The Sports Xchange
Nov 17, 2017
Quinton Rose scored 19 points and fueled a Temple spurt late in the second half as the Owls pulled away from Auburn for an 88-74 win Friday at the Charleston Classic at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C.
Rose hit three of his five 3-pointers during a four-minute stretch in the second half that allowed Temple to put away the shorthanded Tigers (2-1).
Senior forward Obi Enechionyia had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Owls (2-0), who advance to face the Clemson-Hofstra winner in the tournament championship game on Sunday.
Sophomore forward Anfernee McLemore had 19 points off the bench to lead the Tigers, who were without suspended starters Austin Wiley and Danjel Purifoy.
Temple 32-31 at halftime, after a back-and-forth first half.
Auburn's Jared Harper gave the Tigers a 56-54 lead with 10:21 to play in the second half. The game stayed tight, until Rose got hot.
Rose knocked down a 3-pointer that put the Owls up eight with 7:35 left. Auburn answered with 3-pointers from Bryce Brown and Mustapha Heron.
But Rose responded with another 3-pointer, and Enechionyia finished a dunk to ignite the Owls' closing kick.
Shizz Alston Jr. finished with 18 points, and Alan Moore II added 10 points off the bench for Temple.
Wiley and Purifoy, two of Auburn's top players, have been connected to the FBI investigation that rocked college basketball before the season and led to the indictment of former Tigers assistant coach Chuck Person.