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Temple tops Cincinnati as Damian Dunn is clutch again

Dunn led Temple in scoring with 18 points, followed by 15 from Jeremiah Williams.

Temple’s Damian Dunn shoots against Cincinnati’s Mike Adams-Woods  during the second half at the Liacouras Center.
Temple’s Damian Dunn shoots against Cincinnati’s Mike Adams-Woods during the second half at the Liacouras Center.Read moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer

Damian Dunn proved to be the hero for Temple yet again, helping take down Cincinnati, 61-58, Tuesday night at the Liacouras Center.

An and-one, turnaround jumper from the middle of the paint put the Owls (11-6, 4-2 American Athletic Conference) on top in the final 30 seconds, which eventually secured the win. That shot was Dunn’s fourth lead-changing bucket in the final minute this season.

Temple found itself in a 12-point deficit twice before mounting an impressive comeback. A second-half 9-0 rally earned them their first lead since the opening minutes.

Dunn led Temple in scoring with 18 points, followed by 15 from Jeremiah Williams and 10 from Nick Jourdain.

Cincinnati (14-6, 4-3) brought a more versatile scoring attack with four players making an impact. David DeJulius had 15 points while Jeremiah Davenport, Mika Adams-Woods, and John Newman III each chipped in nine.

Redshirt sophomore Tai Strickland made his return for Temple after missing the last four games due to a back injury. He finished with three points and a career-high 10 rebounds.

Temple is scheduled to visit Southern Methodist on Saturday. .

Williams provides spark

With just under six minutes to go in the first half, then again with 10 minutes, 36 seconds left in the second, then again with over 7 minutes to go, Williams finished tough baskets through traffic and converted each and-one opportunity.

His effort at both ends of the floor, something associate coach Monté Ross has previously said is underappreciated, helped provide some juice for a team struggling to find the bottom of the net.

The freshman guard was the only Temple player to convert on more than half of his shots.

Aftereffects of hiatus

The win was Temple’s first game since Jan, 12, a 69-64 victory over Tulsa. Its previous two matchups — against Wichita State and South Florida — were both postponed due to COVID-19-related issues impacting the opposing teams.

For a good portion of the night, the Owls looked like a team who hadn’t played at true game speed in 13 days. They shot a measly 8-for-28 from the field in the first half but finished at 33.9 %.

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A Williams 3-pointer with 3:45 remaining looked like Temple’s final glimmer of hope. The Bearcats followed it up with a 13-1 run to close out the half including three three-pointers, giving them a 37-25 lead.

But an utter collapse in the second half from the Bearcats, making 5 of 29 shots, opened the door for Temple to grab the win.