Chronicowls '15 Temple-UConn

 Reflections after Ending the Regular Season with a Crisp 75-63 Bang

Posted by Blog Contributor Phil "Tall" Wagner

If you like silent auctions, this was your day—you could bid on all from kumquats to Sherman tanks.

If you like free TEMPLE MADE tee shirts, this was your moment—you couldn’t not be given one.

If you’d never seen the Liacouras full—10,206 bodies full—they were all there. Yet sadly, only 8 tubas.

If you’d wondered which avian ilk would show up, these were surely cherry and white birds of prey…

playing, if you love somewhat compromised drama, the defending NATIONAL champion (17-12, 10-7) Huskies.

For UConn, Boatwright (torrid in 1st half with 21) and Purvis combined for 43 pts. and 73 mins.

For Temple, Cummings and Morgan paired for 40 pts. and 67 mins., DeCosey chipping in 15 over 32.

Temple’s 8 steals were twice their turnovers while, woefully, UConn’s comparables were 3-14.

For Dunphy, this was win #499 (310-163 at Penn, 189-106 on North Broad). Who’s ready for #500?

Things look swell vs. Memphis (minus top gun Nichols) on Fri., but may be hell vs. SMU (AP #20) on Sat.

Of course, looking beyond a team you beat by a single point five weeks back is seldom advised.  

But the good news is Temple can’t play UConn till the finals—beating anybody thrice a season is tough.

So who’s the sleeper in the AAC mix? Who’s ready to play 3-4 days running? And we do mean running.

And how early and often must Temple win this week, if they’re truly on the bubble, to go dancing?

On the subject of RPIs, interesting to note that the Owls’re a most pedestrian 2-7 vs. top 50 RPI teams.

RPI look for AAC tourney’s 5 byes:  SMU 15 (ooohh!), Temple 34, Cincy 35, Tulsa 47, Memphis 82.

Brace yourself. There’s dribbling and high-fiving ahead, with luck, much of it for those Temple Owls!

Chronicowls '15 - Temple-Cincinnati

Posted by Chronicowls Contributor Phil "Tall" Wagner


Well you North Broad hoopheads, your Temple Owls  drew even last night, knotting things on the season  vs. the team with three more n’s and i’s each, those upstart Bearcats from Cincinnati. For the now 18-7, 9-3 and 11-2-at-home Owls, a critical win at a moment they critically needed one if to go dancing in weeks to come; for the now 17-7, 8-4 and 3-5-on-the-road Ohio visitors, vice versa.

Your Owls, with 6 games left including an East Carolina pair, are 6-0 since their 3-game swoon. Those Bearcats play 7 more, including a Tulane twofer.   

But this time, Dunphy in his 9^th season showed Cronin in his 8^th that dismantling his Owls by 31 in January, without his star Cummings on the court, don’t mean squat on this February Tuesday when #2 never sat. And he made his mark just .30 in en route to 21 pts., 5 assists, 4 steals

The line was 2. The score was 15-5 early. The 36-25 halftime tally was articulate. The final gap was a robust 16. The 75 Temple points may’ve been one shy of tacos, but they were 20.4 over the points per game previously allowed by the AAC scoring defense leader (and 6^th nationally). The lead was established with Cummings’ opening layup, built at will, managed carefully, never threatened throughout a thoroughly businesslike evening.

These Owls came to play, inspired as we all were by a national anthem rendition from a young troupe of both genders who carpe’d the diem and the hearts on the Liacouras floor. And, naturally, by the 10 tubas (never enough) and the Diamond Gems (never enough). Morgan (4x3=12), Bond, Watson, DeCosey and Brown were all big. Turnovers were big, 17 for Cincy, and small, only 8 for the homesters; steals 6 for the visitors, 10 for the Cherry and White as they beat on the Red and Black.

The hope, nope, the presumption, is that, come March Madness, last night’s game will loom large in the collective memory. And in the Owls early spring agenda. Play on.