The Temple Owls have the top seed in the American Athletic Conference Tournament this week at the Amway Center. What they do not have is a guaranteed trip tot he NCAA Tournament. That still has to get earned. And last year, the Owls got left on the doorstep as one of the first teams out of the tournament.
There was a feeling Temple was seeking a measure of redemption for that absence last year. They lost to the SMU Mustangs in the tournament semifinals last year with an effort that still had some players a little peeved. The focus is there for the tournament champions to break though and guarantee that berth with a win Saturday over a traditional power in Cincinnati or UConn. Or do about as much as they could.
First things first though — disposing of a streak USF Bulls team that scored an upset in the tournament’s opening game.
That proved to be no problem for the regular season champions as Temple scored a 79-62 win Friday at the Amway Center, advancing to the semifinals Saturday afternoon.
“I think having that feeling from last year, we all remember how it felt not making the tournament,” Temple forward Obi Enechionyia said. “That’s something we all want to experience getting into the tournament and getting to play late into the season. Having that feeling in our minds and remembering that, I think it’s motivated all of us.”
The Owls got one step closer by taking care of business in the opening round, forcing 15 turnovers from the Bulls and holding them down whenever they seemed about ready to make a run.
Temple has built itself on its defense all season — its 97.9 defensive rating is third in the league — and did a solid job keeping USF from stringing together too many points. The Owls got stops at key times and found baskets time and time again throughout the game.
Enechionyia had 13 points and five rebounds. Jaylen Bond scored 17 to go with eight rebounds. The Owls just had a lot of scoreres and plenty of shooting to lead them to a victory, hitting 10 of 26 3-pointers including three from Mark Williams.
Temple had control of the game early and seemed poised to blow the game open. USF could not get enough shooting from guard Jahmal McMurray — 16 points on 6-for-18 shooting — or forward Chris Perry — 19 points and eight rebounds.
In the second half, the Bulls got no closer than the 11-point halftime deficit, the Owls ending the Bulls’ final push on a layup from Devin Coleman off a nice find from Jaylen Bond.
“I think it’s a really good win for us, just as it was last year when we beat Memphis in the first game,” Temple coach Fran Dunphy said. “We’ll play a really good team tomorrow in the second game. We have to be really focused and ready to go. Each game is critical. I don’t know if it has anything to do with where we are in terms of our seed. Any number of teams can win this tournament.”
The Owls certainly remember the feeling of being left out last year and the focus and intensity to finish the deal this time is certainly there. They have set themselves up with their regular season to take that step up.
And the only way to guarantee a trip to the NCAA Tournament this year is to win the whole tournament. The road certainly gets tougher with two hungry teams in Cincinnati and UConn prepared to stand in their way tomorrow.
All the Owls can do is play with the ruthless efficiency they played with Friday against the Bulls and hope a better game form Quenton DeCosey and continued strong efforts around the roster will push them over the finish line.
“We talk about the next opportunity for us and that’s tomorrow,” Dunphy said. “It’s going to be against either one of two very good basketball teams. These guys understand that. They understand how hard the game is going to be. We have to play our best basketball.”
