A late fourth-quarter push isn’t enough as Temple falls in conference opener to UTSA

Through three quarters against the University of Texas at San Antonio on Saturday, Temple’s offense was nonexistent.

The Owls finally got going in the fourth quarter — scoring 20 points — and suddenly trailed by three in the final 10 seconds.

Temple had two chances to tie the game, thanks to four missed free throws from UTSA. However, the Owls committed a turnover on the first chance, and guard Tristen Taylor missed a three-pointer at the buzzer as Temple lost its conference opener, 50-47.

The Owls (6-7, 0-1 American) shot 28.1% from the field and missed 20 three-point attempts. Taylor led the way with 18 points in her first game back from an ankle injury.

“UTSA played really, really hard,” said coach Diane Richardson. “I don’t think we played hard enough. I think we waited until the fourth quarter to play Temple basketball. We can’t go through the conference like that. That’s going to be the reality and it has to change.”

Next, Temple will visit Wichita State on Tuesday (7 p.m., listen live).

Temple had 11 days off, and its offense showed plenty of rust from the break.

The Owls have struggled with slow starts before and were cold again in the first 20 minutes. Temple missed its first five shots before finally getting a layup from Taylor. However, the basket did not create any momentum.

The Owls made eight baskets in the first half, which was the same amount of fouls they committed and just one more than their number of turnovers. They also missed all 12 three-point attempts.

“We were executing our plays properly, but we just weren’t hitting our shots,” said Drew Alexander, who finished with 11 points. “I think we just need to make our shots.”

The third quarter showed no improvement.

Temple shot 1-for-11 from the field in the third frame, but made 6 of 8 free throws to keep the contest within reach. Though the Owls found some momentum in the fourth quarter, it wasn’t enough to complete the comeback.

Temple finished with its lowest field-goal percentage of the season and recorded no bench points.

Taylor suffered an ankle injury during the Owls’ 84-64 win over Western Carolina on Nov. 30 and missed the next four games. Without its starting point guard and main facilitator, Temple went 2-2.

While the rest of the offense struggled, Taylor didn’t miss a beat.

She led the Owls in scoring in the first half with eight points and was aggressive in hunting for shots. Her calming presence kept Temple in the game during the third quarter, while UTSA (7-6, 2-0) looked to put it out of reach.

The Roadrunners pushed their lead to 13 with 7 minutes, 11 seconds left in the third quarter before Taylor took over. She connected on the Owls’ first three-pointer, then made four straight free throws to cut the deficit to six.

“The one thing about Tristen is [that] she could have one leg falling off and still give us everything she’s got,” Richardson said. “I don’t know the status of her ankle after this; she played 37 minutes. But you can’t tell with a person like Tristen, who’s a dog.”

Taylor’s 18 points came on 5-for-12 shooting.

“I felt good,” Taylor said. “I felt like I worked my way back from my injury, and I was doing the things out there in the game during practice so I felt comfortable and confident today.”

While Taylor was sidelined, guard Kaylah Turner shouldered the offensive load. The junior was named to the American preseason first-team all-conference and showed why while Taylor was injured.

Turner averaged 23 points in the four games, capped with a 36-point outburst against Princeton on Dec. 22. Entering Saturday, Turner led the American in points and three-point percentage and was second in field-goal percentage.

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However, against the best defense in the conference, Turner lost her shooting touch.

The Roadrunners prevented her from getting comfortable on offense, and she shot 3-for-18 from the field, including 1-for-7 from deep to record seven points.