Temple Basketball

March 2, 2004: Michael J. Hagen ’85 Arena, Philadelphia, PA. 

A national ESPN audience watches as St. Bonaventure’s Andy Smith misses a three-point jumper, Arvydas Lidzius grabs the defensive rebound, and Dwayne Lee goes on to miss a two-point layup.  St. Bonaventure’s Greg Lewis grabs the defensive rebound, the buzzer sounds, and Saint Joseph’s (PA), a small school located on the outskirts of Philadelphia, can say something no other college basketball team has been able to say for over a generation: Perfection.

With their 32-point win over St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s (PA) completed a perfect season.  27-0 overall, 16-0 in the Atlantic 10.  No. 1 ranked team in the nation.  National Coach of the Year Award trophy about to be engraved with Phil Martelli’s name, Saint Joseph’s (PA) looked forward to the postseason.

The 2004 postseason was not quite as perfect for Martelli and his Saint Joseph’s (PA) Hawks.  Saint Joseph’s (PA) went on to lose by 20 points in their conference championship opener, the worst loss by a No. 1-ranked team to an unranked team in the history of college basketball.  Saint Joseph’s (PA) also disappointed in the NCAA Tournament when Jameer Nelson’s game-winning shot attempt clanked off the rim and the Hawks were upset by the lesser seeded Oklahoma State.

Looking back, this was a wonderful season for Saint Joseph’s (PA).  Banner-worthy in so many respects.  After an NCAA Tournament drought of over a decade, Saint Joseph’s (PA) had been to four recent big dances and compiled six tournament wins in those trips.  One has to go all the way back to 1966 when Dr. Jack Ramsey was coach of the Hawks to find Saint Joseph’s (PA) previous six tournament wins.  Things were really starting to look good on Hawk Hill.

Flash forward six seasons, Saint Joseph’s (PA) has not won a tournament game since Jameer Nelson and Delonte West left campus.  Saint Joseph’s (PA) has not finished in the RPI top 40 in any season.  Saint Joseph’s (PA) has finished outside the RPI top 100 in each of the last two seasons.  The schedule gets weaker and weaker every year, and the fans become less and less interested. 

The 2004 season, which was supposed to be the start of something great, is looking more like the beginning of the end. 

So where does Saint Joseph’s (PA) go from here?  What is the status of their long-time and legendary coach, Phil Martelli?

In 2004, Phil Martelli looked like the perfect fit for Saint Joseph’s (PA).  Charismatic with the media, friendly with the fans, successful on the court, developed Atlantic 10 talent into NBA talent, and looked like he had no plans to ever leave Saint Joseph’s (PA).  Six years later Saint Joseph’s (PA) fans must ask themselves if it is time they politely show Phil the door.

Phil has gone from a fearless and trusted leader to someone viewed with some different characteristics.  Poor recruiting, characterized from both the talent and the academic risks.  Poor development of players, as shown from the transfer mill that Saint Joseph’s (PA) has become as well as the lack of growth among the few who stick around for four years.  An inability to motivate the players, as evidenced by the team’s quality moral victories against strong opponents such as Villanova, Temple and Kansas, yet blow-out losses to some very bad opponents. 

Phil Martelli was able to sell his fans on players such as Rob Ferguson, Pat Calathes, Ahmad Nivins, Tasheed Carr, Idris Hilliard, Rockwell Moody, and the now infamous “Holy Trinity” of DJ Rivera, Darrin Govens and Jawan Carter.  However, the competition in the Atlantic was not sold on these players.  The recruiting treasures that followed after the 2004 perfect season were no more than widgets from a garage sale.  Players such as Pat Calathes and Rob Ferguson never lived up to their recruiting hype.  Ahmad Nivins earned the nickname “Ice Cream” for the way he served it up softly to the opposition. 

The Holy Trinity never amounted to much as 67 percent of it transferred and the remaining player never lived up to his “better recruit than Scottie Reynolds” label that he was tagged with during the 2006 recruiting summer.  Scottie Reynolds went on to be an AP First Team All-American and provided the 2009 NCAA Tournament the moment with his buzzer-beater against Pitt sending Villanova to the Final Four.  Meanwhile, Saint Joseph's (PA) fans were left with the memory of their hero, Jameer Nelson, missing his chance at the glory and the continued downward spiral of their current program.

Beyond the failure to recruit quality talent, Phil has also been plagued with a transfer epidemic.  Too many transfers to count on two hands over the past half dozen years for all sorts of reasons.  Out of respect of the young men these reasons need not be discussed, but let’s all agree that a coach cannot successfully run a program with that type of transfer rate.  Many of these transfers were foreseeable as the players presented risks when they were offered their scholarships.

The motivational issues are not something that can be ignored either.  Why are Phil’s teams able to compete and gain moral victories in close losses against very good teams, yet they lose to horrible opponents?  In the past two seasons, Saint Joseph’s (PA) has lost to their hated rival Villanova, a Final Four team in 2009 and a No. 2 seed in 2010, by only a combined 12 points.  Moral victories for Saint Joseph’s (PA) fans, if such a thing ever existed.  In the recent six-year spiral, Saint Joseph’s (PA) also earned a moral victory at the Carrier Dome against Syracuse, and actually won games against powers such as Kansas and Indiana.  Saint Joseph's (PA) has played fellow Philadelphia and Atlantic 10 power, Temple, very competitively.

So why do we look at Saint Joseph’s (PA)’s schedule and see losses to teams like DePaul, Rider, Princeton, Duquesne, Fordham and several losses to schools like Holy Cross, Drexel and La Salle?  How come these same players that can play elite competition like Villanova and Kansas so tough struggle against Ivy League and non-scholarship Patriot League teams?

Has Phil Martelli lost his fastball?  Has Phil lost his team?

The fan expectations and interest are suffering.  Mediocrity has been accepted.  Students who enrolled at Saint Joseph's following the 2004 perfect season campaign thinking they were attending a basketball power have felt cheated.  There is even a rumor that Saint Joseph's (PA) fans' expectations have dropped so low that they rushed the court after an overtime win over Drexel in November of 2009.  The game was not televised so the debate if this happened will never be settled, but who could blame Saint Joseph's (PA) fans for celebrating a season-opening overtime win over a team they had been losing to on a regular basis?  This is how low the program has sunk.

The obvious follow-up question for Saint Joseph’s (PA) is who could they hire to replace Martelli?  Not long ago Martelli was turning down job offers from major conference schools like Providence, Seton Hall, Rutgers and Penn State.  But let’s not kid ourselves here, Saint Joseph’s (PA) is not going to win many coach recruiting battles with the big boys. 

For a long time Saint Joseph’s (PA) fans talked about their former assistant, Mike Rice, as an option to replace Phil when the time came.  Well, now Mike Rice is at Rutgers and not likely to take a downgrade from the Big East to the Atlantic 10.

Maybe somebody like Danny Hurley, formerly of the New Jersey high school scene now coaching at Wagner.  Danny is already dominating Saint Joseph’s (PA) in recruiting in the Northeast Corridor, why wouldn’t Hurley bide his time at Wagner until a Big East team comes calling?

They could go with a recycled former major conference coach, like a Bobby Gonzalez, Tim Welsh, Mike Jarvis, Steve Lappas, Louis Orr, Fred Hill, Pete Gillen or Al Skinner.  But are these the guys to take Saint Joseph’s (PA) back to prominence?  And if one of these coaches did have some success how long before they run off to try their hand at another major conference job?

Tough decision ahead for Saint Joseph’s (PA) athletic officials. 

Two things are for certain:

1. The Hawk Will Never Die

2. Nobody can ever take the glory of 2004 perfection away from Saint Joseph’s (PA) fans.

- TJ Corbs, tackling the hard hitting issues of the Northeast Corridor.

They say sometimes winning isn't everything. While that might be true, sometimes playing doesn't even matter.

That's exactly what Anthony Lee from Temple has shown already before he even steps on the court for the Owls.

Lee, pictured here with teammates Rahlir Jefferson and T.J. Dileo, took part in a basketball clinic for youth in the New Jersey area. Temple players were invited, and Lee and his teammates were the three that showed up.

During his time at the clinic Lee was able to teach kids ages five to 18 fundamentals on rebounding, dribbling, and passing. This wasn't your ordinary basketball clinic. It was a Christian event, so besides learning fundamentals, the advisers taught about believing and having a dream.

Among those there was emphasis on staying focused in school and making the best out of your opportunity. The Temple players were humbled in signing autographs, and shortly after a special appearance was made by Sacramento Kings forward Jason Thompson and his brother Ryan Thompson, who is a rookie for the Utah Jazz.

At their home church the Thompsons not only helped out but also emphasized the importance of staying focused outside of the game of basketball.

Afterwards Lee was all smiles, saying, "I was glad to have the opportunity to help kids out on drills and teach them basic aspects of the game. It reminded me when I was learning how to play ball, how important the simple things matter."

The simplest thing was put on by Shannon Hodge, who is also pictured in the photo (third to left), which was bringing smiles to the kids at this wonderful event. Lee went on to say, "Shannon deserves a lot of the credit. I'm just glad I was a part of it."

A player, but more importantly, a young man who is more than thrilled to help out in the community. Don't let his kindness fool you—he'll soon be dominating at Temple, which is great news for Owl fans. Anthony Lee has shown he can shine not only on but off the court as well.

Cornell vs Temple – 12:30 P.M. Friday, March 19th

NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament - East Region - First Round
Cornell +4 (-110)
Temple -4 (-110)
Over/Under 119

The 12th seed Cornell Big Red are set to face the #5 seed Temple Owls in the first round of the East regional with tip-off scheduled for 12:30 P.M. on Friday, March 19th in Jacksonville, Fl.

Click Here To View Our Expert Picks For This Matchup!

In the only conference that gets an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament without having a conference tournament play in, Cornell’s 13-1 regular season record in the Ivy League was all they needed to punch their ticket to the dance. They did more than just beat up on their fellow Ivy Leaguers as they ended the season with an overall record of 27-4 which definitely opened some eyes along the way.

They also played a fairly competitive non-league schedule with games against Syracuse (73-88 loss) and St. Johns (71-66 win) and come into this game as a legitimate upset threat. The main reason for this has been the wealth of experience they brought into this season.

They are led by a trio of seniors; F Ryan Wittman, who is averaging 17.5 points per game, C Jeff Foote, who is averaging 12.3 points and 8.2 rebounds, and G Louis Dale, who is averaging 11.9 points per game.

The Temple Owls have been the class of the highly competitive Atlantic 10 all season long. They finished with and overall record of 29-5 and won the regular season with a conference record of 14-2 and a tie breaking win over Xavier.

Just to hammer their point home they won the A-10 Conference Tournament with a 56-52 win over Richmond in the finals running their current winning streak to 10. Add in some impressive wins over non-conference opponents such as Villanova (75-65) and Virginia Tech (61-50) and you have a five seed that can make some noise in this tournament.

Their offensive firepower consists of senior G Ryan Brooks, who leads the team in scoring with 14.3 points per game and sophomore G Juan Fernandez, who is averaging 12.6 points per game. Junior F Lavoy Allen has been a force underneath, averaging 11.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. Add in the rest of the starting five along with a strong bench and you have the best Owls team to come out of North Philly in an number of seasons.

There has been a lot of talk about Cornell being the classic #12 seed upset pick as every year this tournament seems to have one of these. My advice is to check the other three regions if you are looking to pick one for your bracket. The Owls are just too good and too strong to lose this first round game to a good, but untested Big Red team.

Betting Trends:

Owls are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 games following a SU win
Owls are 4-0-1 ATS in their last 5 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600
Owls are 8-0-1 ATS in their last 9 neutral site games as a favorite
Owls are 3-0-1 ATS in their last 4 neutral site games
Big Red are 10-0 ATS in their last 10 vs. Atlantic 10
Big Red are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 non-conference games
Big Red are 22-5 ATS in their last 27 games as an underdog of 0.5-6.5
Big Red are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600

Big Red vs. Owls Free Pick: Temple -4

Gamblers looking for the best online free march madness picks and 2010 bracket predictions? Visit Our Cappers Pages for expert College tournament basketball Gambling Predictions from over 40 of the best sports handicappers.

I admit it...I am a Temple alum (PSU and UofP as well).   I have no problem with the other two but when I say I went to Temple, I shudder.  I get no respect for that piece of paper and apparently no one gets respect at Temple, not even one fantastic basketball team.  Seriously folks, I love Jay Wright and Nova but their 2 seed was a joke.  Temple wins a division and their last 10 games and gets a 5?  Jay Wright was doing his best humina-humina when asked last night if he felt his team deserved the 2nd spot in the South.  He said it is respect for the team's performances all through the season and respect for the program.  Great...then out of respect put in UConn, a horrible team, that in this case deserves a 15 seed just out of respect!

I have been hanging my head for over 30 years when I say Temple.  One bright sport was always basketball with coach Cheney, who I actually got to know once I graduated.  Cheney and Dunphy are class acts.  They hold Temple athletes to a high standard.  The saddest part of this story is that when I went to find a photo of the 2010 B'ball team on this site, there was none.  We will hose Cornell in round 1 and go on to do great things in the tournament but we will always be a penny short and a day late in the eyes of the powers that be in NCAA sports.

Do I think Temple will become the prom king?  No!  Do I think they will be in the running (Elite Eight) yuppers!  Will Nova do better than Temple?  I have friends who are choosing them to go for the gold and other knocking them out after the 1st round. SE PA is so accustomed to rooting for the Wildcats that it is second nature.  We are not people that usually root for Temple. 

We think of Temple as home of Bill Cosby (who attended with my uncle way back when). Seems even sports sites consider this the greatest accomplishment of Temple University.  This year we had a football team make it to a bowl game and basketball team make it to the Big Dance.  Yet ...We Get No Respect (as in #5?)  Guess it is time for me to show respect, hold my head high and proudly say I am a Temple University Graduate!

Setting: 1776 N. Broad Street is the site for a Top 20 tangle as Bill Self’s No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks (12-0) visit the Liacouras Center in downtown Philadelphia for a tilt with Fran Dunphy’s No. 18 Temple Owls (11-2).

Plot: Temple finished an undefeated month of December with a victory over Northern Illinois, 70-60. Kansas throttled Belmont, 81-51 to close out 2009. Temple opens A-10 play on Wednesday. Kansas does not start conference play until January 13th.

Sub-plots: Temple leads its Atlantic 10 rivals, as the conference has ascended to a number four ranking in the RPI. Kansas and No. 2 Texas lead a Big 12 conference ranked number two.

Flashback: Dionte Christmas scored 18 of his game-high 21, but the Jayhawks won last December, 71-59. Kansas holds a 6-3 advantage all-time against Temple. In 1995, the Owls trimmed then-No. 1 Kansas in overtime, 74-66.

The two schools rank in the top ten of total victories for Division I schools. Kansas sits at third with 1,982 wins. Temple is in sixth with 1,722. Kentucky leads the way with 2,002 triumphs. North Carolina follows with 1,997.

Foreshadowing: 52 former Jayhawks have played in the NBA. Currently, nine Jayhawks roam the NBA hard courts: Darrell Arthur, Mario Chalmers, Nick Collison, Drew Gooden, Kirk Hinrich, Darnell Jackson, Paul Pierce, Brandon Rush, and Julian Wright.

Thirty-three former Owls have played in the NBA. Mardy Collins is the lone Temple alum in the league.

Conflict: Temple averages 64 points per game while Kansas fills it up to the tune of 87 per game. The Owls hold opponents to 54; Self’s Jayhawks limit adversaries to 58.

Who will dictate the tempo of this game?

Kansas wants to run the floor. Temple wants to run half court.

Temple’s Juan Fernandez is capable of carrying the Owls. The sophomore guard has scored 20 or more in three of Temple’s last four games. Fernandez knocked down 11 triples as Temple downed then-No. 3, Villanova, 75-65. The 6′4″ Argentine leads the Owls hitting 32-of-69 (.464) from long range.

When will the Owls decide to air it out? Conventional wisdom suggests the home team should get out of the gate quickly. Fran Dunphy knows these Jayhawks have too much firepower for an early game deluge.

Freshman Xavier Henry with 16 points per game, leads four Jayhawks in double figures. Sherron Collins follows with 13 points and 51 total assists. Marcus Morris and Cole Aldrich chip in 11 apiece.

Kansas is 13th in the nation with a rebounding margin of 8.3. Alrich leads the way with 10. Morris and Henry combine for nine.

The Jayhawks are number three in the land with a field goal percentage defense of .346 including .278 from behind the arc.

Ryan Brooks leads the Cherry and White with 15.8 per game. Lavoy Allen averages a double-double with 10.6 rebounds and points per game.

Fernandez and Luiz Guzman combine for six-and-a-half assists per game.

The Owls have turned the ball over just 137 times thus far while opponents have fumbled the ball 159 times. For the Owls to be successful, this trend will need to continue.

Allen gives up two inches and 20 pounds to Aldrich. Temple will be hard pressed to find an advantage on the boards today. Instead, the Owls will need to value possession of the ball. Poor shots will result in layups at the other end. Fernandez and Guzman will need to control the flow.

Resolution: Kansas is too athletic to knock out in the first half. The Jayhawks are undefeated, but they have not played a team that is as disciplined on the offensive end and tenacious on the defensive end as are the Owls.

When the Temple band strikes up "Living On A Prayer," the Cherry and White will still have the Jayhawks in their sights. Fernandez will struggle early from the field, but he will find his mark and lead the Owls to the upset.

Pickin' Splinters

As Temple fans stormed the court you could tell how much this win meant to the Owls. Villanova had owned them the past few years and came in today expecting to easily win again.

Temple thought otherwise.

The Owls hadn't beated a top-five team since 2000 when Cincinnati was ranked No. 1. Villanova wasn't quite ranked that high, but the win is just as impressive.

Villanova came into the game averaging 84 ppg. Temple held them to 65, which is the lowest score the Wildcats have posted all year. That just proves how tough Temple's defense is.

Villanova was up at one point 33-19, but Temple just kept fighting back. Temple has a never quit attitude that some teams lack. They fought all the way to take a 42-37 lead early in the second half.

They never gave that lead up.

Temple was lead by their Argentinian hero Juan Fernandez, who has become one of Temple's better shooters this season. Fernandez drained seven three-pointers en route to a 33-point performance.

"I've been thinking about this game all week," Fernandez said. "I know Temple didn't beat Villanova for a long time. I think we needed this win. I think we need to prove ourselves."

Fernandez certainly proved himself Saturday night, leading the Owls to the huge comeback win over their rival. Temple fans may be thinking, "who needs Christmas when you have Fernandez?"

Ryan Brooks added 20 points for the Owls, while Lavoy Allen chipped in 10 points and 17 rebounds. Allen dominated the glass by having 10 more rebounds then any other player from either team. Luis Guzman lead the team with seven assists. Every Temple player helped in their own way to lead the team to victory.

Villanova was led by Scottie Reynolds who scored 23 points. Antonio Pena had 16 points and Corey Fisher had 14 as the only other double-digit scorers for the Wildcats. Five Villanova players average double figure point totals.

Temple's defense had Villanova struggling to find a rhythm all game. Villanova also wanted to push the tempo, but Temple continually slowed the pace of the game, preventing Villanova from getting any fast break points.

This is the greatest moment for any Temple fan, beating a rival at home who is ranked in the top five and in come-from-behind fashion. Temple beat a ranked Tennessee team last year. That win is nothing compared to the win Saturday night over the No. 3-ranked Wildcats.

This win should give Temple a boost. The Owls have a few more tough games before the out-of-conference schedule is over. Their next game is against Seton Hall, and they will also play Kansas. A game that nobody gives Temple a chance in seems like a much better game now that Temple proved it can hang with any team in the nation. The Jayhawks may want to pay attention, because if they overlook Temple like Villanova may have, they might get their wings clipped.

Temple is now 8-2 on the year and looks to keep their winning streak going against an undefeated Seton Hall team Saturday. Go Owls!

I guess to be drafted by a professional team in any sport (football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, etc.) is like Christmas morning. So for those 60 players drafted in last night's NBA Draft, it must've been like Christmas morning. Instead of opening up presents, they were being drafted by a professional basketball team.

You see where I am going with all these Christmas references?

Christmas never came for many players, but one sticks out in particular: Temple's senior shooting guard, Dionte Christmas. Even the talking heads at ESPN (Jay Bilas) said that Christmas was one of the best available players left at the end of the draft.

"I wanted to hear my name called," Christmas said. "My family wanted to hear my name called. If that would have happened, it would have been a blessing. I'm upset."

Christmas played on one of the most successful Temple basketball teams the school has ever seen. In each of his last three seasons, he has scored at least 20-plus points a game. He even helped lead the Owls to two Atlantic 10 titles in the last two years.

There were two other Big 5 players drafted: Villanova's Dante Cunningham and Saint Joseph's Ahmad Nivens at No. 33 and No. 56, respectively.

I might not be able to judge what kind of talent Christmas has, due to the fact that I could not attend many basketball games last semester. But what I missed live and in person, I caught on television—especially during the A-10 Tourney.

From what I did see and watch on television, I can say that I believe Christmas has the stuff to make a NBA roster and start. Christmas can both drive to the bucket and shoot from long distance, which makes him a valuable asset to any team.

Here's a quote from the Philadelphia Daily News:

"It's disappointing, my dad is real upset. But I've been an underdog my whole life. People weren't expecting me to do what I've done thus far. I've put it in God's hands right now. Some team is going to want me. And I'm going to give them everything I've got. Nothing less."

So what are his options?

Dionte has a ton of options that will present themselves to him. OK, maybe not a ton, but at least the three listed below.

Option No. 1

He could go pro...in Europe. A lot of American college basketball players bypass the NBA for the European professional basketball leagues, to either improve their skills or just to make some money.

Christmas could play over in Europe for a year and then come back to the States and see what his "stock value" is.

Option No. 2

He could sign a rookie free agent contract with some team. This option is most likely. He could always sign a rookie free agent contract with the local NBA team, the Philadelphia 76ers.

He wouldn't be the only undrafted Temple athlete to be signed by a professional sports team. Temple senior quarterback and classmate Adam DiMichele went undrafted. But DiMichele signed a rookie free agent contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Christmas would be joining some notable classmates:

QB Adam DiMichele (undrafted, signed by the Philadelphia Eagles)

OF Sean Barksdale (drafted by the Houston Astros in the 38th round)

C Alex Derenthal (undrafted, signed by the New York Giants)

Option No. 3

Yes, the dreaded third option. Christmas has a degree to fall back on, but I don't think that will happen.

"I'm going to lay low for a little bit. Then I'm going to get back to work to show everybody that I belong. I've definitely got a chip on my shoulder. That's [my motivation]."

Whatever Christmas does, it should be interesting. Overall, I hope Dionte latches on somewhere. He's a good ballplayer, and he didn't deserve to be undrafted.

The past two seasons have brought some hardware for the Temple Owls by way of two Atlantic 10 tournament championships. Unfortunately, high hopes of upsets in the NCAA tourney never came to fruition in either season. A first round exit to Michigan State in 2008 and Arizona State in 2009 has left a bitter taste for Owl faithful.

Lofty expectations were plentiful going into the 2008-2009 season, what with senior leadership on the perimeter and in the post, especially with one of those seniors, guard Dionte Christmas, being a potential All-American.

Now the Fran Dunphy era reaches a vital turning point. Most players will all be his own recruits when he took over the helm from legendary coach, John Chaney, in 2006.

Looking ahead at what's in store for Dunphy and the Owls, let's first assess the losses.

Players lost to graduation

Obviously the biggest loss for Dunphy and the hardest to replace is the aforementioned Christmas. He led the Atlantic 10 in scoring for three straight years (nearly 20 ppg this past season). He was an unquestionable go-to-guy supplied with deep, deep range from beyond the arc.

Often overlooked, however, was his defense. He was the best off-the-ball defender the Owls had and thrived in Dunphy's man-to-man style. He averaged 1.5 steals a game to lead the Owls in 2009 as well as nearly 6 rebounds, most of which were undoubtedly on the defensive end.  

For all his acclaim, Christmas showed some flaws that may hurt his NBA status. With 98 turnovers and exactly as many assists, Christmas was a shady ball-handler at times. His biggest fault was his reluctance to attack the basket when his jump shot wasn't falling. He could be extremely stubborn in trying to shoot himself out of a slump rather than penetrating and creating something for himself or a teammate.

Regardless, Christmas, like Mardy Collins and Lyn Greer before him, will be a sorely missed scoring threat for the Owls.

Also graduating is the 7 foot center, Sergio Olmos. The Spaniard grew into his own over the past couple of seasons. Under Chaney's style, Olmos played mostly reserve minutes. When Dunphy made the move to North Broad Street, Olmos nearly doubled his minutes and did well in Dunphy's high-low post offensive sets. 

In 2009, Olmos really began to show improvements offensively. He could seal and provide a big target for easy entry passes and was aware of cutters often finding them baseline or flashing opposite side through the lane.

Olmos understood he was not the first scoring option, and often served was more like a displaced point guard in the post by kicking it out and looking to make quick reversals.

For all his improvements on offense, he never showed it in the rebounding category. Olmos only averaged 4 rebounds a game - at 7 feet tall, mind you. He was an easy box out on the defensive end, often getting pushed past the free throw line.

Despite his downfalls, Olmos will be tough to replace because of his size and wide target in the post. Nearly 1.5 blocks a game was also nice to have as well.

It seems as though Temple is losing a major player from every position, as point guard Semaj Inge also departs. Inge brought some stability to the offense; he truly was a floor general and controlled the tempo well at times. 

The senior was reliable mostly in the half court. Teams that brought some pressure, on the other hand, exposed Inges' panicky side at times. Defensively, Inge was sometimes a liability and lacked aggressiveness.

He was a very good cutter away from the ball, keeping constant motion. Along with Olmos, he thrived with a high-low offense and created a lot of opportunities for Christmas and junior Ryan Brooks on the perimeter. He wasn't flashy and wouldn't "wow" with his play. But Inge was a senior point guard with experience and that cannot be measured on paper.

Moving ahead, let's examine returning players and the potential demand for next year's recruiting class.

Top returning underclassmen

Rising senior Ryan Brooks may be the best scoring guard to return for the Owls. Brooks will certainly have more touches due to Christmas' absence. He has the jump shot, as evidences by shooting 41 percent from three off of 144 attempts. He seems to be a little more aggressive than Christmas in regards to attacking the lane and perhaps can surprise a national audience next year.

Other than Brooks, rising junior Lavoy Allen probably has the best chance to lead the team in scoring. The 6'9" post averaged nearly a double-double in his sophomore campaign—11 points and 9 rebounds.

His footwork improved greatly from his freshman season as he displayed an array of post moves on the low block. The biggest upside is Allen has a special knack for rebounding and displayed aggressiveness of a seasoned veteran this year on the glass.

However, Allen can be physically weak against other posts on the defensive end. If he gets stronger in the off-season, he could potentially be a first team all Atlantic 10 pick.

Complementing Allen in the post will be Michael Eric. Eric's playing time can best be described as sporadic, which may lead some to speculate there is something Dunphy might not like concerning his character or work ethic. He will be the tallest player for the Owls at 6'11" but will need to supply more in his minutes to have a greater impact in 2009-2010.

Juan Fernandez came in at the middle of the year. The 6'4" Argentinean has an impressive resume from his time spent with the under-18 National team for Argentina. As soon as he put on a Temple uniform, he was logging plenty of minutes.

Fernandez brings a savvy international play and is careful with the ball. He averaged nearly 3 assists to go along with 6 points. He should be more comfortable next season as he will be with the team from beginning.

Biggest demands

Brute strength in the post

Fans need look no further than the Arizona State game. The biggest worry was how Temple would stop James Harden. Whether or not he was contained (which he was, being held to 9 points), the real concern was 6'9" 240 pound Jeff Pendergraph. No one was able to match his strength and body up with him. He was 8-14 shooting with most of his shots being within two-feet of the basket.

Temple has not had a physical post player since John Chaney was coaching, except his posts players were a little less basketball agile, mainly there to fulfill a minor role. Allen and Eric have decent potential, but may continue to get dominated by stronger post presences.

To date, Dunphy has not signed a major post player other than a 6'6" 185 recruit who will move to the wing. The potential signees remaining do not look too promising either.

A sheer play-maker

This sounds obligatory and perhaps counterfactual, but the Owls have not had a guard who could attack the lane consistently and break defenses down since Lynn Greer, almost seven years ago.

Mardy Collins was excellent during his tenure, but he was still more a shooting guard than point guard; he could create his own shot wonderfully, just did not have the overall quickness to create for others. Christmas certainly had the ball a majority of the time with the game on the line, but was a bit one dimensional.

If Temple can at least get a playmaker like Greer at the point, Allen and Eric's offensive numbers could explode in the post.

They've already signed a 6'3" guard, who apparently is a natural scorer from all areas of the court and sounds like he understands unselfish play.

Dunphy is also waiting on a 6'5" point guard recruit out of Philadelphia. Temple and Saint Joe's have both offered. Scouts questions his ball handling but think he has the play making ability to be effective at the division I level. He sounds very similar to the previously mentioned signee, only fits the taller mold of traditional Temple guards.

Though Allen and Brooks are capable of again helping the Owls challenge for a conference championship, it still seems like the major demands have yet to be addressed if the Owls plan to make it to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament.

I consider myself a Philadelphian, but not in the native or "born and raised" sense. Let's say I was adopted.

I grew up in western New York (the state) but chose to spend my college years at Temple University, so I called the City of Brotherly Love home for four years.

Though I no longer reside there, I feel an affinity to everything Philly. So you can imagine how aghast I was to find myself cheering for Pittsburgh in the 2009 East Regional final.

Philadelphia is a true "Mecca" of sports, but unfortunately, its college basketball is often overlooked.

That's a shame, as Philly is the home of jewels like Temple, Villanova, Saint Joseph's, La Salle, Penn, and even Drexel (though that school is not considered a part of the "Big Five").

I enrolled at Temple in the fall of 2001. The spring before, I had visited the campus for the first time. At the time, Temple was playing in the NCAA Tournament and had advanced to the Elite Eight as an 11-seed.

They lost the regional final to Michigan State 69-62. Then, as fortune would have it, Temple never made the NCAA Tournament during my education, but hey, it was Philly. There were other schools in the brotherhood to cheer for.

If Temple is out in March, there's an unwritten Owl rule that says to cheer for another Philly school. We're a cordial group of rivals.

Philadelphia schools give the locals some good Marches. So with Temple out in the first round of this year's tournament, you'd think Villanova's Final Four run made me happy.

But there was one problem: My bracket said Pittsburgh.

After Temple's improbable run in the tournament in 2001, Saint Joe's seemed primed to make a strong case with two extraordinary guards, Delonte West and National Player of the Year Jameer Nelson.

Dynamic guards in Philly is like caramelized onions and steak: They just fit.

It was in the 2004 tournament that I cheered on Phil Martelli and the Hawks after their undefeated regular season. I was heartbroken when Oklahoma State's John Lucas hit that shot to beat them in the Elite Eight; I reacted as if I were an alumni of the small, private school on City Line Avenue.

Neither Temple nor Saint Joe's has seemed able to find those "spark plug" kind of guards lately; maybe it's because Jay Wright at Villanova has been taking them all.

A season after the St. Joe's disappointment, Wright captured the hearts of Philadelphians when he decided to red shirt big man Curtis Sumpter after a knee injury.

What was important about this was that he was putting his faith in his guards, because he wasn't going to try to replace Sumpter. The team's strength was in its smaller players, and he showed his trust in them when he started four guards.

I loved the brass involved in playing a set like that. Wright also showed some confidence by sticking to his defensive philosophy and playing man-to-man; he would just have his guys completely front anyone in the post. The combination of Randy Foye, Allan Ray, and Kyle Lowry was fun to watch, to say the least.

I cheered for that Wildcat crew in March of that year ('06), much the same I had for Nelson and the Hawks a season before. They lost in the Elite Eight to eventual national champion, Florida.

In typical sports-fan fashion, I filled out my bracket at work this year and submitted my five dollars. I picked Pitt, for no other reason than they seemed like the most experienced. I wholly realize it's all just a crap shoot.

By the regional finals, I was behind the leader by only one game. I was well aware of it, but also figured that if Villanova won, it was no big deal, right?

When it came to the end of the game, Levance Fields of Pittsburgh made a timely steal and was fouled.

Then it happened: I cheered.

I cheered against Philly. I cheered against my adoptive home. And worst of all, I cheered for western Pennsylvania.

On the next possession, Scottie Reynolds of Villanova flew up the court and scored with less than a second left. I almost felt dejected.

Here was Philadelphia making a triumphant return to the Final Four. Villanova making its first trip back since their miraculous run to the championship in 1985, and I was concerned about...my bracket.

I sat in my chair, utterly baffled. I should have been happy for Philly. Instead, I had gotten caught up in my bracket, thinking not just of money, but also of being right in my picks.

As if picking the games made me some kind of expert, some kind of college basketball connoisseur.

I'm sorry, Jay Wright. I'm sorry, Villanova. And most of all, I'm sorry to you, Philadelphia.

I forgot for one moment how important our allegiances are, not just to our school, but to the places we call home.

For a brief minute, I turned my back on you. And for what? A silly, meaningless bracket.

There's a reason I don't do any fantasy leagues. I don't want to start cheering for my players and hastily lose the status of follower of my own team.

I will never do another bracket. Though it was just for a second, I felt like a deserter.

As an Owl, I'd be horrified at a Penn, 'Nova, or Saint Joe's alumni that did not cheer if we represented Philly in March. I was certainly appalled when I was that person for a bit.

Never again.

Go Villanova!