Taplin’s Layup Gives Tulsa 70-68 Win at Temple

Saturday, January 14

Philadelphia, Pa.

3 p.m.

Tulsa

9-7, 3-1

Temple

10-9, 1-5

Tulsa

Temple

Taplin’s Layup Gives Tulsa 70-68 Win at Temple

1/14/2017 5:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Don Tomkalski

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Sterling Taplin's driving layup with 0:04 on the clock capped an 11-3 run to give Tulsa a 70-68 victory Saturday afternoon over the Temple Owls in front of 6,175 fans at the Liacouras Center.

Temple took its largest lead of eight points, 63-55, at the 6:57 mark on a Daniel Dingle jumper. Two Junior Etou free throws and a layup cut the Temple lead to four points, 63-59, before Shizz Alston put the Owls back ahead by six points 65-59. It was at the point that the Hurricane scored the next six points to tie the score at 65 with 4:34 to play on two traditional three-point plays, one by Jaleel Wheeler and one by Taplin.

The Hurricane added five more points in the final 2:50 to close out the game. Pat Birt knocked down a three-pointer to put Tulsa ahead 68-65 at the 2:50 mark, only to be equaled by Alston's trey 0:26 later to tie the score at 68. The next two minutes were scoreless, until Taplin's game-winning layup.

Taplin ended the game with 14 points, 5 steals and 4 assists in 31 minutes, while Etou had team-highs of 15 points and nine rebounds. Birt added 14 points. Alston had 25 points for the Owls.

The Hurricane shot 52.2-percent from the field for the game, including 55-percent in the second half, while also converting 76-percent of its' free throws.

Temple came out of halftime on an 11-2 run in the first three minutes to take a 45-39 lead at the 16:58 mark, as Alston scored eight of the Owls' 11 points, including two treys. Temple took an eight-point lead with just under seven minutes to play before Tulsa began its comeback.

In the first half, Temple led for most of the first 10 minutes before Birt's three-pointer at the 8:45 mark put the Hurricane ahead 24-22. Another Birt trey gave Tulsa a five-point lead at 27-22 with 8:06 on the first-half clock. Tulsa held onto the lead through the next eight minutes to take a 37-34 lead into intermission.

Two Lawson Korita free throws with 3:53 on the clock gave the Hurricane its largest lead of the first half at seven points, 33-26.

Birt led all first-half scorers with 11 points, while Etou added seven points for the Hurricane. Tulsa shot 50-percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three point range in the first 20 minutes.

Tulsa returns home this Wednesday, Jan. 18, to host the Tulane Green Wave with a 6:30 p.m. tip-off time at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.

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