Temple University Athletics
Saturday, December 3
Liacouras Center
4:00 p.m.
Temple University
vs
Penn
Photo by: Ken Inness
Men's Basketball Hosts Big 5 Rival Penn on Saturday
12.1.16 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA - After an impressive finish to the month of November, Temple men's basketball will look to keep up its winning streak to begin December as the Owls host Philadelphia Big 5 rival Penn (2-3, 0-1) on Saturday, Dec. 3 at 4 p.m. (CSN / 1210 AM WPHT). Temple (5-2) has won four straight and is 2-0 in city series action so far.
The Liacouras Center is celebrating its 20th season, and Temple would hit a milestone of 200 wins in the arena with a win on Saturday.
Temple is hosting a Book Drive in conjunction with the game, and fans who donate a book to support the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia will receive $5 off tickets.
The four-game win streak for the Owls includes back-to-back wins against Top 25 teams for the first time in program history in the regular season. Temple achieved the feat once before during NCAA Tournament play in 2001. The Owls remain undefeated in Big 5 play after a 78-72 win at Saint Joseph's in their most recent game on Nov. 30. The win was the first for Temple at the Hawks' home arena since 1999.
In the Top 25 polls for Nov. 28, Temple received eight votes in the AP Poll and one vote in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.
Junior Obi Enechionyia leads Temple and ranks second in The American with 21.0 points per game. He tied his career high for a second time this season with 26 points at Saint Joseph's including 6-of-12 three-pointers. Senior point guard Josh Brown made his return to the court at SJU after missing the first six games while rehabbing from an Achilles tendon tear suffered in May. He scored four points in 14 minutes in his season debut.
Sophomore Shizz Alston, Jr. leads the conference and ranks fourth in NCAA Division I with an assist/turnover ratio of 7.2 while also leading the league and ranking 11th in the nation with 2.7 steals per game.Â
Two freshmen have made huge impacts for Temple early in the season. Alani Moore II has started every game at point guard, averaging eight points, while Quinton Rose is the team's second-leading scorer with 13 points per game. Rose ranks fifth in the conference in free-throw percentage (.800, 24-30) and is shooting nearly 52 percent from the field.
Temple head coach Fran Dunphy served as the head coach of the Quakers for 17 seasons (1989-2006), leading Penn to 10 Ivy League Championships, nine NCAA Tournaments and a 310-163 record over that span.
Penn is coming off back-to-back losses against Navy and No. 2/2 Villanova after winning two of its first three games. The Quakers returned four starters from last year's 11-17 squad, but have a freshman leading the way so far this season in AJ Brodeur with 13.0 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game. Second-year head coach Steve Donahue is a former assistant coach of Dunphy's at Penn for 10 years from 1990-2000.
Temple and Penn are meeting for the 71st time, with the Owls holding a 48-22 lead in the all-time series. The Owls have won the last nine straight meetings, including a 77-73 road victory last season. The teams last met at the Liacouras Center on Nov. 25, 2014 in a 76-67 win for the Owls.
Penn's last win in the series came back on Jan. 24, 2007, when the Quakers edged the Owls 76-74 at the Palestra. Coach Dunphy is now 9-1 against his former team as head coach at Temple.
Watch Live l Listen Live l Live Stats l Game Notes l Buy Tickets
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The Liacouras Center is celebrating its 20th season, and Temple would hit a milestone of 200 wins in the arena with a win on Saturday.
Temple is hosting a Book Drive in conjunction with the game, and fans who donate a book to support the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia will receive $5 off tickets.
The four-game win streak for the Owls includes back-to-back wins against Top 25 teams for the first time in program history in the regular season. Temple achieved the feat once before during NCAA Tournament play in 2001. The Owls remain undefeated in Big 5 play after a 78-72 win at Saint Joseph's in their most recent game on Nov. 30. The win was the first for Temple at the Hawks' home arena since 1999.
In the Top 25 polls for Nov. 28, Temple received eight votes in the AP Poll and one vote in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.
Junior Obi Enechionyia leads Temple and ranks second in The American with 21.0 points per game. He tied his career high for a second time this season with 26 points at Saint Joseph's including 6-of-12 three-pointers. Senior point guard Josh Brown made his return to the court at SJU after missing the first six games while rehabbing from an Achilles tendon tear suffered in May. He scored four points in 14 minutes in his season debut.
Sophomore Shizz Alston, Jr. leads the conference and ranks fourth in NCAA Division I with an assist/turnover ratio of 7.2 while also leading the league and ranking 11th in the nation with 2.7 steals per game.Â
Two freshmen have made huge impacts for Temple early in the season. Alani Moore II has started every game at point guard, averaging eight points, while Quinton Rose is the team's second-leading scorer with 13 points per game. Rose ranks fifth in the conference in free-throw percentage (.800, 24-30) and is shooting nearly 52 percent from the field.
Temple head coach Fran Dunphy served as the head coach of the Quakers for 17 seasons (1989-2006), leading Penn to 10 Ivy League Championships, nine NCAA Tournaments and a 310-163 record over that span.
Penn is coming off back-to-back losses against Navy and No. 2/2 Villanova after winning two of its first three games. The Quakers returned four starters from last year's 11-17 squad, but have a freshman leading the way so far this season in AJ Brodeur with 13.0 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game. Second-year head coach Steve Donahue is a former assistant coach of Dunphy's at Penn for 10 years from 1990-2000.
Temple and Penn are meeting for the 71st time, with the Owls holding a 48-22 lead in the all-time series. The Owls have won the last nine straight meetings, including a 77-73 road victory last season. The teams last met at the Liacouras Center on Nov. 25, 2014 in a 76-67 win for the Owls.
Penn's last win in the series came back on Jan. 24, 2007, when the Quakers edged the Owls 76-74 at the Palestra. Coach Dunphy is now 9-1 against his former team as head coach at Temple.
Watch Live l Listen Live l Live Stats l Game Notes l Buy Tickets
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