The Temple Owls play host to the Dayton Flyers on Thursday for a 9pm tip-off at the Apollo of Temple in the city of Philadelphia. Fresh off an ESPN win over arch-rival Xavier, the Flyers are back on the winning track and hoping to pull off the second road win and first quality road win of the season. Last year, Dayton handed Temple a 67-62 loss with the help of late-game heroics by Tony Stanley.

Temple’s strength is their youth, starting only one senior and having depth at nearly every position for the first time in several years. John Chaney’s legendary 2-3 matchup zone is the defensive fingerprint for every Owl team, but on offense it is the backcourt that gets the spotlight.

Juan “Pepe” Sanchez runs the show for the third straight season and is everything John Chaney expects in a point guard. Sanchez can dribble, penetrate, bark out orders, and take the big shot. The only thing Sanchez doesn’t do well is shoot the basketball (.323%) but in John Chaney’s system, this deficiency can frequently be overlooked for quality leadership and a knack for making the important shot at the critical time. Sanchez has 100 assists to only 34 turnovers on the year – a John Chaney staple.

Teaming up with Sanchez is 6-4 senior Rasheed Brokenborough, a lanky shooting guard who somehow finds a way to outperform better players with more God-given ability. Brokenborough likes to stroke the three-point shot and slash to the hole where he can showcase his team-leading .803% FT accuracy. He is also an excellent passer, dishing out 53 assists and only 23 turnovers.

Quincy Wadley finds time at the 2 and 3 spot for the Temple Owls and is the biggest threat from long distance. Wadley has attempted and made the most three-pointers on the team (35-114 for .307%) and is fourth on the team in minutes played. Overall, Wadley does not shoot a high percentage from the floor (.357%), but then again, hardly anyone does.

In the frontcourt, sophomore Mark Karcher is an undersized but competent answer at the power forward position with a wide body and a solid game. Karcher leads the team in scoring and is one of two McDonald’s All-Americans on the team. Karcher is a sure-bet for the A-10 All Newcomer Team and is poised to be one of the conference’s elite players in his final two years. Karcher sat out last season as a Prop-48 casualty.

Junior Lamont Barnes is in his second season as the pivot man for the Temple Owls. Barnes had big shoes to fill when A-10 Player of the Year Mark Jackson elected to opt-out of his final year of eligibility two years ago, but has taken the challenge in stride and is one of the best centers in the league on his own merits. Barnes leads the team in shooting (.539%) and rebounds (6.8rpg). Barnes might put up larger numbers in another system, but Temple is the perfect fit for a player willing to forego personal achievement for team success.

Speaking of McDonald’s All-Americans, freshman Kevin Lyde is the other. Lyde is a future A-10 superstar who is still learning to adjust to the college game. He is one of the best shooters on the team (comparatively) and is a typical John Chaney center: strong, big, and imposing. Lyde’s duties this year focus on providing Barnes with a few chances to hit the bench for a rest and when Temple wants to play large in the frontcourt. Barnes or Lyde can slide to power forward with little trouble.

Dayton will have to do everything right to win the basketball game. Having said that, Temple would have to make every mistake to cough up the home win to the Flyers. Dayton’s best chance lies at center and shooting guard where Mark Ashman, Tony Stanley, and Cain Doliboa appear to be Dayton’s strongest weapons. If they can find the bottom of the net and stay out of foul trouble, UD cold keep it close as the game winds down to the final minutes. If Dayton is unable to solve the 2-3 zone and get good looks at the basket, it could be another long night away from the UD Arena.

The Owls have already pinned losses on Georgetown, Wake Forest, Ole Miss, Mich. State, Florida State, and UMass. Losses to Penn, Stanford, Wisconsin, Indiana, Fresno State, and St Bonnie are indeed respectable.

Visit DFE soon for a full postgame report on the Temple game.