From Falcon to Owl to ... Poland?

IT TOOK FIVE YEARS, two colleges and one year of watching from the sidelines, but Temple senior Dalton Pepper finally has his chance. Pepper, a 6-foot-5 guard/forward, starred at Pennsbury High but initially passed on playing college ball on North Broad in favor of West Virginia. Buried on Bob Huggins' bench for two seasons, Pepper transferred home, where, after sitting out the 2011-12 season, he mostly watched as a senior-heavy group of Owls made a run to the NCAA Tournament last season.

A subsequent run this season might have been a possibility for the Owls, if not for a raft of injuries. Pepper had only six healthy teammates Sunday, but Temple still upset visiting Southern Methodist - and this without leading rebounder Anthony Lee. They also beat Big Five rival St. Joseph's in December . . . then lost 14 of 16 as the strength of the new American Athletic Conference made itself known.

Still, Pepper exited the SMU game averaging 17.3 points. He scored 22 against the Mustangs, marking the 17th time this season that he scored more than 13 points in a game. He'd entered the season having scored 13 just once before in his career.

His scoring this season might mean a basketball career beyond Temple. He certainly has a name suited for fame. Marcus Hayes spoke with Pepper on Tuesday.

Q Does anybody tease you about your boy-band name? Or call you Dr.?

A lot of people say, "What were your parents thinking when they named you?" They liked the movie, "Roadhouse," with that character, Dalton. You know: Patrick Swayze.

When I was younger, people said, "If you grow up to be a doctor, you'd be Dr. Pepper." My friends would call me Dr. Pepper, like, in elementary school. But I don't drink much soda. If I do drink soda, I mean, I'll drink Dr. Pepper.

Q What's up with the buzz cut? With a name like Dalton Pepper and as the namesake of a Swayze character, shouldn't you have more expressive hair?

My brother is the hair guy. Shawn. He's a freshman who plays football at West Chester University, with my other brother, Brandon, who's a sophomore. Shawn's got hair down the middle of his back. Like that dude in Green Bay, Clay Matthews. That's Shawn's favorite player.

Q So, what's the best thing about being back in Philly, besides no more hillbilly jokes?

It's easy. The cheesesteaks. My first week in West Virginia, I went to a pizza parlor and asked if I could get a cheesesteak. They didn't even know what it was. I didn't know what to say.

Having cheesesteaks around is a good feeling.

Q When Michael Jordan hit a game-winner over Utah's Bryon Russell in the 1998 NBA Finals, Jordan held the follow-through in an exaggerated pose. Your follow-through is similar. Is it an homage to MJ?

I used to shoot it quick - you know, pull the string a little bit, pull my hand back, and I'd be short on my shots. My coaches have emphasized for me to hold it there so I won't be short on my jump shot. So now I hold my follow-through.

The ball goes in a lot more this way, rather than pulling it back and fading away. I don't think of it as a pose. I just want it to go in.

Q It's going in a lot. Pro teams always can use a shooter. Some of your teammates from the 2012-13 team played abroad this season: China, Germany, Japan. What's your favorite type of foreign food?

I like Polish food. My girlfriend is from Poland. I was with her at Christmas and her family had this big Polish meal. Like, pierogi, you know? There's a Polish pro league. We'll see about that. Anything that opens up, I'm interested in it.