Kent State 81, Temple 77: Derek Jackson scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead the visiting Golden Flashes to an upset win over the Owls.
Jackson, a junior transfer out of Central Michigan, led Kent State in scoring for the second straight game after debuting with 18 against Ohio Northern on Friday. Devareaux Manley added 17 points and Darren Goodson chipped in 12 for the Golden Flashes, who moved to 2-0 for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
Will Cummings scored 17 points and dished out a game-high seven assists for Temple, which blew an eight-point lead late after struggling to close out Saturday’s season-opening victory against Penn. Anthony Lee recorded 16 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks, while Quenton DeCosey contributed 16 points for the Owls, who had all five starters reach double figures and scored all but two of Temple’s points.
Temple took a 42-38 lead into halftime after closing the opening frame on a 7-3 run. Jackson hit one of his three 3-pointers in the game with 12 seconds left in the first half to give Kent State a lift at the break.
The Owls rode seven straight points from Dalton Pepper to a 67-59 with 7:51 to play before the Golden Flashes answered with a 14-2 run to pull ahead by four. A Cummings 3-pointer pulled Temple to within 79-77 with five ticks remaining but the Owls simply ran out of time and Manley iced the game from the free throw line.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Kent State improved to 2-3 all-time against the Owls. … Lee’s double-double was the seventh of his career and his second in a row for Temple. … The Golden Flashes’ bench outscored Temple’s reserves 22-2.
