MORE FROM THE WEB
More fan contributions from Philly.com Sports partner Bleacher Report
After his team's loss to Rhode Island on Saturday, first-year Temple coach Fran Dunphy began looking ahead to the Owls' next game, a much-anticipated return to his old place of business.
Tonight at the Palestra, the longtime Penn coach will be on the visitors' bench for the first time when Temple (7-10) takes on the Quakers (10-6) in a Big Five game. Temple, which has a three-game winning streak against Penn, is 0-2 in the City Series. The Quakers are 1-1.
Get Your Philadelphia Sports Gear Here
"It means a lot," Dunphy said after Saturday's loss. "It's a place where I was head coach for 17 years, so we would certainly like to go in there and play well. But today's game meant a great deal. They all mean so, so much to us as a basketball program."
Contact staff writer Kevin Tatum
Dunphy, whose Temple team has dropped six of its last seven games, is attempting to do with the Owls what he accomplished after taking over a .500 team at Penn in 1989-90.
He left as the Quakers' all-time winningest basketball coach with 310 career victories. Dunphy's first three teams went 12-14, 9-17 and 16-10, but in 1992-93, the Quakers won their first Ivy League championship under him.
Before being lured away by Temple, the former La Salle star guided Penn to nine more titles and eight additional appearances in the NCAA tournament.
Ibby Jaaber, the 2006 Ivy League player of the year under Dunphy, was asked if it would be a little strange to see his former coach sitting on the other side of the scorer's table tonight.
"Definitely," Jaaber said. "Anybody who says it won't be is telling a story. It'll be a weird feeling, but once the game starts, guys will be ready to play."
Penn, which entered this season as the two-time and defending Ivy League champion, is favored to repeat under coach Glen Miller, who left Ancient Eight foe Brown to succeed Dunphy with the Quakers.
"I'm sure it's a big game for the players," Miller said. "When I go back to Brown, it'll be a big game for them."
Miller inherited a roster that included all-Ivy League players in Jaaber and forward Mark Zoller along with two more dependable veterans in center Steve Danley and swingman Brian Grandieri.
In addition, the other returnees played under Dunphy, and the Quakers' freshmen are his recruits.
"When you sign to play at a school, you never imagine playing for another coach," said Grandieri, a junior who played at Malvern Prep. "We'd heard rumors before about Georgetown, Ohio State, La Salle, but he came back for the next season. This time, the rumors were true."
"For me personally, I'm not going to sit here and lie to you," Dunphy said "I know those [Penn] guys really well. I recruited them, and coached them and I want them to play well, in all games except [tonight]. We've been struggling a little bit, and you always need wins. Hopefully, we'll be ready to play."
Jaaber, Miller and Dunphy each had a unique perspective on tonight's game.
"Because I've never beaten Temple, I think that's more important than beating Dunphy," Jaaber said.
"It's not anything different considering I've coached against him eight times [as coach at Brown]," Miller said. "Except this time, I'll be on the home bench and he gets to enjoy the comforts of the visitors' locker room."
"I want to get it over and done with," Dunphy said, "so I won't be asked how it feels to be going back to the Palestra."
Contact staff writer Kevin Tatum
at 215-854-2583
