Damian Dunn's successful homecoming leads Temple past ECU, 71-63

Before Damian Dunn transferred to Georgia's Meadowcreek High School as a senior, he played his first three years of of high school basketball at Kinston High School in North Carolina.

Wednesday night, about 30 miles from his hometown, Dunn put an exclamation point on a successful homecoming by scoring a game-high 26 points to lead Temple to a 71-63 win over ECU at Minges Coliseum. The redshirt freshman guard got half of his points from the free-throw line and went 3 of 5 from three-point range.

The Owls, who beat the Pirates back on Jan. 8 at the Liacouras Center with the help of a game-winning three pointer at the buzzer and a career-high 33 points from Dunn, improved to 12-7 overall and 5-3 in American Athletic Conference play with Wednesday night's win.

Temple held a 28-22 halftime lead, as both teams played a sluggish first half at the offensive end and combined to shoot just 30 percent (17 of 56) from the floor. A three from Dunn and a bucket from Arashma Parks got Temple going in the second half, and those baskets were part of a 7-0 run that put the Owls ahead by 13 before a 9-0 ECU run cut Temple's lead to four at 35-31.

The Pirates got within two at 37-35 on a pair of free throws from Alanzo Frjnk with 14:12 to go, but Temple later took control of the game with an 11-0 run. Second-year freshman point guard Jeremiah Williams scored 14 points to go with game highs of six assists and four steals.

Fellow Temple freshmen Nick Jourdain and Jahlil White contributed seven points apiece, and White swiped.a game-high 10 rebounds. ECU sophomore guard Tristen Newton led the Pirates with 22 points.