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Avery Brown
Columbia University Athletics / Matt Rostkowski
78
Winner Columbia CU 3-2,0-0 Ivy League
73
Temple Temple 3-1,0-0 AAC
Winner
Columbia CU
3-2,0-0 Ivy League
78
Final
73
Temple Temple
3-1,0-0 AAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Columbia CU 44 34 78
Temple Temple 37 36 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Basketball Takes Down Temple on the Road, 78-73

Lions benefit from 17-0 run and 49 percent shooting in win

PHILADELPHIA — Columbia men's basketball went on the road to face American Athletic Conference member Temple for the first time ever and walked out with a gutsy 78-73 victory at The Liacouras Center on Saturday afternoon, handing the Owls their first loss of the season.

The Lions (3-2) are now winners of three straight and were led by Avery Brown's 13 points and five assists on Saturday. Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa and Jaden Cooper each chipped in 11 points. Columbia was 27-55 from the field and 12-26 (46 percent) from downtown. Temple (3-1) posted 35 percent shooting from the floor, converting on 22-of-62 shots.
 

"The confidence is there from these guys," head coach Jim Engles said in his postgame interview on ESPN+. "I'm really proud of people like Jaden Cooper and Noah Robledo. Those guys stepped up huge. Zine Eddine Bedri stepped up huge today so our bench really came through in a big way. I'm really happy to see that because it generates some confidence going into the next game."

The main story was Columbia's 17-0 run that stretched from late in the first half into the early minutes of the second half. Columbia exploded for 13-straight points late in the opening half. Cooper hit back-to-back three-pointers to tie the game at 37, then Brown capped it with a pull-up jumpshot just before time expired to give the Lions a 44-37 lead at the half. Columbia was 8-14 from three-point range in the first half and shot 57 percent from the field overall.

In the first five minutes of the contest, each team exchanged three buckets. Temple had an early 10-8 lead at the first media timeout. Later in the half, Josh Odunowo's layup with 12:11 left in the first half gave Columbia a 19-18 advantage. Temple's largest lead in the opening half was a six-point advantage at the 2:35 mark. The Owls went scoreless the rest of the way into the break and the first few minutes of the second half.

"We kept playing through it and got hot," Engles said. "We started making some shots there and we were scoring every possession. That was the game right there."

The Lions kept the momentum flowing out of the break, scoring four quick points to make it a 17-0 run carried over from the first half. Temple finally put an end to its six-minute scoring drought with 16:30 left in the game with the Lions leading 48-40.

Columbia's largest lead of the day came with 13:31 to go, when the Lions had a 56-42 advantage. Temple then went on a brief 7-0 run before Robledo nailed a mid-range jumpshot to keep Columbia in front by nine, 58-49 with 11:20 to go.

The Owls got the game as close as 75-73 with 13 seconds remaining but after fouling, Rubio De La Rosa drilled two free throws and Brown added another to close out the win.

Odunowo pulled down a team-high eight rebounds while Bedri grabbed six boards. Columbia out-rebounded Temple, 37-33.

The Lions return home to face LIU on Tuesday at 7 p.m. to open another three-game homestand.

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