Temple University Athletics
Men's Basketball
- Title:
- Head Coach
| ADAM FISHER | |
| Hometown | Jamison, Pa. |
| College | Penn State '06 |
| Family | Wife: Rebecca |
| Children: Alivia | |
| Coaching Experience | |
| Year | School, Position |
| 2023- | Temple, HC |
| 2021-23 | Penn State, Associate Head Coach |
| 2015-21 | Miami (Fla.), Assistant Coach |
| 2011-15 | Penn State, Video Coordinator/Director of Player Development |
| 2009-11 | Boston University, Director of Basketball Operations |
| 2007-09 | Villanova, Graduate Assistant |
Adam Fisher enters his fourth season as the head coach of Temple men’s basketball in 2026-27.
The Owls finished 16-16 overall and 8-10 in the American Conference in 2025-26. Temple posted a 10-6 record at the Liacouras Center and put together a seven-game winning streak that marked the program’s longest since 2014-15. Temple defeated eventual American Conference champion South Florida, 79-78, in a thrilling White Out win at the Liacouras Center. A total of 11 of Temple’s 16 losses came by two possessions or fewer.
The Owls ranked 11th nationally and second in the conference in turnovers per game at 9.0. Temple also ranked 55th nationally and fourth in the conference in free throws made per game (17.1), 87th nationally and third in the conference in free throw percentage (.747), 88th nationally and second in the conference in scoring defense (70.8), 94th nationally and fourth in the conference in turnover margin (+1.3) and 95th nationally and fourth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.37). The Owls added rim protection as well, finishing 75th nationally in blocks per game (4.0).
Temple’s ability to protect the basketball was one of its biggest strengths in 2025-26. The Owls finished the season averaging just 9.0 turnovers per game, ranking 11th nationally and second in the conference. Temple committed 10 or fewer turnovers in 20 of its 32 games and had four games with five or fewer, including a season-low four at East Carolina.
Temple made one of its biggest strides on the defensive end in 2025-26. After ranking last in the conference and 314th nationally in scoring defense in 2024-25 at 77.7 points per game allowed, the Owls improved to 70.8 points per game allowed this season, good for second in the conference and 88th nationally. Temple also held opponents to 32.4 percent shooting from 3-point range, ranking sixth in the league and 101st nationally, while averaging 4.0 blocks per game, which ranked 75th in the nation.
A major positive for Temple was the growth of its core scorers, especially transfers Derrian Ford, Gavin Griffiths and Jordan Mason, along with the continued development of Aiden Tobiason.
Ford’s progression was especially striking. After averaging 8.0 points and 3.4 rebounds at Arkansas State in 2024-25, he emerged as one of the league’s top scorers at Temple, averaging 18.1 points per game while ranking fourth in the conference in scoring, fourth in free throw percentage (.852) and fourth in free throws made (167). He earned All-American Conference Third Team, All-Newcomer Team and NABC All-Mid-Atlantic District Second Team honors in his final collegiate season.
Griffiths also made a significant jump in production and overall impact. He averaged 5.8 points and 2.2 rebounds per game as a freshman at Rutgers, then 2.1 points and 1.6 rebounds per game at Nebraska last season before taking on a larger role for the Owls in 2025-26. At Temple, Griffiths averaged 10.1 points per game, knocked down 63 3-pointers and ranked second in the conference in both total blocks (53) and blocks per game (1.77), giving the Owls a versatile perimeter threat who affected the game on both ends. Griffiths became the first NCAA Division I player in at least 30 seasons to record six 3-pointers and seven blocks in a game against UTSA on Jan. 3.
After averaging 4.8 points per game as a freshman, Tobiason became one of Temple’s most dependable players as a sophomore, averaging 15.3 points per game while ranking fourth in the conference in field goal percentage at 48.0 percent.
With its 10th home win, Temple won at least 10 games at the Liacouras Center in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2014-15 and 2015-16.
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The Owls made significant progress in Fisher’s second season, improving their regular-season win total by five and adding four additional victories in conference play. Temple’s offense stood out, setting a new program record with 78.8 points per game. Defending the Liacouras Center with pride, the Owls posted a 12-2 record on North Broad Street, defeating No. 18 Memphis and North Texas. Temple became the only conference team to beat the top two seeded teams in the regular season. With 17 wins, Fisher is tied for the second-most victories through two seasons at Temple with 33.
Temple excelled at the free throw line in 2024-25, ranking third nationally in free throws made per game and fourth in free throw attempts while leading the conference in both categories.
Fisher landed Jamal Mashburn Jr., a three-time All-Mountain West standout, through the transfer portal. Mashburn thrived in his lone season in the Cherry and White, earning spots on the All-AAC Second Team and AAC Newcomer Team. Before an injury caused him to miss nine of the final 10 games of the season, Mashburn Jr. ranked second nationally in points per game (22.0) and led the conference in scoring. He became the first NABC All-District First Team selection at Temple since 2019-20. Aiden Tobiason was also recognized on the AAC All-Freshman Team, highlighting the top-ranked AAC recruiting class by Rivals in 2024.
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In his first season with Temple, the Owls won 16 games and advanced to the AAC Championship game for the first time, making an impressive run by winning four games in four days. Included in that stretch were victories against third-seeded Charlotte and second-seeded Florida Atlantic. The Owls valued the ball, finishing 31st nationally at just 9.9 turnovers per game. Temple had 22 games with 10 giveaways or fewer, with a season-low two against UTSA on March 10, the third-fewest at any level of NCAA competition that season. TU also did a better job of taking the ball from its opponents, averaging 7.4 steals per game, more than two per game higher than the previous year and its most since 2018-19. Team 128 ranked second in program history with 296 3-pointers made.
Multiple players were honored throughout the season. Steve Settle III was one of two Owls named to the AAC All-Tournament Team, and Temple set a tournament record for most 3-pointers made with 37. Zion Stanford was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team and earned Freshman of the Week honors twice. Jordan Riley and Matteo Picarelli were recognized for their work in the classroom as well as on the court, as the duo was selected to the CSC Academic All-District Team, the first such honorees for the Owls since 2012-13.
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Adam Fisher was named the 19th head coach in Temple University history on March 29, 2023.
A 2006 Penn State alumnus, Fisher was instrumental in helping the Nittany Lions win 23 games in 2022-23, including five straight before falling to No. 5 Purdue, 67-65, in the finals of the Big Ten tournament. Penn State earned an at-large bid to the 2023 NCAA Tournament and, as the No. 10 seed, defeated No. 7 seed Texas A&M, 76-59, before ending its season against No. 2 seed Texas, 71-66.
In 2021-22, his first year under then-coach Micah Shrewsberry, he helped guide the Nittany Lions to a number of statement wins and a thrilling postseason run in the Big Ten Tournament. Penn State owned the best scoring defense in the Big Ten, as the Nittany Lions allowed just 65.0 points per game, Penn State’s best defensive mark in 11 years.
A Jamison, Pa., native, he was integral in signing the highest-ranked recruiting class in Penn State men’s basketball history in November 2021, less than eight months into Shrewsberry’s tenure in Happy Valley. The 2022 signing class ranked as a consensus top-30 class nationally by all major recruiting services.
Fisher was also invited to participate in TopConnect 2021, the national networking program for the nation’s top assistant coaches.
Before his return to Penn State, Fisher served as an assistant coach at the University of Miami, where he was a key part of one of the most successful spans in Hurricanes basketball history. Miami recorded four straight 20-win seasons and four straight postseason appearances from 2014-15 through 2017-18, with NBA Draft selections in three consecutive years and numerous All-Atlantic Coast Conference accolades during Fisher’s tenure.
The four consecutive postseason berths included Miami’s trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2015-16, a season that featured victories over five ranked teams and 13 conference wins to tie for second in the ACC. The 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons added to the Hurricanes’ successful run with NCAA Tournament appearances, a 10-0 start to the 2017-18 season and a top-three finish in the 2018 ACC standings.
Fisher was part of a Miami coaching staff that was one of only two ACC programs, along with Duke, to produce NBA Draft picks in consecutive years in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Two Hurricanes, Lonnie Walker IV, a first-round selection, and Bruce Brown Jr., a second-round pick, heard their names called in 2018. Dewan Hernandez was selected in the 2019 NBA Draft.
Those results followed the Hurricanes’ efforts in bringing in top-15 recruiting classes in back-to-back seasons in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Walker was one of three ESPN Top 100 players to sign with Miami in 2017-18. Walker IV, ESPN’s No. 13 player, a McDonald’s All-American and Jordan Brand Classic All-America guard, joined guard Chris Lykes (No. 48), forward Deng Gak (No. 94) and New Zealander Sam Waardenburg in a class ranked in the top 10 by 247Sports, ESPN and Scout.
In 2016-17, the staff signed high school All-Americans Hernandez (McDonald’s), Brown Jr. (Jordan Brand Classic), Australian standout Dejan Vasiljevic and Rodney Miller Jr. from national powerhouse Oak Hill Academy in Virginia. Both Hernandez and Brown were consensus five-star, top-30 recruits.
During Fisher’s time in Coral Gables, the Hurricanes earned 20 all-conference honors, including recognition for sophomore guard Isaiah Wong as a member of the 2020-21 All-ACC Third Team and 2021 ACC All-Tournament Team. Davon Reed earned Third Team All-ACC and All-Defensive Team honors and was recognized for excellence on and off the court as the winner of the 2017 Skip Prosser Award. The Prosser Award is presented annually to the top scholar-athlete in ACC men’s basketball. Reed later was selected 32nd overall in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns.
Other highlights included the Hurricanes’ appearances in the Associated Press Top 25 and USA Today Coaches Poll top 25, sellout crowds at the Watsco Center and the second triple-double in program history by Brown Jr. with 11 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
Miami’s 22 wins during the 2017-18 season included 11 conference victories and a third-place finish in ACC play. In 2016-17, Miami defeated three ranked teams, downing No. 9/6 North Carolina and No. 10/11 Duke in Coral Gables, as well as No. 18/19 Virginia on the road.
Miami recorded 27 overall wins in 2015-16, its second-highest total in school history. Fisher and the basketball staff celebrated 2016 ACC Coach of the Year Jim Larrañaga as the Hurricanes ended the 2015-16 season ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll and No. 8 in the USA Today Coaches Poll after a school-record 18 straight weeks in the top 25 and 14 weeks in the top 15. The win total included five over ranked teams: No. 3 Virginia, No. 11 Louisville, No. 16 Utah, No. 22/20 Butler and No. 24/20 Duke.
The Hurricanes posted, at the time, the second-most wins in program history with 25 in 2014-15. The win total included an impressive 16-point victory over fourth-ranked and eventual national champion Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium, as Miami was the only team to defeat the Blue Devils at home that year. Miami also defeated both No. 8/7 Florida and Syracuse on their home courts, two of the Hurricanes’ 10 regular-season wins away from home. Postseason play added to the win total as Miami advanced to the NIT Championship game at Madison Square Garden.
Fisher joined the Hurricanes after gaining experience on the basketball staffs at Boston University and Penn State. As the director of basketball operations for Boston University for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, he helped the Terriers to back-to-back 21-win seasons and postseason appearances. BU won the 2011 America East Conference Championship and advanced to its first NCAA Tournament berth in nearly a decade. The previous year, the Terriers reached the semifinals of the 2010 CBI Tournament.
In 2011, Fisher returned to his alma mater as the Nittany Lions’ video coordinator and was promoted to director of player development in 2012.
Fisher earned his master’s degree in education leadership in 2009 while working as a graduate manager for Villanova under Jay Wright from 2007-09. During that time, the Wildcats reached the Sweet 16 in 2008 and won the East Regional in 2009 to advance to the Final Four with a then-school-record 30 wins.
Fisher graduated from Penn State with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology in 2006. While there, he worked for three seasons as head student manager and one season as a graduate manager. Fisher assisted with player workouts, handled administrative duties and helped with team travel.
Fisher and his wife, Rebecca, have a daughter, Alivia.
Head Coaching RecordÂ
| Year | Record (Conf) | Postseason |
| 2023-24 | 16-20 (5-13 AAC) | AAC Finals |
| 2024-25 | 17-15 (9-9 AAC) | AAC Second Round |
| 2025-26 | 16-16 (8-10 American) | American Conference First Round |
| Total | 49-51 (22-32) |
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