Men's Basketball Set for AAC Quarterfinal vs. Wichita State on Friday Night

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The third-seeded Temple men's basketball team has arrived in Memphis and is preparing for its quarterfinal game in the 2019 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship. The Owls (23-8, 13-5) will play on Friday, March 15 (9 p.m. ET / ESPNU / 1210 AM/WPHT) against sixth-seeded Wichita State (18-13, 10-8).

Scouting Temple
> Temple is making its third appearance in the AAC Championship quarterfinals in the last four years. The Owls have twice before earned a first-round bye, but not since the 2015-16 season.
> Since the first AAC Championship in 2013-14, the Owls are 3-5 overall and 1-2 in the quarterfinals. Last year, Temple beat Tulane 82-77 in the first round before falling 89-81 to #14/11 Wichita State in the quarterfinals.
> The Owls have won six of their last seven games including three straight heading into the tournament. They got a 67-62 Senior Day win over #25 UCF on March 9, earning their second win over a Top 25 team this season.
> Temple had three players recognized with American Athletic Conference postseason awards. Senior guard Shizz Alston, Jr. was named to the AAC First Team, junior guard Quinton Rose was named to the AAC Second Team, and sophomore guard Nate Pierre-Louis was named Most Improved along with Josh Carlton from UConn.
> Alston was named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll for a sixth time on March 11. He has scored 20 or more points in each of the last seven games and ranks tied for first in the AAC with 19.7 points per game. Alston exploded for a career-high 34 points on 12-of-14 shooting to lead the Owls to a 78-71 win at UConn on March 7.
> Fran Dunphy, head coach of the Owls since 2006-07, coached his final home game for Temple on March 9. Associate head coach Aaron McKie will take over as head coach next season. Dunphy's final record at home is 130-41 (.760).
> The Owls beat Tulsa, 84-73 on Feb. 23, for their 20th win of the season. Dunphy has now guided the Owls to 20 or more wins in nine of his 13 seasons.
> The career lists at Temple have Alston moving up in both assists (410, eighth all-time) and points (1,556, 14th all-time).
> Rose and sophomore guard Nate Pierre-Louis average 16.5 and 13.4 points per game, respectively, to rank second and third on the team. Rose has tallied eight 20-point performances while Pierre-Louis has four.
> Temple ranks 14th in the nation with 8.8 steals per game. The Owls have posted double-digit steals in 13 games.

Tournament Tidbits
> The Owls are playing in their sixth American Athletic Conference Tournament after 30 years of Atlantic 10 Tournaments.
> Temple's overall record in the American Tournament is 3-5.
> The Owls are 4-5 all-time at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, going 4-4 vs. the Tigers and 0-1 in the AAC Tournament with a double OT loss to UCF in 2013-14, the first year of the league's existence.
> Last year, the seventh-seeded Owls beat 10th-seeded Tulane 82-77 in the first round before falling to #14/11 and second-seeded Wichita State by a score of 89-81 in the quarterfinals.
> In 2016-17, the eighth-seeded Owls lost 80-69 to ninth-seeded ECU in the first round. In 2015-16, the top-seeded Owls rolled past USF in the quarterfinals, 79-62, but lost 77-62 to fifth-seeded UConn in the semifinals.

Series History vs. Wichita State
> Temple and Wichita State have met seven times, and four as conference opponents.
> The Owls won the first four games in series history before dropping two, but won the only meeting this season so far in thrilling fashion, 85-81 in overtime on the road on Jan. 6.
> The teams first met as AAC rivals on Feb. 1, 2017, with the Owls upsetting the #16/16 Shockers 81-79 in OT at the Liacouras Center.
> Last season's second meeting saw Wichita State win at home, 93-86 on Feb. 15. The Owls were then knocked out of the AAC Tournament by the Shockers in the quarterfinals, losing 88-81 on March 9.
> The most recent meeting prior to last season was a 78-74 overtime victory for Temple in the 5-hour Energy Puerto Rico Tip-Off on Nov. 20, 2011. Prior to 2011, the teams had met once in 1983 and once in 1985. The Owls won 78-73 in Kansas on Dec. 22, 1983, and won 62-60 at home on Dec. 7, 1985.

Men's Basketball Set for AAC Quarterfinal vs. Wichita State on Friday Night

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Players Mentioned

Shizz Alston, Jr.

Nate Pierre-Louis

Quinton Rose

Temple University Athletics