Temple Opens A-10 Slate At Xavier
By Matt Leon
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Temple Owls jump into Atlantic 10 play tonight as they travel to Cincinnati, Ohio, to take on an always tough Xavier squad.
The Owls sit at 10-3 on the season. Of course last time out, they put a huge scare into #6 Kansas, before falling, 69-62.
The start of Atlantic 10 play means the start of a pretty consistent schedule from here on out for the Owls, with a game every few days.
"It's a rhythm that you finally get into," Temple head coach Fran Dunphy tells KYW Newsradio.
Listen to Matt Leon's interview with Fran Dunphy:
Frank Dunphy Interview
And Dunphy says the conference slate will give his Owls all they can handle and then some.
"We'll have our hands full no matter what the rest of the season brings," Dunphy says. "We have 18 games left and we'll be in a battle in each and every one of those 18 games I'm quite sure. It's such a long season, you've got to be ready for every contest."
Xavier is 7-6 on the season and they bring a four-game losing streak into this one. Last time out they lost at Wake Forest, 66-59.
"They've been in the NCAA Tournament each of the last (seven) years and it's not an accident," Dunphy says. "They have good players and a really good coaching staff."
Temple leads the all-time series between the two schools, 13-10. But the Owls are just 1-7, all-time, on Xavier's home floor.
The Owls and the Musketeers will tip off tonight at 7:00pm.
You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.
