Temple falls to SMU on the road, 68-52

WIRE REPORTS

DALLAS — Despite jumping out to a double-digit lead in the first half, Temple fell to SMU, 68-52, in an American Athletic Conference game Saturday night.

The Owls’ record drops to 10-7 (2-4 AAC) while the Mustangs improve to 13-4 (3-2 AAC).

Temple enjoyed a strong first half, shooting 60% from behind the arc, but the Owls shot just 24% from the field in the second half.

Jake Forrester led the Owls with 14 points, Nate Pierre-Louis scored 12, and Quinton Rose chipped in 10 points.

Tyson Jolly led SMU with 25 points while three other Mustangs scored in double digits.

SMU took a narrow lead early in the first half, going up, 8-4, with just over 15 minutes left.

Temple quickly took the lead with a 12-2 run over seven minutes and held SMU scoreless for nearly six minutes.

The Owls went up by 11 with six minutes left in the half thanks to a Monty Scott layup.

In the second half, Temple went cold as SMU went on a 10-3 run to go up 38-30.

The Mustangs began to pull away, taking their first double-digit lead of the game with under five minutes left.

SMU went on a late 16-7 run to seal the game. The Mustangs held Temple scoreless from the field in the last six minutes of the game.

Owls shot 24%, while SMU shot nearly 55% in the second half.