Men's Basketball Opens Conference Play at ECU Wednesday

Wednesday, December 28

Greenville, N.C.

7:00 P.M.

Temple University

East Carolina

Photo by: Zamani Feelings

Men's Basketball Opens Conference Play at ECU Wednesday

12.26.22 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes

GREENVILLE, N.C. - Temple opens American Athletic Conference play Wednesday at East Carolina (7 pm/ESPN+/1210 AM WPHT). The Owls (6-7, 0-0 AAC) were picked to finish fifth in the coaches' preseason conference poll while the Pirates (9-4, 0-0), under first year head coach Michael Schwartz, were chosen to place 11th.

This is only the third true road contest for Temple. The Owls lost the other two, at Penn, 77-57, on Dec. 10, and then dropped a 63-55 decision at Ole Miss on Dec. 17.

It will be another homecoming game for redshirt sophomore Damian Dunn, who grew up in nearby Kinston, N.C. Last year, Dunn scored a game-high 26 points to lead the Owls to a 71-63 win over the Pirates on Feb. 2.

SCOUTING TEMPLE
> Khalif Battle leads the team and ranks third in the American Athletic Conference in scoring (18.7 ppg) and has scored 20 points in seven games including four of his eight starts. He also leads the AAC in threes with 39 (3.0 pg) and is tied for 29th nationally.
> Damian Dunn ranks second on the team in scoring (14.7 ppg), assists (2.6) and field goal percentage (.446). He tallied a career-high 38 points in the Owls' 89-87 overtime loss to Vanderbilt. That is the most points by a TU player since 2004. He leads the Owls (tied 28th in NCAA) in free throws made (58).
> Zach Hicks (9.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg), who leads the Owls in three-point shooting (31-80, .388/5th AAC) and Hysier Miller (8.0 ppg, 4.2 apg/4th AAC) have started all 13 games while Kur Jongkuch (1.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg) has started the last two games in place of injured big man Jamille Reynolds (11.1 ppg/6,3 rpg).
> Jahlil White (3.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg) and Nick Jourdain (4.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.3 bpg.) are the Owls' top reserves.

SCOUTING EAST CAROLINA
> Head coach Michael Schwartz has led East Carolina to a 9-4 start in his first year at the helm.
> Sophomore guard Javon Small leads the Pirates in scoring (17.2 ppg) and the conference in assists (5.9 apg).
> Sophomore forward Brandon Johnson (12.7 ppg) and RJ Felton (12.0 ppg) also average double figures while Johnson tops the AAC in rebounding (9.1 rpg).
> The Pirates have won three in a row, including a 64-56 win over South Carolina on Dec. 17.
> East Carolina is also coming off a 6-11 AAC season, tying for the most league wins since joined the AAC.

SERIES HISTORY
> Temple and ECU are meeting for the 14th time after beginning the all-time series in 2014-15. Temple leads the series, 9-4.
> The Owls swept the season series last year, winning 78-75, on a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Damian Dunn at the Liacouras Center on Jan. 8 and 71-63 at ECU behind Dunn's game-high 26 points on Feb. 2.
> The teams did not compete in 2020-21 with both contests postponed due to covid protocol issues.
> In 2019-20 the teams each won on their home courts with the Pirates 67-63 victory in Greenville on Feb. 23, 2020 being the most recent game.
> Temple owns a 3-3 record against ECU at the Minges Coliseum.