Temple (1-2, 0-2) at SMU (6-2, 2-2)
- Location: Moody Arena, Dallas, Texas
- Time: 12 noon PST/2 pm CST/2 pm EST
- TV: ESPN+
Mustangs Shade Owls in Series:
SMU holds a slight advantage in the series at 8-7 and won the last meeting on Dec. 30, 79-71, in Philadelphia. Temple’s Brendan Barry led with 17 points while Darius McNeil also led the Mustangs with 17. Temple is 1-4 at Moody Arena and if you think back to 2015-16 when the Mustangs started 18-0, Temple was the first team to notch a win over SMU.
Vs. The Spread:
Temple:
- The total has gone UNDER in five of the Owls’ last six games
- The Owls are 1-4 ATS in their last five games at SMU
- Temple is 2-4 ATS in the last six games
SMU:
- The Mustangs are 13-3 SU in their last 16 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 6 of SMU’s last 8 AAC games
- The OVER is the play in 5 of SMU’s last 6 games when playing as the favorite
Last Time Out:
The Owls were once again paused due to COVID-19 and now look to end a two-game losing streak as their last game on Dec. 30 was the 79-71 loss to the Mustangs. Temple fought in that game and came back from several deficits before they closed to 63-60 late in the game and then Kendric Davis closed an 8-2 Ponies’ run to ice the win for SMU.
SMU’s two losses to Houston and Cincinnati were of a different variety as the Mustangs’ high-high-flying offense was iced by the Cougars as they held it to 40.4 percent from the field and then Cincinnati shot 46 percent from the floor and made 10-of-23 threes.
| Teams | Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temple | +12 (-110) | – | O 142 (-110) |
| SMU | -12 (-110) | – | U 142 (-110) |
Owls’ clipboard:
Offensively, the Owls struggled in those three games as they are currently 331st in effective field goal percentage at 41.7 percent. Aaron McKie has a back court of redshirt freshman Damian Dunn and freshman Jeremiah Williams. The two account for a combined 24 of Temple’s 64.3 points per game as the Owls average only 35.7 percent from the field.
Seniors J.P. Moorman (10.0 ppg) and De’Vondre Perry (7.3 rpg) must upgrade their offensive numbers for the Owls to clean up their offense and have a chance. Temple has been paused twice and of course has had no consistency with practice time and five games have been postponed with one cancellation. It’s a mental test now for the struggling Owls.
Mustangs’ clipboard:
Five Mustangs score in double figures as AAC Player of the Year candidate Kendric Davis leads the league at 19.0 ppg and 7.6 assists per outing. Feron Hunt (11.6 ppg, 8.4 rpg) gives the sharp-shooting guard a great complement inside with his size as he leads SMU in rebounding and is second in scoring while averaging 55.6 percent from the floor.
SMU has to find it’s 3-point game after going 11-of-42 from three in those two losses as well as averaging 14 turnovers per game in those two. Defensively, Tim Jankovich’s team holds opponents to 39.1 percent and has held six of their opponents below 40 percent.
Winner: SMU (-12) 75, Temple 59
O/U: Take UNDER 142
