Games #60-61. We’re back in DC for a solid double-dip of games at the Verizon Center.
Recaps
Florida’s 67-48 win over American could have been much more is Kenny Boynton, the Gator’s leading scorer, shot better than 0-9 from the floor. He went scoreless, but he took an 0-fer in another column as well — turnovers. Boynton also added 7 assists, and of the nine shots that Boynton took, only one — a shot at the end of the first half — could realistically be considered a bad shot. He took open jumpers in the flow of the Florida offense. He just missed them. That is something the Billy Donovan can live with. Erving Walker, on the other hand, led the team with 16 points. He finished 5-7 from the floor and 4-6 from three. On nights when both of these guys are hitting their jumpers and playing within the Gator’s offense, Florida will be pretty good.
Temple smothered Maryland with their defense in the first half, holding the Terps to 21 points and sub-30% shooting. Things would have been much, much worse had Jordan Williams not finished with 10 points and 9 boards in the half. In the second half, however, the Terps got a spark from their bench. Terrell Stoglin, Pe’Shon Howard, and Haukar Palsson sparked two separate runs with their energy in the Terp’s press. The first was a 10-0 spurt that cut a 15 point lead down to 40-35. After hanging around the 6-8 point range, it was an 8-0 run after the last TV timeout that eventually tied the game at 56. But Temple was the team that made the plays down the stretch. Immediately after a James Padgett dunk tied the game, Ramone Moore pushed the ball the other direction and found Lavoy Allen for a layup and the foul, giving the Owls a 59-56 lead. On the next Temple possession, Khalif Wyatt stole an outlet pass and scored, and the score was 61-56. Maryland would score a couple baskets late, and eventually Stoglin missed a half court heave that would have tied the game.