Turnovers doom Temple in Empire Classic opening-round loss to St. John’s

Temple guard Damian Dunn lost control and turned the ball over with 53 seconds remaining.

Dunn’s mistake was just one that contributed to a season-high 21 turnovers for the Owls.

It would be Temple’s undoing in a 78-72 loss to St. John’s in the opening round of the Empire Classic at the Barclays Center on Monday night. The small things continue to hurt the Owls’ chances of an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.

“We’ve obviously got to keep the turnovers down,” coach Aaron McKie said. ”[St. John’s] tried to force you into playing at a frantic pace on both ends. Going down on the defensive end, they want to pressure you and have to make some misses. They want to advance that ball, push the ball off the floor.”

Temple (2-3) will round out its time in the Empire Classic against Richmond at the Barclays Center on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Losers of three straight games, the Spiders (2-3) fell in overtime, 74-71, to Syracuse on Monday.

Temple guard Zach Hicks, who finished with a career-high five assists against St. John’s, made a three-pointer with 1 minute, 29 seconds left to regain a two-point lead. The spark Hicks provided only lasted seconds, as the Red Storm closed out the game on an 8-0 run.

“In this game, you have to be able to get those critical stops at those critical times,” McKie said. “And we didn’t do it. We put ourselves at a deficit.”

The turning point of the game occurred in the first half.

Temple went on a 13-2 run, leading by 25-12 with 7:31 remaining. However, the Red Storm answered by going on an 8-0 run.

St. John’s physical nature began to settle in moments later as center Joel Soriano, who went 7-of-10 for 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, posterized Temple forward Kur Jongkuch at the 1:32 mark and later blocked guard Khalif Battle’s shot with 15 seconds remaining, leading to St. John’s 32-30 lead at halftime.

The Red Storm contained the Owls enough to win.

Dunn, who finished 3 of 12 for 11 points, struggled to find scoring lanes. Hicks scored only 11 points and Battle scored 13 of his 17 points in the first 20 minutes.

The supporting role players were not successful.

Guard Jahlil White, who scored just three points, has struggled to put together consistent performances. Hysier Miller added six points.

The Owls finished 25 of 56 from the field, including eight made pointers. The offense was led by forward Jamille Reynolds, who finished with a career-high 21 points. Reynolds also grabbed eight rebounds and remained competitive while battling Soriano inside.

“After halftime, I just felt I was getting outworked,” Reynolds said. “... I just came back with this mindset to just come and dominate.”

Montez Mathis scored 16 points and Andre Curbelo added 13 for St. John’s (5-0).

The defining factor in Temple’s slow start this season has been simple errors, leading to three pivotal losses. But it is not out of the question that McKie’s squad can turn the corner.

“We’re going to figure it out,” Battle said. “Watch the film and learn from it.”

It all starts tonight against Richmond.