Temple will try to bounce back from its loss to No. 3 Houston when it travels to SMU on Wednesday night. The Owls had their four-game winning streak snapped in an 81-65 loss to the Cougars on Sunday. SMU has lost four of its last five games, falling to East Carolina in a 77-72 final on Saturday.
Temple got off to a mediocre start this season, going 6-7 through its first 13 games. The Owls have been much better in conference play, which started with a three-game winning streak over East Carolina, Cincinnati and South Florida. All three of their AAC losses have come at home, suffering setbacks against Tulane, Memphis and Houston. Temple had rattled off a four-game winning streak over East Carolina, Houston, USF and UCF prior to its loss to Houston in a rematch on Sunday. The Owls are still sitting in second place in the conference standings, tied with Tulane and Memphis for that spot.
KB to Dame in transition for another three!
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— Temple Men's Basketball (@TUMBBHoops) February 5, 2023
They have not been a great offensive team this season, ranked No. 249 in effective field goal percentage and No. 292 in turnover rate. Temple has been terrible from the perimeter, knocking down just 32.1% of its 3-pointers (No. 280). The Owls have taken care of business at the charity stripe, converting on 76.9% of its free throws. They are facing an SMU defense that is No. 135 in adjusted efficiency. Sophomore guard Khalif Battle leads Temple with 18.0 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, while sophomore guard Damian Dunn is adding 14.7 points. Sophomore forward Jamille Reynolds is also in double figures, chipping in 10.8 points and 5.9 boards.
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