743 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Quincy Wadley gets the last-second basket to end the first half.
avi: 416 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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