Busting Brackets
Fansided

Temple Basketball: 2018-2019 season preview for the Owls

By Stu Luddecke

ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 11: during the final game of the 2018 AAC Basketball Championship against at Amway Center on March 11, 2018 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 11: during the final game of the 2018 AAC Basketball Championship against at Amway Center on March 11, 2018 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
SAN ANTONIO, TX – APRIL 02: Eric Paschall #4 of the Villanova Wildcats reacts in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines during the 2018 NCAA Men’s Final Four National Championship game at the Alamodome on April 2, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
SAN ANTONIO, TX – APRIL 02: Eric Paschall #4 of the Villanova Wildcats reacts in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines during the 2018 NCAA Men’s Final Four National Championship game at the Alamodome on April 2, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

Non-conference schedule for 2018-19

Nov. 6 (H) – La Salle

Nov. 9 (H) – Detroit Mercy

Nov. 13 (H) – Georgia

Nov. 16 (H) – Loyola MD

Nov. 19 (N) – VCU

Nov. 20 (N) – St. John’s/Cal

Nov. 27 (A) – Missouri

Dec. 1 (A) – St. Joe’s

Dec. 5 (A) – Villanova

Dec. 12 (H) – UMass

Dec. 15 (N) – Davidson

Dec. 22 (H) – Drexel

Let’s call a spade a spade: the Owls have it pretty soft to start off their non-conference slate. With the exception of the Drexel game, their first four games are arguably their easiest. Their superior talent should overwhelm Detroit and Loyola, and La Salle and Georgia are looking at rebuilding years. Of course, anything could happen versus a Power 5 school or a historic Philly rival, but if everything goes as it should, the Owls should enter the VCU game with a 4-0 record. They’ll need all the momentum and confidence they can get heading into the murderous stretch that follows it.

VCU, St. Joe’s, UMass, and Davidson (among others) are all poised to compete for the A10 title, Villanova is coming off of a National Championship, and Missouri has one of the most lethal players in the country in Jontay Porter. When you consider those factors, the Owls would probably be happy to break even over those last eight games and enter conference play 8-4, especially when you consider that only the Drexel and UMass games are at home. If they do overachieve and win more, and it’s not far-fetched to think that they may, the selection committee would most definitely take notice.