Owls hand VCU loss in regular season finale

Jim Swing
Sports Editor

PHILADELPHIA – Disappointed in his team’s lack of urgency going into the second half, VCU head coach Shaka Smart had to lay it out and play it real.

On the line for Temple was a first round bye in the Atlantic 10 Tournament, a boost in its NCAA Tournament resume and the hope of sending five seniors out on a good note in their last home game.

For VCU, a No. 2 seed in the conference tournament was already set in stone; all the Rams could do was claim a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season title with Saint Louis.

In a game of runs that swung back and forth like a pendulum, things fell right for Temple in an 84-76 win over VCU at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia.

“The reality is, let’s call it what it is, Temple coming into this game wanted this game really, really bad,” Smart said. “They had a lot on the line, Senior Day, NCAA Tournament talk, a bye in the A-10 Tournament and they played with that level of urgency and we did not match that level of urgency, which is extremely disappointing and is something that we will address moving forward as coaches and players.”

The Rams seemed urgent at times, but lackadaisical in other moments. Temple jumped out to a 7-0 lead early on, but VCU responded with an 18-0 run of its own.

VCU’s lead grew as large as 16 in the first half, but the Owls clawed at the lead until it dwindled down to five at the half.

Temple tied the game shortly after the break and took the lead with 14:38 left on a Jake O’Brien 3-pointer. The Owls made just 3-of-11 3-point attempts in the first half, but buried 7-of-13 in the second half.

“Maybe we kind of got comfortable just a little bit and they kind of took advantage of it,” VCU point guard Darius Theus said.

With three minutes left in the game, the Rams went from being up 16 late in the first half to being deep in a 17-point hole that was impossible to climb out of.

A Temple offense that ranks 11th in the nation in fewest turnovers was able to manage productivity on offense and find open shots against a VCU defense that leads the nation in forced turnovers a game.

Senior point guard Khalif Wyatt led the Owls with 30 points, four assists and four steals, while turning the ball over four times. Temple coughed the ball up 13 times, while VCU was no better in allowing 14 turnovers.

VCU managed just five steals and was unable to impose its potent Havoc defense in the backcourt.

“They didn’t let pressure bother them and that’s why they won,” Smart said.

A composed Wyatt said that Temple, like many teams that face Havoc, used seven players on defense in practice leading up to the VCU game.

“That’s how it feels when you’re out there,” Wyatt said. “It feels like seven of them sometimes.”

The Owls gained an advantage at the free throw line where they made 26 of their 31 attempts.  They got a much-needed boost from O’Brien, who scored 19 points on 5-of-8 shooting from long range.

Juvonte Reddic led VCU with 20 points and nine rebounds on 10-of-18 shooting. Treveon Graham had 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists and Melvin Johnson added 13 points for the Rams.

VCU (24-7, 12-4), will play the winner of No. 7 Xavier and No. 10 St. Joseph’s Friday in the Atlantic 10 Tournament in Brooklyn, N.Y. Friday.

“We’re going to have to really take a strong look in the mirror and look at some of the things that we did not do well today,” Smart said. “Certainly address them in practice getting ready for the A-10 Tournament.”