How does Maryland match up with Temple?
Temple basketball finished tied for third with the UCF Knights in the American Athletic Conference regular season standings. They lost in the conference quarterfinals, 80-74, to Wichita State. In that game, Markis McDuffie went off for 34 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks. Shizz Alston Jr. had 20 points and three assists followed by Ernest Aflakpui’s 16 points and 19 rebound performance in the loss.
The Owls leading scorers are Alston Jr. (19.7 PPG, five APG) Quinton Rose (16.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 2.1 SPG), and Nate Pierre-Louis (13.3 PPG, 5.7 RPG). Temple basketball is another hot shooting team that the Terps will be up against. Both of these teams have really good guard play.
The Owls had key wins against California, Missouri, St.Joseph’s, UConn twice, Houston, and Central Florida. Their key losses came against Villanova, Cincinnati, Houston, and Wichita State.
I like this matchup better for the Terps. I think they could handle Temple defensively better than they would Belmont. They would just have to make sure that they set the pace of the game early, knock down their shots and don’t go consecutive possessions without a made basket.