Temple University Athletics
Thursday, January 31
Houston, Texas
7:00 p.m.
Temple University
at
Houston
Photo by: Zamani Feelings
Men's Basketball Looks for Second Upset of #13/13 Houston on Thursday
1.29.19 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA - The first of a two-game road swing takes Temple men's basketball to #13/13 Houston on Thursday, Jan. 31 (ESPN2 / 1210 AM WPHT) where the Owls (15-5, 5-2) will be looking to complete the regular season sweep of the Cougars (20-1, 7-1). Houston was 15-0 before Temple won at home on Jan. 9, and the Owls remain the only team to have beaten the Cougars in 2018-19.
Scouting Temple
> The Owls have lost two of their last three, but at 15-5 it is still the team's best start since 2011-12, and the fastest the program has reached the 15-win mark since the 2009-10 season.Â
> Last week saw Temple earn a big 85-76 win over Memphis before losing a lead to Cincinnati in a 72-68 loss. Junior Quinton Rose scored a season-high 26 points in the Memphis win, leading five Owls who reached double figures in scoring, while sophomore J.P. Moorman II scored a career-high 20 points in the loss to Cincinnati.
> Prior to the Memphis win, the last time five Owls had scored in double figures was Feb. 15, 2018 at #19 Wichita State.
> Temple's Jan. 9 victory over the #17/15 Cougars made it 12 seasons in a row that Temple has defeated a Top 25 program.Â
> Temple has used the same starting lineup in all 20 games, and is one of only five teams in NCAA Division I to have the same starters in every game of the 2018-19 season.
> Shizz Alston, Jr. averages 18.5 points per game to lead the team and rank third in the American Athletic Conference. He has scored 20 or more points eight times this season and has earned two co-AAC Player of the Week awards.
> Sophomore Nate Pierre-Louis scored a season high-tying 22 points to lead Temple to an 82-80 OT win vs. USF on Jan. 12. He has now scored in double figures in nine straight games and is second on the team in AAC games with 17.7 ppg.
> Rose is averaging 17.1 ppg to rank seventh in the AAC, while also ranking second with 2.4 steals per game.
> Temple ranks 12th in the nation with 9.1 steals per game. The Owls have posted double-digit steals in 10 games.
Scouting Houston
> The #13/13 Cougars are nearly perfect this season and are the only team in NCAA Division I to reach 20 wins so far.
> Houston is particularly tough at home where the Cougars have not lost since the end of the 2016-17 season, going 15-0 last year and 15-0 so far this season.
> The Cougars rank second in the nation in field-goal percentage defense, with their opponents shooting just 36.4 percent. They also rank sixth nationally in scoring defense with opponents averaging 60.2 points per game.
> Leading Houston are junior guard Armoni Brooks and senior guard Corey Davis, Jr. with 14.8 and 14.6 points per game, respectively. Brooks also averages a team-best 6.4 rebounds per game.
> The Cougars went 27-8 last season, losing by a point in both the AAC Championship (Cincinnati) and the NCAA Second Round (Michigan). Â
Series History vs. Houston
> Temple and Houston are meeting for the 10th time, with Houston holding a 6-3 lead in the series.
> After three straight losses to the Cougars, Temple defeated them 73-69 at home just a few weeks ago on Jan. 9. The Owls were the first, and remain the only, team to defeat Houston this season.
> Houston swept the Owls last year, winning 80-59 at Temple on Feb. 18, 2018 and 76-73 in Houston. The Cougars also handed the Owls a 79-66 loss in the only meeting of the 2016-17 season.
> Fifth-year Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson is 4-4 against Temple, losing for the first time 61-43 (March 17, 1996) in the NCAA First Round while he was the head coach at Oklahoma.Â
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Scouting Temple
> The Owls have lost two of their last three, but at 15-5 it is still the team's best start since 2011-12, and the fastest the program has reached the 15-win mark since the 2009-10 season.Â
> Last week saw Temple earn a big 85-76 win over Memphis before losing a lead to Cincinnati in a 72-68 loss. Junior Quinton Rose scored a season-high 26 points in the Memphis win, leading five Owls who reached double figures in scoring, while sophomore J.P. Moorman II scored a career-high 20 points in the loss to Cincinnati.
> Prior to the Memphis win, the last time five Owls had scored in double figures was Feb. 15, 2018 at #19 Wichita State.
> Temple's Jan. 9 victory over the #17/15 Cougars made it 12 seasons in a row that Temple has defeated a Top 25 program.Â
> Temple has used the same starting lineup in all 20 games, and is one of only five teams in NCAA Division I to have the same starters in every game of the 2018-19 season.
> Shizz Alston, Jr. averages 18.5 points per game to lead the team and rank third in the American Athletic Conference. He has scored 20 or more points eight times this season and has earned two co-AAC Player of the Week awards.
> Sophomore Nate Pierre-Louis scored a season high-tying 22 points to lead Temple to an 82-80 OT win vs. USF on Jan. 12. He has now scored in double figures in nine straight games and is second on the team in AAC games with 17.7 ppg.
> Rose is averaging 17.1 ppg to rank seventh in the AAC, while also ranking second with 2.4 steals per game.
> Temple ranks 12th in the nation with 9.1 steals per game. The Owls have posted double-digit steals in 10 games.
Scouting Houston
> The #13/13 Cougars are nearly perfect this season and are the only team in NCAA Division I to reach 20 wins so far.
> Houston is particularly tough at home where the Cougars have not lost since the end of the 2016-17 season, going 15-0 last year and 15-0 so far this season.
> The Cougars rank second in the nation in field-goal percentage defense, with their opponents shooting just 36.4 percent. They also rank sixth nationally in scoring defense with opponents averaging 60.2 points per game.
> Leading Houston are junior guard Armoni Brooks and senior guard Corey Davis, Jr. with 14.8 and 14.6 points per game, respectively. Brooks also averages a team-best 6.4 rebounds per game.
> The Cougars went 27-8 last season, losing by a point in both the AAC Championship (Cincinnati) and the NCAA Second Round (Michigan). Â
Series History vs. Houston
> Temple and Houston are meeting for the 10th time, with Houston holding a 6-3 lead in the series.
> After three straight losses to the Cougars, Temple defeated them 73-69 at home just a few weeks ago on Jan. 9. The Owls were the first, and remain the only, team to defeat Houston this season.
> Houston swept the Owls last year, winning 80-59 at Temple on Feb. 18, 2018 and 76-73 in Houston. The Cougars also handed the Owls a 79-66 loss in the only meeting of the 2016-17 season.
> Fifth-year Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson is 4-4 against Temple, losing for the first time 61-43 (March 17, 1996) in the NCAA First Round while he was the head coach at Oklahoma.Â
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Players Mentioned
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