Brunson leads Wildcats past Owls

The boobirds in the Liacouras Center were ready Wednesday night for Jalen Brunson, feeling that the Villanova freshman somehow betrayed Temple when he chose to play his college basketball with the Wildcats instead of the Owls, the school where his father starred in the '90s.

Apparently, Brunson was ready for them as well. He responded to the boos, which rained down on him every time he touched the ball, with a marvelous shooting night - 9 of 11 from the field, 4 of 5 on three-pointers - and a career-high 25 points to lift the top-ranked Wildcats to an 83-67 victory before a record crowd of 10,472.

The Wildcats (23-3), in winning their 14th consecutive Big Five game, captured their third straight City Series title. The Owls (16-9, 2-2 Big Five) saw their five-game winning streak snapped.

The 6-foot-2 Brunson, whose father, Rick, was in the crowd, scored 17 of his points in the second half, helping the Wildcats build a 22-point lead, and then quelling a Temple rally that saw the margin shrink to 11 with 3 minutes, 19 seconds to play.

What had to be more annoying to the Owls partisans was that Brunson showed no emotion the entire game. He sported the same passive expression whether he was booed or knocked down shots.

"It felt great to quiet the crowd," Brunson said. "But at the same time, I was playing for my teammates and not the crowd. They were excited for me and I just had to try to keep making the right plays at the right time."

Interviewed after the game, Rick Brunson said there were no ill feelings on his part, and he thought his son "came in and it was business as usual. He plays for Jay Wright and Villanova basketball and all he is trying to do is win for his team."

The display impressed 'Nova coach Jay Wright, who said Brunson had the same kind of attention, though not as hostile, when he returned home to the Chicago area for a game last week. He thought Brunson took the offensive load after Temple tried to deny his top two scorers - Josh Hart and Ryan Arcidiacono.

"He played great [in Chicago], so I knew that this wasn't going to affect him," Wright said. "I just think he took the plays that came to him. I don't think there was anything different than he normally does. He had a lot of opportunities tonight."

Brunson sank a reverse layup in a 7-0 run at the start of the second half to extend a 12-point halftime lead to 19. He converted back-to-back three-pointers, the second giving Villanova a 54-33 advantage with 13:13 to play, and another three-ball gave the visitors a 59-37 lead with 11:28 remaining.

But another freshman, Trey Lowe, got hot from the three-point line and fueled Temple's comeback. While the Wildcats went six minutes without a field goal and struggled with the press, Lowe capped a 10-0 run with a trey and the Owls had closed to 65-53 with 7:19 left. Another Lowe three-ball made it 73-62 with 3:19 to play.

Brunson responded with a short jumper 29 seconds later, and Daniel Ochefu (16 points, nine rebounds) scored six points in an 8-0 run that iced the game.

Temple coach Fran Dunphy admired how Brunson played through the boos.

"I think that's what drives him," he said. "He seized the moment. He was really impressive. And there was nothing cheap about any basket that he got. Every one of his nine baskets was timely, and that's what the great ones do."

Lowe scored a career-high 21 points for the Owls, who also got 15 points and nine rebounds from Obi Enechioniya.

jjuliano@phillynews.com

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