TEMPLE Sports Talk  

Just four days after losing to a very talented Clemson team, the Temple Owls will stay in Pennsylvania for their game against the Lafayette Leopards (2-0). We'll take a gameday look at the matchups of both teams in a Keystone State battle.Temple, as mentioned before, comes off a 4 point loss to Clemson. Owls' Ryan Brooks and Lavoy Allen had made up for a double teamed Dionte Christmas. With this being the first loss of the reason, Temple will look to pick up the pieces from their two productive victories.A key factor that Temple will continuously have to fight for is rebounding. Clemson's Trevor Booker dominated with 16 boards of his own- one of many reasons that lead to this devastating loss. As freshman Michael Eric gradually earns his minutes, he will have to utilize his 6'11" size dominate the post- Lafayette would indeed be a place to get started.Now we'll take a look at a quick Player to Player Breakdown of Statistics:Leading Points:Dionte Christmas (TEMP) 22.0 ppgAndrew Brown (LAF) 23.5 ppgLeading ReboundsLavoy Allen (TEMP) 10.0 rpgRyan Willen (LAF) 6.5 rpgLeading AssistsLuis Guzman (TEMP) 5.7 apgJeff Kari (LAF) 4.0 rpgThat is a quick look at both teams' top players. Here's a quick look at Lafayette:As you notice above, the Leopards also have some talent on their sidelines. Lafayette has 3 players (listed above) that are all averaging double digit scoring. The trio accounts for more than 50% of the team's scoring- this will be a key element to stopping this squad from giving the Owls a second loss.Lafayette's last game was against Stony Brook, where they won the game 80-71. The Leopards were able to hit 54% from the field, adding up to their season 48% total."Hoot" to Watch For: Temple will have to readjust and get Dionte Christmas back into the swing of things. Against Clemson, Christmas was held way under his season average at the time (26 points). Also, TU will most likely once again be without the services of Sergio Olmos (right) due to an ongoing injury. Lavoy Allen, as he did last Sunday, will need to come into Lafayette with the same productivity. Stay tuned for the game at 8:30 tonight. Subscribe via RSS

Coming into this game, nobody knew what to expect. Fans from all over came to see what became a classic nail biter.In my previous post, I mentioned Lavoy Allen and the necessity of Temple's rebounding. In this game, that was the exact case, and part of the reason that the Owls lost to Clemson 76-72. This was, indeed, the Charleston Classic Championship, and both teams had set their eyes on winning it all.Take a look at this stat for a minute:Team Rebounding:Temple- 23Clemson- 39One of the keys to this game to many was this one scoring category: Rebounding. The only problem is, the Clemson Tigers are a sharp shooting team, hitting 47% of their shots yesterday afternoon. This was, indeed, an uphill battle for the Temple Owls, who at one point was losing by 15.Guards Ryan Brooks and Ramone Moore were two key reasons why the Owls were able to stay in the game. With Dionte Christmas being isolated away from the ball and out of the action, Temple was forced to rely on more of a team offense. Christmas finished the game with 14 points- 12 points under his average. On the Tigers' side of the ball, key points came from Trevor Booker (right) and sharpshooter Terrence Oglesby. Terrence "TO" Oglesby could not be stopped, shooting 4 of 8 from behind the arc, and 5 of 9 overall. Booker finished with 15 points, but his key statistic came in with Rebounding. Booker finished the game with 16 rebounds, which was 2/3 of what Temple scored.As mentioned, this victory made Clemson the Charleston Classic Tournament, where their record improves to 3-0. Temple, the runner up, moves to 2-1, getting their first loss of the season.The Owls will look to bounce back as they take on the Lafayette Leopards- preview to come soon.The game is scheduled for November 21st at 8:30 pm (Media Coverage TBD). The Tigers move on the Wofford Terriers.Go Owls! Subscribe via RSS

Just like the title says, the Owls are cruising for a championship in mid November- a Charleston Classic one, that is. The Owls will be up against a very talented Clemson Tigers team- one that was coincidentally knocked out of last year's field of 64 by Villanova. With close to 5 hours until gametime, we'll take a quick look into this Clemson team, and what the Owls are up against:The Clemson Tigers went through one of their University's finest basketball years in 2007-8, finishing with an overall record of 24-10. The team made it into the NCAA Tournament last year as the ACC Runner up, giving them a #5 seed. Coach Oliver Purnell's squad was coming into the tournament after a loss to #1 North Carolina, looking to take down a talented Villanova squad.Unfortunately, Clemson's 17 point lead early in the 2nd half was not enough to hold back the rage of the Wildcasts. Scottie Reynolds and his 21 points gave the push past the Tigers, ending their post season hopes. Coach Purnell, now in his 6th season with the Tigers, will look to take his hot squad past the Owls. Behind him is a very talented roster. This year, however, the Tigers return with only 2 starters from last season: G/F K.C Rivers (pictured right) and F Trevor Booker. Here's a quick look into the two's statistics so far:K.C Rivers:14 Points, 1 Assists, .4 ReboundsTrevor Booker: 12 Points, 2 Assists, 12.5 ReboundsBoth of these players as mentioned are returning from last year, and have had an impact already on this team. It's very early in the season, and you can also see what players in their surrounding cast are coming up big as well:Sophmore guard Terrence Oglesby has picked up some of the slack, currently leading the team in scoring. Another player to watch out for his Freshman guard Tanner Smith, who scored 11 points against Hofstra in his first action.Terrence Oglesby:14.5 Points, .5 Assists, 1.5 ReboundsTanner Smith:5.5 Points, 1 Assist, 2.5 ReboundsSo far, the two opponents against Clemson haven't been too much. Their first was a 29 point rout over Hofstra, and the other was a 12 point victory last night over TCU. The Tigers arguably have their first challenge this season, coming against a Preseason #31st Temple Owls.Temple, however, cannot say the same. After a win over ETSU, the Owls played the host team in that of Charleston, and hung onto a 5 point victory. Temple did look somewhat sluggish during Saturday afternoon's game, but will have to rest up and be ready for this talented Clemson team."Hoot" to Watch For: Temple's Lavoy Allen (pictured left) is going to have to play well in this afternoon's game. His impressive 13.5 rebounds will need to stay consistent when he battles down low with Trevor Booker. As a team, Temple out rebounds Clemson by 8.5 per game, which means a lot without 7'0" Sergio Olmos.Clemson, however, shoots for a better percentage then the Owls: their 49% to Temple's 41%.The game unfortunately will not be televised due to Eagles Post Game Live at 4:00, but can be watched online through the link below:Clemson Basketball Live StreamGo Owls! Subscribe via RSS

With a win today against College of Charleston, the Temple Owls will move on into the Charleston Classic Championship. Tonight, at 8:00, the Owls' opponent will be decided between Clemson and TCU. Subscribe via RSS

The 2008-2009 basketball season for the Temple Owls is officially underway, as the beginning games of the Charleston Classic immense!  Subscribe via RSS