College Basketball Roundup : Temple Keeps Its Long-Range Plans on Target

With Temple in trouble against longshot Rhode Island, the Owls went to the long shot.

Mark Macon and Howard Evans hit three-point shots in the final minutes, and the top-ranked Owls turned back the Rams, 68-63, Wednesday night in the championship game of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament at Morgantown, W.Va.

Temple (29-1) had a 48-36 lead, but Rhode Island (26-6) scored 11 straight points to get back into the game.

The Rams took a 51-50 lead on Kenny Green’s dunk with 6:11 left. Evans, who scored 8 of his 11 points in the final 6:11, drove down the middle, was fouled and hit two free throws. His basket with one second left on the 45-second shot clock tied the score, 54-54, and his three-pointer, following one by Macon, gave the Owls a 65-58 lead with 1:30 left.

Tom Garrick, who scored 25 points for Rhode Island and was named the tournament’s most valuable player, hit a three-pointer with 1:16 left to bring the Rams within 65-61. Evans made 1 of 2 free throws, but Garrick followed with two more to cut Temple’s lead to 66-63 with 38 seconds remaining.

Vreeswyk rebounded a Rhode Island miss and made two free throws with 10 seconds left to close out the Rams.

Macon scored 25 points and Vreeswyk added 17 for Temple, which will make its fifth straight National Collegiate Athletic Assn. appearance after winning its third Atlantic 10 championship in the last four years.

Ohio State 71, Purdue 60--Jerry Francis scored 14 points, including 6 in an 11-2 spurt that turned the game around in the second half, and the Buckeyes upset the second-ranked Boilermakers in a Big Ten game at Columbus, Ohio.

It was the fourth time this season that Ohio State had defeated a ranked Big Ten opponent at home.

Purdue (26-3 overall, 15-2 in the Big Ten) led, 47-42, with 12:21 remaining but scored only two points in the next seven minutes. The Boilermakers missed five straight free throws in one span, and Ohio State (16-11, 9-8) took a 53-49 lead.

The Boilermakers pulled within 55-54 with 4:13 left, but John Anderson hit a 15-foot jumper, and Jay Burson scored on a driving layup and free throw to give Ohio State a 60-54 lead.

The Buckeyes hit 9 of 11 free throws in the final 1:13.

Troy Lewis scored 20 points for the Boilermakers and Melvin McCants added 17.

Illinois 85, Michigan 74--Ken Battle and Nick Anderson scored 25 points each to lead the No. 19 Illini (21-9, 11-6) to a Big Ten upset of the 10th-ranked Wolverines (23-7, 12-5) at Champaign, Ill.

The victory was the third straight for Illinois Previously, the Illini had defeated Indiana and Iowa.

Michigan’s Gary Grant was held to 8 points, 15 below his average.