Temple University Athletics
Photo by: Carli Showmaker
Temple is Tourney Bound; Will Face Belmont in NCAA First Four
3.17.19 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA – Temple (23-9), seeded 11th in the East Region, will face 11th-seeded Belmont (26-5) in the First Four of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio, on Tuesday, March 19 at 9:10 p.m. Television information will be announced later.
Should the Owls advance, they will be in the East Region and face sixth-seeded Maryland (22-10 in NCAA First Round action at Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. on Thursday, March 21.
The Owls are making their 33rd NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2016. Head coach Fran Dunphy, in his 13th and final season with Temple, is making his 17th career trip to the NCAA Tournament to tie legendary Owls' coach John Chaney for the most NCAA appearances with a Philadelphia Big 5 school (nine at Penn, eight at Temple).
The Cherry and White, led by senior and American Athletic Conference First Team selection Shizz Alston, enter the tournament winners of eight of their last 11 contests including a Senior Day victory over #25 UCF. The Owls have beaten a Top 25 team for 12 straight seasons, also handing #11/10 Houston, the AAC regular season champion, its first loss of the season in January.
Alston leads the AAC with 19.7 points per game and is on pace to be Temple's first conference scoring leader since Khalif Wyatt in 2013. He also ranks first in free-throw percentage (.907), first in minutes played (37.1 per game), second in assists per game (5.0), and fourth in three-pointers made per game (3.0). Alston, a three-time AAC Player of the Week and four-time Big 5 Player of the Week this season, was named to the AAC First Team and the USBWA All-District II Team.
Junior guard Quinton Rose (AAC Second Team) ranks second on the team and ninth in the AAC with 16.5 points per game, while sophomore Nate Pierre-Louis (AAC co-Most Improved Player) is third on the team with 13.3 points per game and second with 5.7 rebounds per game. Alston's co-captain, senior Ernest Aflakpui, is coming off his fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and a career-high 19 rebounds vs. Wichita State in the AAC quarterfinals. Aflakpui leads the Owls and ranks sixth in the league with 7.0 rebounds per game.
Belmont comes into the tournament with an overall record of 26-5, and the Bruins had won 14 straight prior to losing to Murray State in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship game on March 9. Dylan Windler leads Belmont with 21.4 points per game, and his 10.7 rebounds per game lead the team and rank 10th among all players in NCAA Division I. Grayson Murphy is averaging 6.6 assists per game to rank 11th in NCAA Division I. The Bruins average 87.4 points per game to rank second in the nation, with their 19.9 assists per game ranking first.
Rick Byrd has been the head coach at Belmont for 33 years and has 712 career wins (ranks 12th all-time in Division I career victories with 804). This NCAA Tournament appearance will be his eighth with the Bruins. Belmont last earned an NCAA Tournament berth in 2014-15 and lost to #6 Virginia, 79-67.
Temple and Belmont will be playing for the first time in program history.
Should the Owls advance, they will be in the East Region and face sixth-seeded Maryland (22-10 in NCAA First Round action at Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. on Thursday, March 21.
The Owls are making their 33rd NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2016. Head coach Fran Dunphy, in his 13th and final season with Temple, is making his 17th career trip to the NCAA Tournament to tie legendary Owls' coach John Chaney for the most NCAA appearances with a Philadelphia Big 5 school (nine at Penn, eight at Temple).
The Cherry and White, led by senior and American Athletic Conference First Team selection Shizz Alston, enter the tournament winners of eight of their last 11 contests including a Senior Day victory over #25 UCF. The Owls have beaten a Top 25 team for 12 straight seasons, also handing #11/10 Houston, the AAC regular season champion, its first loss of the season in January.
Alston leads the AAC with 19.7 points per game and is on pace to be Temple's first conference scoring leader since Khalif Wyatt in 2013. He also ranks first in free-throw percentage (.907), first in minutes played (37.1 per game), second in assists per game (5.0), and fourth in three-pointers made per game (3.0). Alston, a three-time AAC Player of the Week and four-time Big 5 Player of the Week this season, was named to the AAC First Team and the USBWA All-District II Team.
Junior guard Quinton Rose (AAC Second Team) ranks second on the team and ninth in the AAC with 16.5 points per game, while sophomore Nate Pierre-Louis (AAC co-Most Improved Player) is third on the team with 13.3 points per game and second with 5.7 rebounds per game. Alston's co-captain, senior Ernest Aflakpui, is coming off his fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and a career-high 19 rebounds vs. Wichita State in the AAC quarterfinals. Aflakpui leads the Owls and ranks sixth in the league with 7.0 rebounds per game.
Belmont comes into the tournament with an overall record of 26-5, and the Bruins had won 14 straight prior to losing to Murray State in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship game on March 9. Dylan Windler leads Belmont with 21.4 points per game, and his 10.7 rebounds per game lead the team and rank 10th among all players in NCAA Division I. Grayson Murphy is averaging 6.6 assists per game to rank 11th in NCAA Division I. The Bruins average 87.4 points per game to rank second in the nation, with their 19.9 assists per game ranking first.
Rick Byrd has been the head coach at Belmont for 33 years and has 712 career wins (ranks 12th all-time in Division I career victories with 804). This NCAA Tournament appearance will be his eighth with the Bruins. Belmont last earned an NCAA Tournament berth in 2014-15 and lost to #6 Virginia, 79-67.
Temple and Belmont will be playing for the first time in program history.
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