Owls Overcome Struggle to Beat Fordham

The Fordham Rams gave Temple a tough time early, being down just 3 points at half time.

The Owls struggled to generate offense through the entire first half of the game, but turned things around to eventually take control and claim the victory.

Lavoy Allen was held scoreless for the first time this season and saw only a few minutes of action during the second half of play. Juan Fernandez led the Owls in scoring, but came out early when he was poked to the eye. Ryan Brooks also struggled to find the basket in this game as he scored just over half is normal average.

Just beating the first half buzzer, Fordham's Danny Thompson connected from the corner for a three pointer that put the Rams down by just three points at the half. In front of a home crowd, Fordham was in a position to possibly knock off the #16 team in the country.

Fran Dunphy altered the lineup during the second half, playing ten players deep into the bench-- and it paid off.

Temple's scoring picked up when Scootie Randall, Ramone Moore, and TJ DiLeo entered the game for the Owls. The three guards scored a combined 23 points that helped propel the team to victory. Juan Fernandez scored the team's first 8 of 10 points in the second half, but was poked in the eye and left the game early during all of that momentum.

Here's a look at Temple's top performers:

Juan Fernandez (13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists)
Scootie Randall (12 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal)
Ryan Brooks (9 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists)
Micheal Eric (9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists)

Although Juan Fernandez departed from the game early, he still managed to lead the team in scoring with just 13 points due to the struggles of Lavoy Allen and Ryan Brooks. Scootie Randall scored a season high 12 points with four three pointers that came at crucial times during this ballgame. Ryan Brooks managed to score 9 points of his own, but was absent during the majority of the first half of play.

The Fordham Rams put up a strong fight during the first half of this game, but it just wasn't enough to keep up with Temple's overall endurance. The Rams accomplished a number of achievements during the game.

Here's a look at Fordham's top performers:

Chris Gaston (16 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks)
Brenton Butler (9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists)
Fahro Allhodzic (5 points, 5 rebounds)
Rayner Moquete (5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists)

The Rams' defense held Lavoy Allen scoreless and limited his effectiveness early on. Guards Ryan Brooks and Juan Fernandez struggled to score in this matchup as well.

Chris Gaston once again proved that he is one of the dominant forward in the league. His ability to drive the basketball and beat an isolated defender separates him from other average 6'10 players. He led his team in scoring, putting down 16 points on the stat sheet. He recorded another double double in the process, grabbing 10 boards.

Temple (17-3)(5-0) will stay on the road and play the Charlotte 49ers this Thursday.

Fordham (2-16)(0-6) returns to action as well plays against La Salle this Thursday.