Temple to face different South Florida
ORLANDO - When top-seeded Temple meets No. 9 South Florida Friday afternoon in an American Athletic Conference quarterfinal, the Owls will be facing a much different Bulls team.
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ORLANDO - When top-seeded Temple meets No. 9 South Florida Friday afternoon in an American Athletic Conference quarterfinal, the Owls will be facing a much different Bulls team.
Different in the fact that the Bulls biggest impact player in Thursday's opening 71-66 win over No. 8 East Carolina at the Amway Center, hasn't faced Temple this season.
That would be Chris Perry, a 6-foot-8 junior who had 18 points, shooting 7 for 11 from the field and five rebounds in 24 effective minutes against ECU.
Temple (20-10) didn't face Perry in its two wins over the Bulls this season because he was suspended for six games for violating team rules.
"I thought Perry gave them a huge boost," said Temple assistant coach Aaron McKie, who scouted Thursday's game. "He gives them a presence and with him in there, they have an attitude about them."
Perry missed the final 12 games last year due to illness. In his final game a year ago - a 73-48 Temple victory at the Liacouras Center, he scored just two points in 20 minutes.
Perry says not facing Temple this season is no disadvantage.
"I am still familiar with them; I played them before, and I think the only addition I missed is the freshman guard and then the number zero with the long last name who can shoot the ball pretty well."
The freshman guard he is referring to is Trey Lowe, who is sidelined after sustaining upper-body injuries in a one-car accident on Feb. 28.
Number zero is Temple 6-9 sophomore Obi Enechionyia, who Perry did play against in his final appearance last year.
Enechionyia is playing his best basketball of the season, having averaged 15.5 points in his last 12 games.
Temple had two competitive games with USF this year, winning 70-63 on Jan. 31 in Tampa, and 77-65 on Feb. 14 at the Liacouras Center.
What made Thursday's win more impressive is that USF's leading scorer, freshman point guard Jahmal McMurray, was held to nine points on 3-for-12 shooting.
Angel Nunez, a 6-8 senior, picked up the slack, scoring a team-high 19 points.
A key was that USF held East Carolina to 6 for 30 shooting from three-point range. Temple, in its two wins over USF shot 18 for 49 (36.7 percent) from beyond the arc. The Owls will need to be proficient from the perimeter against a USF team with impressive size.
Coach Orlando Antigua has for the past two games brought 6-11 senior Jaleeel Cousins off the bench. Cousins, whose brother is NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins, had seven points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots in 15 effective minutes against ECU.
"I just thought that the lineup that we stated has made us a little bit quicker," Antigua said.
Perry also came off the bench, and since returning from his six-game suspension, USF is 3-3.
So after having two competitive games against USF without Perry, Temple shouldn't be feeling overconfident.
Even though the Bulls are just 8-24, they have nothing to lose, are playing loose and have renewed energy upon Perry's return.
Dunphy honored
Temple's Fran Dunphy was named the AAC men's basketball coach of the year for the second straight season.
Temple was picked to finish sixth in the AAC preseason poll but won the regular-season championship, going 14-4 in the AAC.
"The players are the ones who have to deliver, and they are the ones in the arena doing the job, doing the work, and they have done a great job for us this year," Dunphy said.
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