SMU falls to Temple, exits AAC tournament early
FORT WORTH — The American Athletic Conference tournament was short-lived as the SMU basketball team fell to Temple in the second round on Thursday night at Dickies Arena.
The Mustangs led by 10 early in the game and took a seven-point lead in the second half, but struggled to score late in the game as Temple took control.
Score: Temple 75, SMU 60
Record: 20-12
Player of the Game: On a night when not much went right for the Mustangs, Chuck Harris was the good and the bad. He was the only Mustang to score in double figures, finishing with 10 points, all of which came in the first half. He suffered an ankle injury late in the first half and only played four minutes in the second half. Harris co-led the team with three assists.
Leading Scorers: Harris (10), Zhuric Phelps (9), Emory Lanier (9) and Tyreek Smith (8)
Sequence of the Game: SMU came out of halftime with a purpose and used a Ricardo Wright 3-pointer and Ja’Heim Hudson layup to build a seven-point lead with about 15 minutes left. But Temple would take control of things from there, going on a 17-3 run that included a 9-0 run to lead by seven and never look back.
The rest of the story: As Harris limped to the locker room, the Mustangs limped into halftime, too. Keon Ambrose-Hylton made the free throw after Harris’ basket to put SMU up by six points with 1:40 left. Temple scored the final five points of the half to pull within one at the break. SMU got going again early in the second half, but couldn’t sustain it.
After SMU went up by seven in the second half, Temple responded by making back-to-back 3-pointers to get things going. It was another 3-point shot that would put the Owls up for good.
Smith had a dunk to pull SMU back within six points with just over eight minutes left, but the Mustangs didn’t score for over four minutes as the lead grew back to double digits, that included another set of back-to-back 3-pointers from Temple.
SMU would get back to within eight points with just over two minutes left, but that was as close as it would get as the Mustangs only scored one point the rest of the way.
Notable Stat I: After the Hudson layup to go up by seven points, SMU went the game 2-of-13 over the next nine-plus minutes allowing Temple to not only take the lead but take a double-digit lead.
Notable Stat II: Temple set season highs in blocks with eight and field goal percentage for a game at 51.9%. Temple shot 53.6% in the second half, including 5-of-9 (55.6%) from the 3-point line.
Notable Stat III: The Mustangs got at least three points from all 10 players who stepped on the floor, but only got double-digit scoring from one.
Final Word: The Mustangs limped to the finish line, both in the game and the season. SMU goes 1-5 in its final six games, needing a last-second 3-pointer and overtime for the one win. The second half, especially late in the game, was an issue once again.
While coach Rob Lanier left the door open for more postseason play this year in his postgame press conference, it is likely the end of the season and SMU’s time in the AAC before moving to the ACC next season.
Coach Lanier said: “We started the game with the right energy and approach, but the key is to be able to sustain that. We thought we could wear them down, instead there was a time in the first half where we looked more tired than them. And so credit credit to Temple and the job that they did tonight.
“… All the credit has to go to Temple. They came in winning five out of seven games. They play with confidence and they play with more fight and more toughness. We always say going into games, ‘Who’s going to play the hardest the longest is the team that’s going to prevail.’ And they were that team tonight. So they deserve the credit. I thought we came out with the right intentions, as we always do. I really have enjoyed coaching this group this year. They play hard. They play together.”
