PHILADELPHIA – Cutting a 17-point second-half deficit down to five in the final minute made for an exciting game, but the Temple women’s basketball team could not quite complete the comeback in a 65-54 loss to #8/7 Duke on Friday night at McGonigle Hall. The Blue Devils (9-2) were led by Tricia Liston with 20 points, while Brittany Lewis scored 13 for the Owls (5-7) including 11 in the second-half run.
Shey Peddy also scored 13 points for Temple and picked up a game-high six steals along with five assists. Kristen McCarthy added 12 points and Victoria Macaulay came off the bench for eight points and a team-best five rebounds.
The Blue Devils broke a 4-4 tie with an 18-7 run as the Owls relied on three-point shooting early and struggled to get to the basket. Temple came within eight, 26-18 with 4:36 remaining in the half, but it was as close as the Owls would get. Duke closed the half on an 11-2 run with the only Temple bucket coming in the final second, and the Owls trailed 37-20 at the break.
The Blue Devils shot 52 percent from the field in the first half compared to Temple’s 31 percent, and out-rebounded the Owls 23-11. Liston led all players at the half with 12 points.
Peddy and Joelle Connelly combined to lead Temple on a 6-0 run to start the second half and bring the Owls within 11, but Duke then used a 7-2 run to take a 15-point, 43-28 lead at 16:14.
That’s when the Owls picked up the pace and got the crowd of 1,840 into the game with a 15-6 run over the next six minutes to come within six, 49-43 at the midway point of the second half. Lewis scored seven points in the run including 3-of-3 at the line, while McCarthy also hit back-to-back buckets.
Temple came within six once more in that stretch before the Blue Devils used a 6-2 run to pull ahead by 10.
Trailing by eight, 59-51, Temple made the final minute exciting after a Peddy free throw was followed by a McCarthy rebound and putback, pulling the Owls within five. Duke committed a turnover on its next possession, leaving Temple 51 seconds to complete the comeback, but the shots did not fall and the Blue Devils hit 4-of-4 at the stripe as well as a layup to finish the game.
Next up for the Owls is a road game to start 2012, at Western Michigan on Monday, Jan. 2 at 7:00 p.m.
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