I thought I would take this opportunity to bring to light all the hard work and dedication that our staff puts into the success of the Temple basketball program.

The head coach is the one who gets most of the attention as we go about our seasons and our careers. The reality is that, like most things in life, you need great help that includes efficient and effective preparation. The assistant coaches do so many things in so many different areas that people may not recognize. For example, they very closely monitor our student athletes academically. They also plan the practices and prepare for the upcoming opponents.

This week we are playing La Salle for the second time this season. Dave Duke will serve as the scout coach for that game. He will do the requisite work that we need in terms of preparing our team offensively and defensively to make sure we are ready for the Explorers. Matt Langel and Shawn Trice do the same when it is their scout. All of the film work is put together by Dwayne Killings. Jeff Wilson then takes the administrative work out of the hands of the head coach. They do so much of the work and get such little recognition.

I just wanted to take the time publically, to say thanks to them, and to all of those assistant coaches in all of the basketball programs around the country who do not get the recognition they deserve.

Go Owls!

...I am probably in the minority on this, but I really liked Villanova’s win at DePaul last night. Look, they have the Internet on campus. The Wildcat players knew DePaul had lost 14 straight. Did not seem to be much atmosphere in the arena. After all the games in front of giant crowds with big meaning, this was a human nature game. Villanova trailed by 10 early in the second half and then turned it on.

Once the Cats got a double-digit lead, I figured it was over. It wasn’t. The Wildcats had to make all the right plays in the final minute. And they did.

I am sure Jay Wright is not pleased with his team’s recent defense, but this team has become really difficult to guard. Get these players with all their big-game experience in a tournament setting and I think they are really dangerous.

It was a great night to have a clicker and, if you are thinking big picture, a really good night for Villanova.

I hated to see Marquette’s Dominic James go down with that broken bone in his left foot. His college career is over. Marquette still managed to hang with Connecticut until the end without James. Still, over time, that can’t be helpful for their chances at a Big East Tournament bye.

If Villanova can win out, it will have a big chance at one of those four byes as it is just a game behind Pittsburgh and Marquette, both of which have some very difficult games left in the regular season.

How tough is the Big East? At one point last night, Pittsburgh was No. 1 in the country and fourth in the Big East standings.

At this point, I would guess the selection committee would have Villanova behind Duke and North Carolina and ahead of Wake Forest and Clemson in NCAA seeding order. If `Nova holds that, it is going to open at the Wachovia Center. Duke and UNC would be in Greensboro while Villanova and UConn would be in South Philly. Clemson losing at home last night to Virginia Tech was good news for Villanova.

Big night for Temple. If Saint Joseph’s can beat Xavier at the Palestra and Temple beats La Salle at the Liacouras Center, the Owls will be the only three-loss team in the A-10 standings.

The Hawks need a win to get back in play for one of those four A-10 byes, critical for a team with a short bench that can’t be expected to win four games in four days in Atlantic City.

A bit like last season, the top of the lead is starting to implode with much more movement likely. Just about anything is still possible as the regular season hits the homestretch.
 

We’re in the homestretch with only two games remaining on our schedule. On Wednesday, Northeastern comes to the DAC in a real pivotal game for both teams. Northeastern has had a real good year and are a game in front of us, tied for second in the CAA. It should be a tough battle, just like it was in Boston a few weeks ago when we came from behind to beat the Huskies.

This will be an emotional game as well since it is senior night. It will be the last time our fans get to see Scott Rodgers, Tramayne Hawthorne, Bobby Jordan and Chris Mohl play in the DAC. Those guys have done a great job this season of staying focused and playing hard every day in practice.

One thing about Senior Night is that you remember how fast time goes by. You remember their first days as freshman and how far they have come. Scott has been one of the most improved players in the CAA and is a legitimate candidate for All-Conference honors. Tra has had some big games this year and will finish his career among Drexel’s all-time leaders in both steals and three-pointers. Bobby and Chris have both played a big role as practice players for us.

I’m proud of the way these guys have worked all season. All will graduate and all have been great people as well as players. We hope to finish strong and make it memorable for our seniors.

 

We just finished what I feel was our poorest week of the season. Explanations are very difficult and theories are too numerous to go in to. It is especially disappointing because our fan support was great Sunday.

I know we can and will play better. For some strange reason we play better away from our homecourt.

The cliché's about sport being a microcosm of life are true. We must overcome disappointment and work to do better. Our minimal goal this year is to produce a winning season. That is critically important to us.

We will learn from each game and each season to keep La Salle Basketball moving forward.

Our practices this week will be especially competitive for this time of year.

This Sunday Temple will celebrate one of the finest young men to wear the Cherry and White Dionte Christmas in a very unique way – his very own bobblehead. This is the first time that Temple has honored a student-athlete with a bobblehead and Dionte is very deserving of this day.

Dionte truly encompasses what you want in a student athlete on your team. He does a good job in the classroom. He has worked as hard on his academics as he has on his basketball game. He has also done a terrific job on the basketball court and really represents Temple well. His most valued asset, however, is what he does in the community. He is a good person and the kind of individual that you want to represent your basketball program and institution. It is these three components, athleticism, academics and community service that have made him one of 10 finalists for the Senior Class Award. We are very proud of all that he has accomplished in his four years at Temple and we will have fun with this Bobblehead day.

So please, come out Sunday and join me in honoring one of the greatest individuals in Temple basketball history and support our team as we take on St. Bonaventure. The game tips off at 2:00 p.m., but be sure to arrive early as only the first 3,000 fans 14 and over get a bobblehead. Also it is Hooter’s Birthday, and will be a fun day for youngsters as many of the local mascots will be in attendance for the big day.

Go Owls!!

...It was about this time last year when a much more offensively talented Saint Joseph’s team, apparently on its way to an easy at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament after winning six straight, culminating with a rout of Villanova, hit the wall and promptly lost five of seven.

Those Hawks recovered with a win over No. 8 Xavier, another win over Xavier in the Atlantic 10 semifinals and earned one of the final at-large berths after a close loss to Temple in the A-10 championship game.

This St. Joe’s team was never going to earn an at-large bid after a non-conference schedule that saw them lose too often to teams they could have beaten and not beating any teams the odds makers thought they would not beat.

Still, just a week ago, the Hawks had only one A-10 loss. Now, they have four. A once solid first-round A-10 Tournament bye is now more tenuous. So, what gives?

Two things: reality and no bench production.

The Hawks needed three overtimes to beat Rhode Island and a tip-in at the OT buzzer to beat Duquesne. Even the wins were not easy. Now, they have lost three consecutive close games.

The reality is this is a flawed team and flawed teams don’t win every close game. That basketball truth has brought St. Joe’s back to A-10 reality.

Then, there is the bench. Or lack of it. And how all those starter minutes could be affecting the results.

Last year, with Garrett Williamson and Idris Hilliard coming off the bench, St. Joe’s bench took up just 18 percent of the available minutes, according to kenpom.com. That was 339th out of 341 teams. The national bench average was 30.8 percent of available minutes.

Now, with Williamson and Hilliard starting in place of Rob Ferguson and Pat Calathes, the Hawks bench, through Sunday, is getting just 14.9 percent of all minutes. That is 343rd out of 344 Div. I teams.

Star Ahmad Nivins has played 96.2 percent of available minutes. That is No. 2 in the nation behind UMBC’s Darryl Proctor.

No doubt, these players are in shape. Anybody who has watched them train at Summit knows that. Still, no matter the shape, the season is a grind. Players begin to wear down.

The Hawks were not exactly blown out in their three straight losses, losing by a combined nine points. But they played from behind in all those games and could never quite catch up. That is a hard way to play, especially with a short bench.

In Wednesday’s loss at Saint Louis, St. Joe’s coach Phil Martelli did use his bench much more and got good production. After using the bench for just eight minutes against La Salle, Martelli got 16 points in 39 minutes from his bench against the Billikens.

Now, Martelli will insist that the bench situation is not a factor in the recent losses. And he could be right. He could also be wrong.
 

So, what are we to make of Villanova’s 19-point loss at West Virginia last Friday?

It happens. Just ask Louisville, which got clubbed at Notre Dame by 33. If you looked at Villanova’s schedule way back when, you would’ve circled the trip to Morgantown as a likely loss anyway. Just because. It’s hardly an easy place to play, especially at 9 on a weekend. That musket fire does get loud. Plus, the Wildcats had beaten West Virginia pretty good up here last year. And Bob Huggins had been building this game into the biggest thing since Jerry West left. So what transpired was almost expected. Especially since Dwayne Anderson’s hyperextended knee still wasn’t ready to go.

Look at it another way: The Wildcats had probably gone throught their toughest stretch of the regular season and came away 3-1, with two wins over nationally ranked opponents. Think Jay Wright would have taken that before it started?

Now, the thing his team has to do is take care of business, particularly at home. Chances are, they’re going to lose again before the Big East Tournament. The only question is how many. They’re off until Thursday, when they host Rutgers, a team that embarrassed them up there last season. Then they go to Syracuse, which will be out for some revenge from Feb. 7. There’s a trip to De Paul, which really stinks, followed by a game at the Center against Georgetown. The Wildcats, of course, nearly won in Washington a year ago. They go to Notre Dame after that, and close with Providence, another team they’ve already beaten, at the Pavilion.

So what’s it going to be? Can they finish 4-2? That would probably mean losing at Syracuse and ND. If the Wildcats don’t lose at home that’s the worst they can do, because they should be able to handle De Paul. Or maybe they’ll slip at home but win two on the road. Or perhaps they’ve got a 5-1 run left in them.

Barring something unforseen, it looks like they’re headed for a third game against Marquette in the Big East quarterfinals. But there’s a lot of basketballs to be dribbled before then, and projecting usually only gets you into trouble.

As for the postseason possibilities, I think Dick Jerardi covered it pretty well in Monday’s paper. The Wildcats probably have about a 50-50 chance of playing the opening weekend of the NCAAs in South Philly. And some of that obviously depends on what happens to other teams that are in that 2-3-4 seed range.

I know this much: The Villanova team that beat Pitt, Syracuse and Marquette in the span of 2 weeks was playing well enough to hang with just about anyone. If the Wildcats can play that way when mid-March arrives, it should make for another interesting Madness, for a program that’s been to the second weekend 3 of the last 4 years.

But who didn’t already know that?
 

 
Not that long ago it looked like Temple’s only chance of getting back into the NCAA Tournament was to win the Atlantic 10 once again.

Upon further review ...

The Owls are 15-9, having won three straight since a loss at Xavier. They have six games left before the A-10 tourney, starting Wednesday against Fordham at the Liacouras Center. Then it’s two more at home, with St. Bonaventure and LaSalle, a trip to Dayton, Saint Joseph’s on North Broad Street and at George Washington.

The only time they won’t be favored is at Dayton.

Right now, the Owls’ RPI is 34. According to ESPN’s Bracketology — which I happen to put a lot of faith in, even though I’m sure many folks will point out that it’s the work of a St. Joe guy — they’re the sixth team out. Just behind Southern Cal, and just ahead of New Mexico. But a bunch of things can change before Selection Sunday. And often does.

Obviously, if Temple can win at Dayton, that would go a long way in helping its cause. Because, barring a total impolosion, Xavier and Dayton are in. It’s important for Temple to at least establish itself as the third-best team in the conference. I’m sick of hearing how the A-10 can’t get more than two teams in. From everything I’ve heard, when the Committee puts Temple’s name on the board, the Owls are being judged on how they stack up against other teams. There aren’t quotas, per ce. So if it comes down to, say, Temple and USC, it’s not A-10 vs. Pac-10.

Anyway, what if the Owls don’t win at Dayton, where the Flyers are nearly unstoppable? Well, if they win the rest of their games, which won’t be easy (especially the two Big 5 matchups, even if they’re at home), then get to the A-10 title game, why wouldn’t they have a legitimate argument?

Obviously, there’s not much margin for error. That’s what losing some of those games in November and December can do (think Long Beach) to a resume. But under that scenario, they would probably have to beat Xavier or Dayton in the A-10 semifinals. That would get them to 22-10, which figures to be bubble territory. So even a loss to X or Dayton in the final will leave them at 22-11. If nothing else, that would certainly make for an interesting discussion.

Much, of course, depends upon what goes on around the country as well. It’s not all in Temple’s hands. But the Owls can do their part, and let the invites fall how they may.

First things first. Fans can look ahead. Players and coaches can’t afford to. Because at this point, all it takes is one false step to take you out of the picture.

And if all else fails, hey, they can always just go 3-0 in Atlantic City. Then, there is no speculation. Funny how that works.

This week is a very challenging week for our basketball program as we leave the Liacouras Center to take on two of the top teams in the Atlantic 10 Conference, Saint Joseph’s and Duquesne.

Overall, winning on the road in the Atlantic 10 is a difficult proposition. Those teams that are able to win on the road separate themselves from the rest of the field. Right now, St. Joe’s has done a terrific job on the road in the league and that is why they are currently in first place in the conference.

While we do not have to leave the city to play St. Joe’s, we are going to their home away from home, the Palestra. We certainly know the confines of the Palestra, so it is not like another away court. It will, however, be a road game in terms of atmosphere as most of the fans will be for St. Joe’s. We certainly understand and respect that.

Then going to Duquesne will be a tough challenge. They proved that they belong among the top teams in the league, and have a strong homecourt advantage when they defeated Xavier in the Palumbo Center last weekend. Again that underscored how difficult it is to win on the road in the Atlantic 10.

Every game from here on out is critical. We have eight games left in the league and if we are going to finish anywhere near where we finished last year we are going to have to take care of our home games while splitting on the road any way that we can. That is the formula for success.

Go Owls