Recap: Temple vs. Towson

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson netted a career- high 20 points as the Temple Owls defeated the Towson Tigers, 72-61, in a non- conference bout at The Liacouras Center.

Hollis-Jefferson also dished out six assists for Temple (7-1), which was coming off a 23-point loss to Duke. Scottie Randall registered a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, Khalif Wyatt netted 11 points, and Anthony Lee scored 10 points.

Jerrelle Benimon had a monster performance for Towson (4-6) as he finished with career-highs of 30 points and 18 rebounds. Marcus Damas added 11 points and three steals as the Tigers lost for the second time in a row and fourth time in five outings.

Temple was able to build an 18-7 lead less than eight minutes after tip-off. The Owls then took a 32-26 advantage into the intermission although it shot only 38.7 percent from the field in the first half. Towson was unable to find its mark early on and missed all eight of its attempts from beyond the arc before the break.

The Tigers refused to go away and Benimon completed an old-fashioned three- point play to cut the deficit to four points with just over 15 minutes left in regulation. Temple then scored six points in a row with back-to-back three- pointers by Wyatt and Jake O'Brien to push its edge on the scoreboard up to 10 points. The Owls converted 8-of-10 attempts at the free throw line in the second half to stay in front and capture the double-digit victory.

Despite the loss, Towson held a narrow 42-40 advantage in the rebounding battle.