Temple Upsets No. 25 Florida State
NEW YORK (AP) — Quinton Rose scored 26 points, including two free throws with 2 seconds left, to lead Temple to an 89-86 win over No. 25 Florida State on Thursday in the first game of the 2016 NIT Season Tip-Off.
Shizz Alston Jr. added 22 points and Obi Enechionyia finished with 16 points and eight rebounds for the Owls, who improved to 3-2 with their second straight win. The win was also Temple's third in four all-time meetings with Florida State.
Despite having four players in double-figure scoring, Florida State (5-1) lost for the first time this season.
Dwayne Bacon led the Seminoles with 22 points, Jonathan Issac scored 19, Xavier Rathan-Mayes chipped in 11 and Terance Mann had 10.
Trailing by 12 with 9:26 left in the game, Temple went on a 15-2 run to take a 73-72 lead. The stretch began when Alston made a 3. That was followed by Rose's putback, Enechionyia's lay-in, two free throws by Alston and consecutive 3s from Alston and Damion Moore.
The Owls were able to extend their advantage to 85-80 after Enechionyia's 3-pointer with 3:18 left. But Trent Forrest's lay-in with 77 seconds cut the deficit to one, 87-86.
Florida State had a chance to win, but Isaac air-balled a layup attempt with 4 seconds left. Rose's two free throws sealed the win.
Traditionally one of the nation's stingiest teams, Florida State had developed an offensive potency to augment its taut defense. Entering the game, the Seminoles led the Athletic Coast Conference with a 96.8 points-per-game scoring average. Florida State scored 100 or more points in four of its first six games.
At the half, the Seminoles enjoyed a 41-31 advantage due to their efficient offensive attack. Florida State made 15 of 29 shots from the field in the first half, a 51.7 percent clip. For the game, the Seminoles made 33 of 60 shots from the field.
Temple was strong offensively in its own right, as the Owls shot 46.8 percent from the field for the game.
NOTABLE
Temple: The 2016 NIT Tip-Off marks the sixth time in program history that the Owls participated in the early season event. Temple's six appearances are tied with St. John's for second most in tournament history; Arizona and Duke have made seven appearances apiece.
Florida State: The first of two 2016 NIT Tip-Off games marked the first time since the third round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament that the Seminoles were a nationally ranked team. Following a 62-56 loss to Cincinnati in the third round, the Seminoles finished the season ranked tenth in the nation.
UP NEXT
Temple: Will meet the winner of the West Virginia/Illinois game in the NIT Championship game Friday.
Florida State: Will meet the loser of the West Virginia/Illinois game in the NIT Consolation game Friday.
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