Miller leads Temple to stunning upset of FAU in AAC tourney semifinal
Staff and wire report
Hysier Miller scored 18 points in the second half alone and Jordan Riley pumped in 16 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as Temple stunned second-seeded Florida Atlantic, 74-73, to advance to the AAC Tournament title game Sunday.
Miller scored 21 points total, adding four steals to bolster his AAC tournament record to 13 steals. Shane Dezonie scored nine points and Matteo Picarelli contributed eight points for Temple, which shot 57.1 percent from the field in the second half, including 8-for-13 in 3-pointers.
The Owls (16-19, 5-13 AAC) take on AlabamaBirmingham Sunday, a 3:15 tip-off time at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
Florida Atlantic (25-8, 14-4 AAC) was led by Vladislav Goldin with 23 points, and Johnell Davis with 18.
A Zeb Jackson layup with 1:35 to play and subsequent Joe Bamasile bucket were enough for Virginia Commonwealth to sustain through what had been a back-andforth second half and hang on to beat Saint Joseph’s in an Atlantic 10 Conference tournament semifinal game at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Max Shulga led VCU with 25 points, as the fifthseeded Rams were able to survive a game with what’s been a hot Hawks team, the ninth seed in the tournament.
VCU moves on to face either No. 6-seed Duquesne or No. 7 St. Bonaventure for the conference title on Sunday.
Shulga added three steals for the Rams. Sean Bairstow scored 13 points and Jackson added 12.
The Hawks (21-13) were led in scoring by Erik Reynolds II, who finished with 18 points and four assists. Cameron Brown added 13 points and two steals. Lynn Greer II scored eight points, dished six assists and added a pair of rebounds.
The Hawks had defeated Richmond, the tourney’s top seed, on Friday behind 30 points by Reynolds.
Shulga prevented something similar from happening to the city of Richmond’s other school, VCU, by scoring 19 of his 25 in the second half. The Rams hit three of four free throws near the end to seal it.
The Hawks’ season might not be over, as being an A-10 Final Four team could nab them an NIT Tournament bid.