The 2000-01 Temple and Copperas Cove girls basketball teams are a stark contrast from the teams that made deep playoff runs last season, as both squads lost a bevy of talent because of graduation. The series between the teams, however, hasn't changed at all. Cove defeated Temple for the ninth straight time, with the latest installment coming in a 43-40 win at Wildcat Gym Tuesday night. The Lady Bulldogs haven't lost to Temple since Jan. 16, 1997. The loss eliminated the Tem-Cats (7-15, 2-6 District 13-5A) from playoff contention. And the win clinched the loop's final playoff spot for Cove (15-9, 6-2). Killeen Ellison and Georgetown have clinched the other spots. While relieved to secure a postseason berth, Cove coach Skip Townsend wasn't complimentary of his team's effort. "I think our kids knew that this was a game that meant the playoffs and we pretty much choked, from our No. 1 player to our No. 5 player," he said. "We kind of sat back and waited for Temple to let us win. That doesn't happen at Temple. We weren't ready to play this ballgame and Temple was. We were just lucky to win it. I've been in a few close ones over here at Temple, and that's what we expect when we come here." Despite the loss and its playoff implications, Temple coach Susan Brown was upbeat afterward. "I'm very pleased with how we played tonight," she said. "We played excellent defense and shut down a lot of Cove's options. We played with a lot of heart." by Greg Rajan