After beating George Washington on Saturday Fordham now has two victories in the Atlantic 10, but the Rams will face probably their toughest challenge of the season tonight when they take on Temple in Philadelphia. The Owls are a decisive favorite and have already beaten Duke, Wichita State and St. Louis this season. Josh Verlin of Philahoops and I exchanged Q&A’s. Get to know Temple a bit better.
1. Temple beat Duke and St. Louis, but lost to Bowling Green? What happened in that loss and can Fordham learn anything from it?
JV: The Bowling Green loss was literally the day after starting center Micheal Eric was sidelined with a broken kneecap, and it was mostly Temple’s inability to adapt to a small lineup so quickly. Over the ensuing weeks, not only did Anthony Lee need to learn how to become a starting center (we’ll get to that in a bit), but 6-5 guard Aaron Brown had to play power forward for long stretches, often guarding players with 3-4 inches and 30-40 pounds on him. Unfortunately for Fordham, the team that is on the court now has only lost one game this season, and that was to Purdue back in November.
2. This is a veteran team, with seniors and juniors throughout the rotation. Who is the player you’ll miss the most in the future?
JV: The good thing about Temple is that, like many schools that have become “programs” rather than “teams,” there are always pieces ready to step in and fill shoes no matter who graduates. That being said, the Owls obviously lose three key players in seniors Ramone Moore and Juan Fernandez, plus grad student Micheal Eric, all of whom have played huge roles for Temple over the last few years. Moore is one of the top scorers in the Atlantic 10, though as Fernandez has shown plenty over the last three years, he’s quite the scoring threat himself.
Next year, it’s going to be Anthony Lee stepping up to fill Eric’s starting spot, but this will be a sophomore who has not only a redshirt year under his belt but a 14-game stretch this year where he started in place of an injured Eric, and had plenty of good moments to go along with the usual growing pains. 2012 incoming freshman Devontae Watson (6’10”, 94-inch wing span) and Lee should do a pretty good job replacing Eric, though there will be a definite dropoff from the Eric/Lee duo, especially at the beginning of the year. Remember though that this team did play plenty without Eric, and still managed to beat Duke–so it’s not like this is the BIGGEST loss in the world.
Helping to replace Moore and Fernandez will be current sophomore Aaron Brown, one of the top 6th men in the league, and Khalif Wyatt, who looks poised to be one of the best players in the league next year, if he isn’t already. Will Cummings, a true freshman this year, will see a greatly expanded role next year for Temple at point guard, so in the end it might be Fernandez whose loss is felt most heavily as Cummings adjusts to being a full-time PG at this level.
3. With Fordham, URI and GW here coming up it’s a nice chance for Temple to make a run in the stacked A-10. Will they?
JV: With Eric back and healthy after missing eight weeks with that stress fracture in his patella, the Owls certainly look like a team capable not only of an Atlantic 10 run, but maybe a national ranking as well. They’ve come out hot against both Charlotte and Saint Joseph’s, and there’s no reason they won’t do the same against a Fordham team that, frankly, has struggled on the road this season. The key is keeping focused on each game and not letting the Feb. 11 date against Xavier draw their eye, because any team can win in this league if you overlook them. I don’t think Temple, a veteran team, is going to have a problem staying focused on any opponent, as this is a team that’s been to the NCAAs and knows what it takes to get there. That being said, there is still quite a lot of basketball to be played and quite a few teams (including Philly’s own La Salle) that are going to have a say about Temple being the A10 champion. But we’re clearly looking at a team that will be playing in the NCAAs.
4. Temple is a spectacular offensive team, mostly because they shoot so well. What’s Fran Dunphy’s strategy on that end?
JV: They run a motion offense, with the three main guards all willing and able to drive into the lane and take a shot if it’s there or kick it out, and repeat. Wyatt’s the most aggressive of the three, willing to create the most contact while Moore and Fernandez are happier to pull up for a mid-range jumper. Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson’s offensive game has also taken a big step forward, with the undersized (6-foot-6) power forward finding a nice mid-range jumper to go along with his hustle buckets that he gets on cleanups or benefiting from solid interior passing. Every player on Temple is more than willing to give up the ball for a better shot, which is the biggest reason the Owls are so potent on the offensive end.
It looks like Fordham is in for quite the challenge tonight. Be sure to check out Philahoops and follow Josh on Twitter.
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