Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas – Championship Sunday
The Temple Owls (13-9, 13-8-1 ATS, 9-12 O/U) battle the UCF Knights (13-7, 10-9-1 ATS, 10-10 O/U) in an AAC clash on Saturday afternoon. The Owls posted a home win against USF on Wednesday night. The Knights lost a home decision against Houston in their previous action. Each squad recorded a road win in last year’s two meetings.
The Temple Owls are seeking a fourth consecutive victory. They have quietly been one of the best squads in the AAC this season, sporting a 7-2 record. Their only conference losses occurred against Tulane and a narrow loss to Memphis. Temple rebounded from that one by defeating East Carolina, #1 Houston, and were 5.5 point favorites in a 79-76 overtime home win against USF on Wednesday. The Owls have covered the spread in seven of their nine AAC bouts on the season.
Khalif Battle scored 20 points in the recent win against East Carolina and 25 on Wednesday. The sophomore guard is having a productive season, posting an average of 17.4 PPG, and will attempt a ton of threes. Damian Dunn has eclipsed 20 points in two of his last four games. The sophomore guard has improved his season average to 15.2 PPG on a 43% mark from the field. Jamille Reynolds has scored double-digits in just one of his last four g ames. The sophomore forward has filed an average of 10.3 PPG and 6 RPG.
JOURDAINGEROUS! Nick gives the Owls the 77 – 76 lead, 49.1 seconds left in OT
?????? ????! #ForPhilly @Swiish_Alert pic.twitter.com/Sr1nU8IkoM
— Temple Men's Basketball (@TUMBBHoops) January 26, 2023
The Owls are ranked 114th in DI in Ken Pomeroy’s ratings and are a stellar 4-2 on the road including a surprising 56-55 win against Houston who was ranked #1 at the time. Temple is scoring an average of 69.1 points on the season, marking them 243rd. The defense has propelled many of the recent wins. They are conceding an average of 68 points, placing them 145th.