On Saturday afternoon, Temple looks to take out its frustration on a city rival. The Owls have developed this frustration from numerous events.
- The 15th ranked Owls suffered a frustrating loss on Wednesday night in Charlotte. It was a night in which Juan Fernandez and Lavoy Allen sat on the bench for long stretches of the game. Both should come into this contest with fire in their eyes. They cannot reverse their fortunes from Wednesday night, but they can do their best to destroy a city rival.
- A common theme in recent years is how the Owls come into the season underrated. They have exceeded all expectations in the last 3 years. This year, the preseason polls projected La Salle to finish ahead of Temple in the A-10 because of their “talent laden roster”. Time and time again these pollsters forget the meaning of a good game day coach (Fran Dunphy) and team basketball. Team basketball and good coaching are without a doubt the reason that the Explorers are consistently overrated and Temple is consistently underrated.
- The dreaded Aaric Murray college decision. Nobody can say that Gianinni can’t recruit. He has pulled in recruits to La Salle that I could never see them obtaining. Aaric Murray is the poster child for his recruiting. For a school with little recent success or national press, it is unprecedented that La Salle was able to bring in the 35th best recruit in the class of ’09. Lavoy Allen and company need to shove that mistake in his face on Saturday.
Aaric Murray in his Glen Mills days
The key match-up for Saturday’s contest is without a doubt Lavoy Allen against Aaric Murray. It’s always exciting when two of the best big men in the A-10 square off against one another. Murray likes to hang out around the 3 point line and is a surprisingly good 3 point shooter. Aaric has made 25 of his 52 attempts from beyond the arc for the season. This could present a problem for Temple because they need Lavoy Allen down low to snatch up the rebounds. Lavoy should have the edge in the post on both sides of the court though. Aaric is a very raw and is still learning the post game on both sides of the court. Temple fans know all too well that different Lavoy Allens show up on occasion. For Temple to win this game, they’ll need the aggressive Lavoy.
Rodney Green will get his points and there isn’t much Temple can do about that. Guzman and Brooks just need to make sure he doesn’t get any wide open looks at the basket.
Hopefully Juan Fernandez has recovered a bit from the concussion-like symptoms he was experiencing at Charlotte. The difference he makes for this offense was quite apparent when he left the game. Juan is often the only way Temple works the ball inside. Whether Juan drives it in himself or spots somebody alone, he is the fuel that feeds the Temple engine. Without him in the game, the entire team just falls in love with the 3 ball.
One disappointment from the Charlotte game was Michael Eric. Owl fans all around thought they were seeing a new Michael Eric over the past 10 games or so, but he was certainly a let down against Charlotte. Michael played small in the contest. On multiple occasions he received a pass in perfect position to deposit 2 points, but had his shot swat away because he didn’t take the ball up strong.
Kimani Barrett and Ruben Guillandeaux will miss the game for the Explorers. Both players were expected to play a major role for the Explorers when the season started.
Prediction: Temple 65 La Salle 57
