Temple University Athletics
TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE FOR TEMPLE-AKRON NIT GAME TUESDAY EVENING
3.13.06 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA -
Tickets prices range from $10 - $40 and are available beginning this morning at 10 a.m. at the Liacouras Center Box Office, via 1-888-OWLS-TIX and at www.liacourascenter.com. Temple basketball season ticket holders are able to purchase their same seats for this game. They have until noon on Tuesday to do so. Season ticket holders must call 215-204-8499, 215-204-6710, or 215-204-6912 to purchase their seats.
Temple enters the tournament with a 17-14 record. The Owls advanced to the Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinals with wins over eighth-seeded Rhode Island (74-45) and top-seeded and sixth-ranked George Washington (68-53). Saint Joseph's ended Temple's run to the championship with a 73-59 win in the semifinal round.
Senior All-America Mardy Collins leads the TU attack. The 6-6 point guard tops the Cherry and White in scoring (16.6 ppg.), assists (122) and steals (86). A two-time first team All-Atlantic 10 Conference selection, he was named to the 2006 A-10 All-Tournament team.
Collins leads a balanced Owl offense that features four doubles-figure scorers. Senior forward Antywane Robinson ranks second on the team with a 12.7 scoring average while sophomore guard Mark Tyndale (10.5 ppg.) and junior Dustin Salibsery (10.1 ppg.) also tally double digit averages. Junior center Wayne Marshall (7.3 ppg.) completes the team's starting five.
Akron enters the NIT with a 22-9 record, finishing second in the MAC East Division with a 14-4 record. Junior forward Romeo Travis leads a balanced attack with a 13.5 scoring average. The backcourt tandem of junior Dru Joyce (10.5 ppg.) and sophomore Nick Dials (10.0 ppg.) also average double figures for second-year head coach Keith Dambrot's Zips. Akron is making its first postseason appearance since a NIT invite in 1989.
Temple owns a 20-14 all-time NIT record and is making its fifth straight and 17th overall appearance in the tournament. The Owls have won two NIT titles, capturing the crown in 1938 and then again in 1969. The Owls are 7-4 during the last four NITs, advancing to the Final Four (3rd place finish) in 2002. Temple is 4-4 against teams in the 2006 NIT. The Owls have played Charlotte (59-66, L), Maryland (91-85, W), Miami (FL) (73-56, W), Rutgers (53-67, L), Saint Joseph's (57-59, L; 57-44 W; 59-72, L) and South Carolina (63-50, W).
Temple University's men's basketball team extended its string of postseason appearances to 23 seasons and hosts MAC-member Akron Tuesday evening in a 7:00 p.m. tip-off at the Liacouras Center. The winner of the Owls (No. 7 seed) and Zips (No. 8 seed) National Invitation Tournament opening round contest travels to second-seed Creighton for a Thursday game.
