A disappointing day for Owls' Scootie Randall

DAYTON, Ohio - Scootie Randall made no excuses.

In the biggest game of his career, the Temple swingman turned in his worst shooting performance Sunday.

On an afternoon when Khalif Wyatt desperately needed a co-star, Randall missed all 12 of his shots from the floor.

The 6-foot-6, 225-pound recent graduate had plenty of good looks at the basket. But they just didn't fall, and top-ranked Indiana posted a 58-52 come-from-behind NCAA East Regional victory over the ninth-seeded Owls.

"I've had days like this," Randall said. "The only thing that was going through my head when I was missing is keep shooting and do other things to try to help my team.

"As of now . . . you can't really do too much about it. It already happened. So I've just got to move forward."

While his shot wasn't falling, Randall led Temple with nine rebounds, three assists, and two blocked shots. He also tied Wyatt with a team-high two steals.

"He helped us in so many other ways," Temple coach Fran Dunphy said. "It's just one of those things that happens. And he needs to just remember it but move on as well.

"He's been a great guy to coach for five years."

Randall, who sat out last season as a medical redshirt, graduated from Temple in January. Sunday wasn't the only time he has struggled to shoot the ball this season.

But Randall was quietly in the midst of a strong bounce-back stretch.

It was Randall as much as Wyatt, the Atlantic Ten player of the year, who led the Owls as they concluded the regular season on a seven-game winning streak.

When he made shots, Temple usually had a balanced attack. When teams were forced to focus on Wyatt and Randall, Jake O'Brien usually got plenty of three-point looks.

While Wyatt finished with 31 points Sunday, Randall scored all three of his points from the foul line. Still, he remained in the game, seeing 38 minutes of action.

"He tried his very best," Dunphy said. "Sometimes you try too hard.

"But he's somebody you're going to stay with and ride. . . . He's somebody that I feel badly that he didn't make a couple of shots. But he had a great year and a great career."