Temple

Temple vs Cornell: Odds & Prediction

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 10:49:10 -0400

Start: Mar 19 2010 - 12:30pm

Team Previews: #5 Temple -- #12 Cornell

Vegas Odds: Temple -4 Bet at bodog

Why Cornell will win:

Cornell's season is kind of similar to Murray St's, who knocked off 4th seed Vanderbilt yesterday. Conference domination and some impressive efforts against quality opponents early in the year. Temple isn't the type of team that pummels people, so you don't have to worry about a blow out, and so long as Ryan Wittman pops in some threes, Cornell will be in the game down the stretch.

Big Red to Watch:

Louis Dale, G - 12 ppg, 4 rpg, 3 apg

Cornel's senior PG started the season slowly, but has picked it up as late. He had poor games in Cornell's 3 big non-conference losses to Syracuse, Seton Hall, and Kansas. Anything less then 10 points and a couple threes out of Dale probably won't cut it.

Why Temple will win:

Temple has one of the country's defenses, especially against the 3. If that holds true, it will take a big chunk of Cornell's offense away. Unlike Cornell who came close against top teams, Temple actually has been able to win those games.. knocking off Villanova, Virginia Tech, Xavier, etc.

Owl to Watch:

Juan Fernandez, G - 13 ppg, 2 rpg, 4 apg

Temple's at their best when Fernandez is playing their best. He had bad games in 4 of their losses (6 ppg on dismal 21% shooting), and missed the 5th. As he goes, Temple goes.

How it will go down:

Expect a good hard-fought back and forth affair, with a score around the low 60's. In Temple's last loss, Richmond hit 56% threes to only 10% from Temple. Cornell will need to somehow break-through Temple's tough 3-pt defense to win. They won't

Betting Pick: Cornell (barely, I'd avoid this line)

Real Pick: Temple

East Region Preview: Kentucky Done No Favors

Raphielle Johnson — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 01:16:23 -0400

John Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats, who just topped off an SEC regular season title with the tournament crown, were the top seed in the East as expected. In John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins the Wildcats have two likely lottery selections whenever those two decide to ply their trade in the NBA, and Patrick Patterson isn’t exactly chopped liver himself. But for all their talent there is a lack of tournament experience, especially in the role of favorite, and there are also teams in their region who can at the very least make them work for a trip to Indianapolis.

That could start as soon as the second round, with a pair of talented underachievers facing off in New Orleans in the first round. Texas was at one point the top-ranked team in the nation; ever since that crown was knocked off their head by a mediocre UConn team, Rick Barnes’ squad has struggled. Wake Forest had the look of an ACC title contender back in January…and they closed out the regular season 1-5 in their last six games. Both teams essentially find themselves in the same boat: which one is more capable of “flipping that switch” under college basketball’s brightest spotlight?

Damion James, Dexter Pittman and Gary Johnson make up the lion’s share of a Texas frontcourt that can make things difficult up front for a Cousins, Patterson or Daniel Orton. But their issue could be guard play, especially at the point. J’Covan Brown, Jai Lucas and Justin Mason haven’t played to a level anywhere near what they’ll see from John Wall.

The Demon Deacons have a point guard in Ish Smith who can match Wall in the speed department, and the senior also has plenty of experience. But which Al-Farouq Aminu will show up for Dino Gaudio? The body language of Wake’s most talented interior player (they’re deep up front as well) in recent games has not been on par with what you’d expect of a possible lottery pick.

West Virginia, who had quite the argument for being a one seed, is the two in their region. And if you follow the S-curve (with Kentucky being the second-best one seed) that would make Bob Huggins’ Mountaineers the second-weakest two in the eyes of the selection committee…fail. WVU has a number of talented players all in the 6-7 to 6-9 range, and while they aren’t the best shooting team out their this length makes them a monster on the offensive boards (going into the Big East Tournament they had an offensive rebounding rate of nearly 41%).

Da’Sean Butler was the most evident hero of their run to the Big East Tournament crown but he had plenty of help from the likes of Kevin Jones, Devin Ebanks, Wellington Smith and the underrated Joe Mazzulla. They’ll face a team in Morgan State that has two of the better players around most people haven’t seen much of: Reggie Holmes (a lights-out scorer) and Kevin Thompson (a very good rebounder).

The region also included the Mountain West regular season champ in New Mexico, a team that in regards to personnel bears a resemblance to the Mountaineers. Darington Hobson took the west by storm this season, and players such as Dairese Gary and Roman Martinez aren’t slouches either. Wisconsin, who will need to deal with Wofford's Noah Dahlman in the first round, has one of the best coaches in the game in Bo Ryan. That swing offense is a pain to prepare for much less play against. Trevon Hughes, Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil are three players to keep an eye on.

And then you’ve got arguably the best first round matchup of the Tournament, one that makes you wonder what the committee was thinking when seeding both teams (IMO, both were underseeded). Temple takes on Cornell in a 12-5 matchup that will lead to much hand-wringing among most (if not all) pool competitors in the days leading up to Thursday. Juan Fernandez, Lavoy Allen and Michael Eric are just three of the players that the Big Red will have to account for.

Not to be outdone, Cornell brings Ryan Wittman, Jeff Foote and Louis Dale to the table with some of the best three-point shooters around also at Steve Donohue’s disposal. Add in the teacher/pupil angle (Donohue was an assistant on Fran Dunphy’s staff at Penn) and you’ve got a game that should not fail to live up to the hype. Marquette/Washington and Clemson/Missouri also make for intriguing matchups; the first game matches two teams that played well in their conference tournaments while the second will be a test in both teams’ ability to take care of the basketball.

Also, it would be a good idea for Oliver Purnell’s team to not go through stretches where they think that big muscular man wearing #35 (Trevor Booker) is on the other team. The Midwest may be the toughest bracket but this one isn’t far behind; don’t be surprised if more than one of the double-digit seeds moves on to the second round (and maybe even further). Will Kentucky be the last team standing on March 28^th in the Carrier Dome? Possibly, but they’re going to have a serious fight on their hands in getting to that point.

Predictions

Pick: West Virginia

Sweet 16: Kentucky, Temple, New Mexico

Best 1^st Round Game: #12 Cornell vs. #5 Temple

1^st Round Upset Possibility: #13 Wofford over #4 Wisconsin

Scary Underachiever: #8 Texas

Sweet 16 “Crashers”: #11 Washington/ #12 Cornell

Players who can shoot their team to an upset:

G Reggie Holmes (Morgan State), G Ryan Wittman (Cornell), F Damion James (Texas) F Quincy Pondexter (Washington)

East Region Team (one per team):

G John Wall (Kentucky), G Trevon Hughes (Wisconsin), F Lazar Hayward (Marquette), F Da’Sean Butler (West Virginia), F Quincy Pondexter (Washington)

Temple 2010 NCAA Tournament Capsule

Joel Welser — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 00:06:18 -0400

Temple Owls

Atlantic 10 Conference (29-5, 14-2)

Seed: #5

East Region

Big Wins: 11/21 Siena (73-69), 12/13 Villanova (75-65), 1/20 Xavier (77-72)

Bad Losses: 11/28 vs St. John’s (48-55), 1/27 at Charlotte (64-74), 2/6 at Richmond (54-71)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2009, First Round loss to Arizona State

Coach: Fran Dunphy (1-11 in 11 NCAA appearances)

Why They Can Surprise:

Temple was supposed to fall apart with the departure of Dionte Christmas. But they were supposed to struggle last year too without Mark Tyndale and ended up making the NCAA Tournament. Once again just about everybody underestimated the Owls. Coach Fran Dunphy has done a superb job with his team and Temple is bigger than any individual player. Temple is a team that slows down the tempo, plays tough defense, hits the glass hard and rarely commits a foul.

The surprising emergence of the frontcourt has turned this team into something special. Lavoy Allen is averaging a double-double and is even a good passer for a 6-9 forward. But it may be his ability to block and alter shots that makes him so valuable and triggers the stellar Owl defense. Micheal Eric and Rahlir Jefferson are not great scorers, but they are effective rebounders and solid defenders.

Why They Can Disappoint:

The problem with the Owls is on the offensive side of the court. Many times the Temple offense can become stagnant. Ryan Brooks and Juan Fernandez are both capable scorers and shooters, but they can have trouble creating a shot for themselves or their teammates. Brooks is the player who can attack the basket and make things happen, but that is not always the case. The bulk of Fernandez’s offense comes from the outside shot. He is a very good three-point shooter and hits 46.1 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc, but he rarely can create a shot for himself or a teammate in the halfcourt offense.

Who To Watch:

Luis Guzman and Ramone Moore are a couple players who could spark the offense when things are going bad. Guzman is the usual starter and is a very good ballhandler. However, he is not much of a scoring threat and that makes it more difficult for him to get to the basket and find an open teammate. If Guzman can at least be a threat to score from outside, it could be enough to get the offense rolling. Moore is a relatively inexperienced sophomore, but he does have the ability to attack the basket. He does not play too many minutes, mostly due to the fact that he wants to take way too many outside shots, which does not help the problem at all, but he does have the size and speed to attack the basket and at least make the opposing defense move around a little bit.

Probable Starters:

Luis Guzman, Senior, Guard, 4.8 ppg, 3.2 apg

Juan Fernandez, Sophomore, Guard, 12.6 ppg, 2.4 apg

Ryan Brooks, Senior, Guard, 14.3 ppg, 2.3 apg

Lavoy Allen, Junior, Forward, 11.5 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 1.5 bpg

Micheal Eric, Sophomore, Center, 5.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg

Key Roleplayers:

Rahlir Jefferson, Freshman, Forward, 3.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg

Ramone Moore, Sophomore, Guard, 7.6 ppg, 1.5 apg

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 65.4 (254^th in nation, 12^th in conference)

Scoring Defense: 56.8 (4, 1)

Field-Goal Percentage: 43.3 (186, 9)

Field-Goal Defense: 38.1 (6, 1)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.9 (196, 9)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.5 (187, 5)

Free-Throw Percentage: 68.7 (181, 6)

Rebound Margin: 4.6 (43, 3)

Assists Per Game: 14.9 (48, 2)

Turnovers Per Game: 10.7 (12, 1)

Joel’s Bracket Says: First Round loss to Cornell

Follow Joel Welser's Postseason Capsules & College Basketball Previews on Twitter @Joel_Welser and on his Facebook page. Joel will be back in June for his annual Top 144 Teams in 144 Days preview on CollegeHoops.net

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2010 CollegeHoops.net High-Major All-Americans

CHN — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:41:56 -0500

Talk about making an impact. Darington Hobson's first season of D1 basketball was certainly a memorable one. The CollegeHoops.net High-Major Player of the Year led New Mexico to an MWC title by averaging 16.2 ppg, 9.3 rpg, and 4.5 apg. He's joined on the High-Major First Team by guards Jordan Crawford, Jimmer Fredette, and Randy Culpepper, as well as WAC Player of the Year Luke Babbitt.

There are very few seniors on this year's High-Major All-America teams, meaning we should be in for a treat next year. Teams with multiple All-Americans include Gonzaga (Matt Bouldin & Elias Harris), New Mexico (Hobson & Roman Martinez), and UTEP (Culpepper & Derrick Caracter.)

CollegeHoops.net High-Major Player of the Year:

Darington Hobson, New Mexico, Jr

CollegeHoops.net First-Team High-Major All-America
G Jordan Crawford, Xavier, So
G Jimmer Fredette, BYU, Jr

G Randy Culpepper, UTEP, Jr
F Darington Hobson, New Mexico, Jr
F Luke Babbitt, Nevada, So

Second-Team High-Major All-America
G Matt Bouldin, Gonzaga, Sr
G Elliot Williams, Memphis, So
G Kevin Anderson, Richmond, Jr
F Aubrey Coleman, Houston, Sr

F Omar Samhan, Saint Mary's, Sr

Third-Team High-Major All-America
G Juan Fernandez, Temple, So
G Tre'von Willis, UNLV, Jr
G Jahmar Young, NMSU, Jr
F Derrick Caracter, UTEP, Jr
F Chris Wright, Dayton, Jr

Fourth-Team High-Major All-America
G Adrian Oliver, San Jose St, Jr
G Roman Martinez, New Mexico, Sr
F Elias Harris, Gonzaga, Fr
F Tai Wesley, Utah St, Jr

F Hassan Whiteside, Marshall, Fr

Honorable Mention

TJ Campbell, Portland
Osiris Eldridge, Illinois St
Jackson Emery, BYU
Dairese Gary, New Mexico

Paul George, Fresno St

Kyle Gibson, Louisiana Tech
David Gonzalvez, Richmond
Rodney Green, La Salle
Adam Koch, Northern Iowa

Jerome Jordan, Tulsa
Kawhi Leonard, San Diego St

Dior Lowhorn, San Francisco

Mickey McConnell, Saint Mary's

Elijah Millsap, UAB
Dinma Odiakosa, Illinois St

Jared Quayle, Utah St
Damian Saunders, Duquesne

Ben Uzoh, Tulsa

Check back tomorrow for our Mid-Major All-America Teams.

Also: National All-Americans

Poll: Who Will Win the Atlantic 10 Tournament?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:29:31 -0500

College Basketball Saturday Preview: Top 5 Bubble Games

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:33:28 -0500

College basketball is in full momentum mode now with dozens of games each week that have major implications on the NCAA Tournament. All of the games below matter in a big way.

Florida vs Mississippi St - 1:30
-- In most bracketology projections, Florida has been left out of the field in recent weeks while MSU has been in. That could all change this weekend as the Gators host an MSU team that has lost 3 of 4. Its conceivable that only 1 of these two teams make the dance, and that this game is a strong deciding factor.

Illinois vs #5 Michigan St - 9:00 ESPN
-- Despite subpar success in non-conference play, the Illini can still make the dance with a strong showing in Big Ten play. At 7-3, they're seemingly on their way to a strong finish.. however, look closer and they haven't beaten a .500 or better Big Ten team yet. Saturday's their big chance.

Richmond vs #17 Temple - 2:00 ESPNU
-- At 37 in the RPI, with wins over Mississippi St, Missouri, Florida, and Old Dominion.. you'd think Richmond was a tournament lock. But the A10 isnt the ACC, and dont think that the tournament committee isn't biased. With tough games remaining at Xavier, at Charlotte, and at Rhode Island, Richmond needs a win here in the worst way.

Virginia vs Wake Forest - 12:00
-- Virginia, to the surprise of many, is only a half-game out of the ACC lead. A win here against a quality Wake Forest team would do wonders for Tony Bennett and the Cavs. After Wake, Virginia plays 4 of 5 on the road, and then faces Duke followinf that streak.. meaning, wins will be harder to come by in recent weeks. This is simply a big game all-around.

Xavier at Dayton - 12:00 ESPN2
-- Coming into the season, Dayton was the consensus pick to win the A10. But a host of teams, including 8-1 Xavier, are ahead of 4-3 Dayton at this point. This has knocked the Flyers out of the Bubble in many projections, but they're far from out of the Tourney race. Dayton has a chance to make a statement this week with games against Xavier & Charlotte.

Others
Arizona at Washington St
Arizona St at Washington
Clemson at Virginia Tech
Old Dominion at VCU
Oklahoma St at Texas Tech
Tulsa at UTEP

College Hoops Wednesday Recap: NC State Knocks Off Duke

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:41:28 -0500

Tracy Smith, a native of Durham, celebrated his 22nd birthday with one of the best games of his career in leading NC State to an 88-74 win over #7 Duke. Smith made ten of his twelve field goal attempts in scoring 23 points and as a team the Wolfpack shot a blistering 58.2% from the field. "Our defense was the worst it's been all year," lamented Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski following the game. "Obviously, our big guys weren't on like they were the last two games. Why does that happen? I don't know. But it's not just them. I didn't think that we as a group played at the level we needed to play at" (quote courtesy of GoPack.com). All five Wolfpack starters scored in double figures while the majority of Duke's points came from the trio of Kyle Singler (22 points), Jon Scheyer (21 points) and Nolan Smith (18 points).

As a team the Blue Devils shot just 38.6% from the field in losing their third road game of the season (Duke has yet to win a true road game). But even with an off shooting night Duke's defense is normally good enough to keep them in most of the games that they play. That wasn't the case on Wednesday with Smith and Dennis Horner combining to score forty-three points while the Blue Devils' four-man rotation (Thomas, the Plumlee brothers and Zoubek) combined to score just thirteen. While this will be looked at as a disappointing loss for the Blue Devils, the importance of this win for Coach Lowe's (his birthday is on Thursday) program can't be stressed enough. In need of tangible evidence of progress, NC State turned to a Durham native in pulling off the upset.

Three Key Happenings

1. UTEP ends Memphis' 64-game Conference USA win streak. There was a good amount of talk going into Wednesday's matchup between the Miners and Tigers in regards to the win streak enjoyed in league play by Memphis. UTEP head coach Tony Barbee was on the sideline with John Calipari for a few of those sixty-four wins and he wanted nothing more than to be the man who ended the streak. That goal was accomplished at FedEx Forum thanks in large part to the play of Jeremy Williams. Williams scored 18 points and also had 12 rebounds and Randy Culpepper made a few big plays late in the 72-67 win. Elliot Williams led the Tigers, who will remain tied with Kentucky (1945-50) for the record, with 23 points but their inability to get him the ball late may have cost a chance to win the game but the true cause is rather obvious.

UTEP's bench was the difference, with their reserves outscoring Memphis' subs 33-10. Willie Kemp made just two of nine shots from the field and Will Coleman got just three shots, and that became a big deal with the other four starters scoring a combined 34 points. But while the loss is certainly a disappointment, the Tigers' lack of depth going into the season guaranteed that there would be some bumps in the road. UTEP's depth covered for sometimes questionable shot selection, and at best their win simply proves that the race for the title will be wide-open.

2. Two streaks end in the Big East. In regards to the race for the Big East title Georgetown's win at Pittsburgh, ending the Panthers' 31-game home win streak, holds far more importance. But the feel-good story of the night came from Chicago, where DePaul took advantage of poor foul shooting to knock off Marquette. The 51-50 win, delivered when Mike Stovall hit a jumper with seven tenths of a second remaining, ended the Blue Demons' 24-game Big East (regular season) losing streak. For the second time this season the Golden Eagles did themselves in at the charity stripe (at West Virginia) and the win affords Tracy Webster's team the ability to simply play basketball without the streak hanging over their heads.

As for the Hoyas Chris Wright scored 27 points in leading them to the 74-66 win, leaving Villanova in sole possession of first place in the Big East. A back and forth affair took place in front of the Oakland Zoo and the Peterson Events Center is an arena that most teams are lucky to escape with a 10-point defeat much less a win. Greg Monroe added another double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds) and Julian Vaughn led the team in assists with six while Pitt's Ashton Gibbs shot a frigid 3-for-16 from the field (8 points). Four Georgetown starters reached double figures while the Panthers had two players (starter Jermaine Dixon and reserve Gilbert Brown) surpass the 10-point mark. Now 5-2 in Big East play the Hoyas are right in the thick of things atop the standings, avoiding their third loss this early in the conference slate.

3. Temple stamps itself the early favorite in the Atlantic 10. In the game of the night in the Atlantic 10 the Owls took the lead early and did enough to withstand numerous Musketeer runs in winning 77-72 at the Liacouras Center. Temple, the Atlantic 10's lone undefeated (4-0 in league play), has won three straight and five out of the last six meetings with Xavier and is the early favorite with all teams having played at least four conference games. While Juan Fernandez and Lavoy Allen tend to get the lion's share of attention nationally the leader on Wednesday night was Ryan Brooks, who led the way with a game-high 22 points.

Temple made 59.2% of their shots from the field and seventeen of their twenty-nine baskets were assisted (twelve turnovers). Xavier, who was led in scoring by Jordan Crawford (18 points), made just nine of twenty-four shots from behind the arc and finished with eleven assists to thirteen turnovers. Fran Dunphy's team is tough to defend not just because of the number of scoring options (four starters reached double figures) but also because they value the basketball, leading the A-10 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.4). As the season wears on this is going to be one tough team for the rest of the conference to deal with.

Top Three Games

1. DePaul 51, Marquette 50 See above.

2. Kansas 81, Baylor 75 Sherron Collins led the Jayhawks to their 53rd consecutive home win with 28 points, including a huge three with just over a minute left. Baylor, who has never won in Lawrence, was led by LaceDarius Dunn (27 points).

3. UAB 57, Southern Miss 56 Thanks to an Aaron Johnson jumper with six seconds remaining the Blazers avoided a devastating home loss to the Golden Eagles. Elijah Millsap led the winners with fourteen points while Southern Miss' Gary Flowers led all scorers with 25 points (and ten rebounds).

Three Notable Performances

1. F Luke Babbitt (Nevada) If he wasn't considered to be one of the best players out west then he's rapidly becoming one. The sophomore posted a double-double with 29 points and ten rebounds in the Wolf Pack's 88-82 win at Boise State.

2. G Kevin Palmer (Texas A&M-Corpus Christi) Palmer put up yet another exemplary performance, scoring 32 points while also grabbing five rebounds and five steals in the Islanders' 81-64 win over Lamar.

3. F Marshall Moses (Oklahoma State) Moses scored 20 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in the Cowboys' 90-78 win over Colorado, ending their two-game losing streak.

Poll: How Many Atlantic 10 Teams Will Make NCAA Tournament?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:38:00 -0500

#17 Temple vs Xavier: GameNight Preview

Blake Hofstad — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:19:50 -0500

Start: Jan 20 2010 - 7:19pm

When looking at a map of the Division I college basketball programs, the East Coast is peppered with the vast majority of the schools who belong amongst the nation's elite. Smaller conferences with smaller rivalries abound out East. One league reigns supreme in terms of consistent production, and that’s the Atlantic-10. This season, five bids is not only a distinct possibility, at this junction in the season, it’s almost likely. Both Xavier (12-5, 4-0), and #16 Temple (15-3 3-0) boast tremendous computer numbers (14th & 11th in RPI respectively), numbers that alone should guarantee them a spot in the NCAA Tournament, for now at least. In fact, many experts in the field of bracketology have five A-10 teams going dancing. At first glance, that’s crazy, but not after some research. Here’s a chance for Xavier to solidify it’s position in the Tournament, while Temple is out to prove that it is the team to beat in the conference.

This was not supposed to be Temple’s year. For years they had thrived under fiery coach John Chaney, going to a few Elite Eights. After his retirement in 2006, the Owls underwent a massive change of scenery with the appointment of Fran Dunphy, a much less imposing figure than his predecessor. But Dunphy has led Temple to two straight NCAA Tournament berths. Despite losing standout guard Dionte Christmas, this is suiting up to be Temple’s best year with Dunphy at the helm, returning to national prominence under a more balanced scoring attack, led by double-double machine Lavoy Allen, three point ace Juan Fernandez and senior slasher Ryan Brooks. Allen is picking up where he left off a year ago, consistently contributing 10 and 10. The increased scoring role of Brooks isn’t a huge surprise, considering he stepped into the role vacated by Christmas. But Fernandez, one of the nation’s best shooters and perhaps the driving force behind Temple’s big win over Villanova (33 points) is the pleasant surprise on the roster. His play has picked up as of late, going for double digits in 9 of Temple’s last 10 games. Rounding out the thirty minute club is senior point guard Luis Guzman. Although Guzman doesn’t score nearly as much as the other three, he is a strong rebounder, good passer and steady ball handler. Freshmen Rahlir Jefferson and Ramone Moore bolster depth, both providing solid rebounding as well as some scoring. Big Nigerian Michael Eric is a work in progress, but the lanky center has shown some major promise. Craig Williams is a straight up jump shooter.

Xavier, too, wasn’t supposed to be this good. After coach Sean Miller, who had retained a strong standard of success that started with Skip Prosser and continued with Thad Matta. Chris Mack looks to continue that success, guiding the Musketeers to a 4-0 record in Atlantic-10 play thus far, including a win over rival Dayton. He also won his first Crosstown Shootout, as Terrell Holloway and the Muskies ousted Lance Stephenson’s Bearcats in double overtime. Indiana transfer and Youtube sensation Jordan Crawford has proven he can play, leading the Atlantic-10 in scoring. Terrell Holloway, whose consistent play a year ago was one of the reasons the loss of Drew Lavender didn’t sting so much, is having an excellent sophomore campaign. He’s second on the team in scoring and has a great assist/turnover ratio. Jason Love has transformed into a beast of a rebounder, really taking his game to the next level and stepping up to the challenge that was presented by being the team’s leading returning scorer. Dante Jackson, as well, has been a fantastic shooter, rarely missing and playing solid defense. Brad Redford takes over 90% of his shots from beyond the arc, and he does it well, connecting on 48% of those. Jamel McLean and Kenny Frease provide low post depth. McLean thrives on getting to the free throw line, while the monstrous Frease is an enforcer. Mark Lyons is another viable guard option, giving Coach Mack another ball handler and distributor, as well as someone who can score.

Temple at home is tough. The last time these two teams played, the Owls upset the highly ranked Musketeers 55-53 in the Atlantic-10 Tournament, and Xavier hasn’t won on Temple’s turf since 2004. The Owls win, to the tune of 73-64.

College Hoops Saturday: Your Commentary

Raphielle Johnson — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 00:21:40 -0500

Saturday will feature one of the game's biggest rivalries when Louisville visits Kentucky in Lexington. The two fan bases are at each other's throats for 365 days a year with the winners owning bragging rights for the following year. Expect Rick Pitino, who's been a polarizing figure in the state ever since he took the Louisville job following a tough time with the Celtics which was preceded by an outstanding run in Lexington, to get an earful at Rupp Arena. The court case against Karen Sypher will play a major role in that, but this will be about the players on the floor as opposed to the coaches.

John Calipari has arguably the best point guard in the nation in freshman John Wall, and if Louisville has any designs on winning the game they need to slow him down. The full-court pressure that's normally used to speed opponents up may have to switch to a defense that slows down Kentucky, taking away their ability to turn games into a track meet. Edgar Sosa, who knocked down the game-winning shot in last year's game, and Jerry Smith will need to use their experience to slow down the likes of Wall and Eric Bledsoe. And the inside play will be something to watch as well, with Samardo Samuels and Patrick Patterson facing off. Expect fireworks in Lexington.

As for the other games on the schedule, top-ranked Kansas has to be on full alert in Philadelphia, where they take on a Temple squad that's got the ability to take them out. Forward Lavoy Allen and guard Juan Fernandez are just two of the players capable of giving the Jayhawks fits, but Cole Aldrich may be the one player that the Owls lack a solid answer for. And many of the conferences will have their first full weekend of league play, with a number of teams looking to either get off to good starts or avoid the dreaded 0-2 start. Happy New Year.

TV GAMES

Noon ESPNU Notre Dame at Connecticut
Noon BEN/CST/BSN Pittsburgh at Syracuse
1p CBS Gonzaga vs llinois
1p CBS Arizona at UCLA
2p ESPNU Oklahoma State vs. Rhode Island
3:30p ESPN2 Villanova at Marquette
3:30p CBS Louisville at Kentucky
4p BTN Minnesota at Iowa
5:30p ESPN2 Kansas at Temple
6:30p BTN Michigan St at Northwestern
7:30p ESPN2 Virginia Tech vs. Seton Hall
8p BEN/SNY/FSO Cincinnati at Rutgers
9p ESPNU Austin Peay at Morehead State
10:30p FSN-Regional Arizona St vs USC
11p ESPNU Utah State at New Mexico State

OTHER GAMES

Noon UAB at Arkansas
Noon Baylor at South Carolina
2p Iona at Niagara
3p Southern Miss at Vanderbilt
3p Colorado at Tulsa
4p William & Mary at Hofstra
4p Georgia at Missouri
4p Detroit at Loyola (IL)
5p Army at Portland
7p Stanford at California
8p Cincinnati at Rutgers
8p Nevada at Louisiana Tech
10:30p Arizona St at USC

ONE PREDICTION

Kentucky over Louisville: The pick here is Kentucky due to their ability to go on runs at a moment's notice. They're young but you cannot ignore the amount of talent at Coach Calipari's fingertips, so look for John Wall and company to win by eight.