However, the Leopards couldn’t quite overcome the poor free-throw shooting that contributed to putting them in that large hole to begin with.
Temple made only 22 of 39 foul shots and Navarro made just enough plays in the final 90 seconds to stave off the Leopards 101-98 for a season sweep.
“It’s discouraging that we lost the game, but we were down 91-79 and didn’t give up,” Temple coach Kirby Johnson said. “Navarro’s a good team and they played well. The disappointing thing is we were 22-of-39 on free throws, and you just can’t do that.”
J.B. Conley led TC (6-3) with 23 points but shot 4-of-12 on free throws. Also for the Leopards, Allyn Cooks had 22 points, Temple High School graduate Russ Permenter added 19 and Sean Jones 16.
Guard DeAndre Brown, who scored 45 in Navarro’s win at TC on Nov. 5, paced the Bulldogs with 26.
After a home game against Lackland Air Force Base at 4 p.m. Saturday, the Leopards will host defending NJCAA national champion South Plains, ranked 12th in the country, at 5:30 p.m. Monday at TC Gym. The Texans beat the visiting Leopards 107-77 last week.
“We’ll be looking to compete more,” Johnson said. “South Plains is comparable with Navarro, and we have to get used to these kinds of games.”
Lady Leopards fall to Blinn
BRENHAM - The Blinn Lady Bucs’ advantage on the offensive glass was too much for the Temple College Lady Leopards to overcome.
Blinn defeated Temple 72-64 on Wednesday night to hand the Lady Leopards their fourth loss of the season.
“We didn’t do a good job of defensive rebounding,” Temple coach Kim Sebek said. “They had too many second opportunities.”
Despite allowing Blinn to control the game on the boards, the Lady Leopards trailed 31-30 at halftime. Temple was still hanging around late, trailing by two before Blinn made free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Sophomore Brittany Roberson had a team-high 13 points and sophomore Mareta Bailey and freshman Shaquitta Martin each scored 12. Sophomore Emma Sutten had 11 points and 12 rebounds.
The Lady Leopards (5-4) will be off until they host Lon Morris on Dec. 3 at 5:30 p.m.
