PHILADELPHIA -- On the night after Thanksgiving, the Virginia Tech men's basketball team played a real turkey of a game.

The Hokies flunked their first true test of the young season Friday, falling to Temple 61-50 at the historic Palestra in the Philly Hoop Group Classic.

And if the Hokies (3-1) can't blossom into a better offensive team, this could be a long, ugly season.

"We're missing layups," said Malcolm Delaney, who scored 28 of his 32 points in the second half.

"People just got to start stepping up and knocking down shots -- and being more confident and taking those shots.

"Some people don't even want to take the shot. We've just got to get people to contribute."

The Hokies, who trailed the entire second half, shot 29.8 percent from the field.

Delaney had the second-best output of his career, but he was the only Hokie to score in double figures.

"Offensively, we were rather inept," Tech coach Seth Greenberg said. "We've got to post harder. ... We've got to get more people contributing."

Jeff Allen got in foul trouble for the second straight game and finished with six points in 27 minutes. Fellow post player Victor Davila also had six points.

Terrell Bell, Dorenzo Hudson, Erick Green and J.T. Thompson were a combined 2-of-22 from the field for six points.

"We need other people to step up," Greenberg said.

"We've got to establish Victor Davila. We've got to keep Jeff Allen out of foul trouble. And we've got to get one of those wing guys stepping up and contributing.

"Malcolm, he can play better, but I know what I'm going to get out of Malcolm," Greenberg said.

"We've got to get more out of Jeff Allen; we've got to get more out of Victor Davila and we've got to get something from some of those other perimeter guys."

It was the Hokies' second woeful shooting effort of the season. They shot 37.5 percent from the field in a 59-46 win over UNC Greensboro.

Tech has not shot better than 46.5 percent from the field in any game this season.

"We've got to get better on offense," Delaney said. "We've got to make layups. We got offensive rebounds and couldn't finish in the lane."

The Hokies miss A.D. Vassallo, who finished his career as the fifth-leading scorer and top 3-point shooter in school history.

Tech was 3-of-15 from 3-point range, with Delaney 3-of-10. Against UNC Greensboro, Tech was 1-of-13 from that distance.

"We're not a 3-point shooting team, but we've ... got people that can step up and knock down those shots," Delaney said.

Greenberg hopes freshman power forward Cadarian Raines, who has been sidelined with a fractured foot, can give Tech a lift when he makes his debut against Georgia on Dec. 6.

That "will give us at least a guy maybe that can rebound and dunk," Greenberg said.

Forward Lavoy Allen had 18 points and 10 rebounds for Temple (4-1).

The Owls are the only 2009 NCAA tournament participant on Tech's weak nonleague schedule.

Delaney was 1-of-8 from the field in the first half, and Tech trailed 27-17 at halftime.

Delaney scored nine straight points to cut the lead to 29-26 with 16:07 to go.

The Owls answered with a 17-6 run to build a 46-32 cushion with 8:16 left.

Notes

ESPN announced Tech will be part of the field for the fourth annual 76 Classic, which will be held next Nov. 25, 26 and 28 at the Anaheim (Calif.) Convention Center. The other teams will be Oklahoma State, Penn State, DePaul, Stanford, UNLV, Tulsa and Cal State Northridge. ...

Backup center Gene Swindle suffered a torn meniscus and additional damage to his right knee in practice. He will likely miss the rest of the season.

VIRGINIA TECH (3-1)

Allen 3-8 0-1 6, Davila 3-6 0-1 6, Bell 0-5 2-4 2, Hudson 1-6 0-0 2, Delaney 9-21 11-11 32, Green 0-3 0-0 0, Witcher 0-0 0-0 0, Boggs 0-0 0-0 0, Thompson 1-8 0-0 2. Totals 17-57 13-17 50.

TEMPLE (4-1)

Allen 8-9 2-3 18, Williams 2-9 0-0 6, Brooks 3-10 1-2 7, Fernandez 2-9 2-4 8, Guzman 4-7 0-2 8, DiLeo 2-7 0-0 4, Moore 2-3 1-2 5, Jefferson 1-2 3-4 5. Totals 24-56 9-17 61.

Halftime--Temple 27-17. 3-Point Goals--Virginia Tech 3-15 (Delaney 3-10, Green 0-1, Bell 0-1, Thompson 0-1, Hudson 0-2), Temple 4-18 (Fernandez 2-6, Williams 2-7, Brooks 0-1, Moore 0-1, DiLeo 0-3). Fouled Out--Allen. Rebounds--Virginia Tech 38 (Allen 9), Temple 39 (Allen 10). Assists--Virginia Tech 6 (Bell, Hudson 2), Temple 15 (Fernandez 6). Total Fouls--Virginia Tech 20, Temple 19. A--3,750.