NEW YORK, March 28 (UPI) -- David Hawkins scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half Thursday night to lead Temple to a 65-54 victory over Syracuse in the consolation game of the National Invitation Tournament.
Hawkins scored five points in a 15-0 run early in the second half that gave the Owls (19-15) the lead for good. Two free throws by Ron Rollerson capped the burst and opened a 41-30 lead with 11:39 remaining.
Greg Jefferson added 14 points for the Owls, who snapped a four-game losing streak at Madison Square Garden. Temple again played without guard Lynn Greer, who missed the last three games of his career with a sprained ankle.
Preston Shumpert scored 21 points for Syracuse (23-13), which was facing Temple for the first time since Dec. 2, 1989 and fell to 16-13 in the all-time series.
Temple lost to Memphis and Syracuse to South Carolina in the semifinals.
