A Closer Look At The Temple Owls

Late on Sunday afternoon, No. 6 ranked Kansas (11-1) plays host to Temple (10-2). Jayhawk Slant is here to provide you with a closer look at the Owls.

Temple: The Facts

Located in Philadelphia, Pa., with an enrollment of 39,000, Temple is 10-2 after defeating Bowling Green 75-57 on Dec. 31 in Philadelphia. The Owls are coached by Fran Dunphy who is 144-67 in his seventh season at Temple and 454-230 in his 24th season overall. Temple's win against Bowling Green was its 1,800th all-time victory. The Owls' 1,800 wins rank sixth in NCAA Division I history. Kansas is second on the list at 2,081.

Temple is 4-1 in its last five games, which includes a win against previously unbeaten Syracuse (83-79) in the Gotham Classic at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 22. The Owls average 71.6 points per game and give up 64.2 for a +7.3 scoring margin. Temple averages 15.3 free throws made, 8.7 steals and 15.5 assists per game, while shooting 22.3 three-pointers per game, making 31 percent from beyond the arc.

Senior guard Khalif Wyatt leads Temple with a 15.4 scoring average and 51 assists. He makes 4.7 free throws per game with an 83.6 free throw percentage. Senior guard/forward Scootie Randall is the team leader in rebounding at 7.4 boards per game and scores 12.8 points per outing. Randall also leads the team with 21 three-pointers made on the season.

Sophomore forward Anthony Lee averages 11.4 points per game and is second on the Temple team with 7.1 rebounds per contest and 11 blocked shots. Senior forward Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson is second on the squad with 37 assists and 22 steals to complement his 9.1 scoring average. Sophomore guard Will Cummings rounds out the Temple starters. He leads the team with 23 steals and scores 5.7 points per game.

Coming off the bench, senior forward Jake O'Brien is second on the team with 20 three-pointers made. He averages 8.2 points per contest. Other Temple regulars include freshman guard Quenton DeCosey (3.5 ppg), senior guard T.J. DiLeo (3.2 ppg) and junior guard Dalton Pepper (2.5 ppg).

Kansas vs. Temple: The Series

Kansas leads the overall series with Temple 7-3 as the teams last met in a home-and-home series during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. Kansas won both those meetings: 71-59 on Dec. 20, 2008, in Allen Fieldhouse and 84-52 on Jan. 2, 2010, at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. Current KU seniors Elijah Johnson (four points, all free throws, four minutes) and Jeff Withey (two minutes, one rebound) played in the 2010 contest. This series dates back to 1940 when the Owls defeated the Jayhawks 40-35 in Philadelphia. Five of the 10 meetings have been played on neutral courts.

This is the third Atlantic 10 team Kansas has faced this season. The Jayhawks defeated St. Louis 73-59 on Nov. 20 in the title game of the CBE Hall of Fame Classic and Richmond 87-59 on Dec. 18 in Allen Fieldhouse. KU is 45-13 all-time against current membership of the Atlantic 10 Conference and has faced 12 of the league's 16 teams.

A closer look at the Temple Owls

#1 Khalif Wyatt: 6-foot-4, 210-pound guard (Sr.)

#2 Will Cummings: 6-foot-2, 175-pound guard (So.)

#3 Anthony Lee: 6-foot-9, 230-pound forward (So.)

#11 T.J. DiLeo: 6-foot-3, 210-pound guard (Graduate student)

#13 Nick Pendergast: 6-foot-5, 180-pound forward (So.)

#15 Jimmy McDonnell: 6-foot-10, 210-pound forward (So.)

#21 Dalton Pepper: 6-foot-5, 220-pound guard (Jr.)

#22 Jake O'Brien: 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward (Graduate student)

#25 Quenton DeCosey: 6-foot-5, 180-pound guard (Fr.)

#32 Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson: 6-foot-6, 215-pound forward (Sr.)

#33 Scootie Randall: 6-foot-6, 225-pound guard/forward (Sr.)

#41 Devontae Watson: 6-foot-10, 210-pound forward/center (Fr.)

#42 Daniel Dingle: 6-foot-6, 225-pound guard/forward (Fr.)

Record: 10-2

Home Record: 6-1

Away Record: 3-0

Neutral Record: 1-1

A10 Conference Record: 0-0

National Ranking: NR

Wins: @ Kent State, Rice, Delaware, @ Buffalo, Wagner, @ Villanova, Towson, Alcorn State, Syracuse, Bowling Green

Losses: Duke (New Jersey), Canisius

Upcoming games: @ Kansas, @ Xavier, St. Louis, @ George Washington, St. Bonaventure, Penn, @ Butler, Richmond, @ St. Joseph's, Charlotte, @ Dayton, Duquesne, @ Massachusetts, La Salle, @ Charlotte, Rhode Island, @ Fordham, VCU

Scoring Leaders:

Khalif Wyatt: 15.4

Scootie Randall 12.8

Anthony Lee: 11.4

Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson:

Jake O'Brien: 8.2

Will Cummings: 5.7

Rebounding Leaders:

Scootie Randall: 7.4

Anthony Lee: 7.1

Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson: 5.4

Assist Leaders:

Khalif Wyatt: 4.3

Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson: 3.1

Scootie Randall: 2.8

Field Goal Shooting Percentage Leaders:

Anthony Lee: 47-of-85 (55.3%)

Jake O'Brien: 36-of-78 (46.2%)

Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson: 43-of-97 (44.3%)

Khalif Wyatt: 56-of-149 (37.6%)

Scootie Randall: 53-of-144 (36.8%)

Will Cummings: 22-of-61 (36.1%)

3 point Field Goal Shooting Percentage Leaders

Jake O'Brien: 20-of-45 (44.4%)

Will Cummings: 6-of-19 (31.6%)

Scootie Randall: 21-of-81 (25.9%)

Khalif Wyatt: 17-of-68 (25.0%)

Free-throw Percentage Leaders:

Khalif Wyatt: 56-of-67 (83.6%)

Will Cummings: 18-of-23 (78.3%)

Scootie Randall: 27-of-35 (77.1%)

Anthony Lee: 31-of-46 (67.4%)

Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson: 23-of-34 (67.6%)

Jake O'Brien: 6-of-9 (66.7%)

Temple Offensive Averages:

Scoring: 859 (71.6 PPG)

Scoring Margin: +7.3

Field Goal %: 42 (296-of-711)

3-Point FG %: 31 (83-of-268)

3-Pont FG's Made Per Game: 6.9

Free-throw %: 73 (184-of-252)

Free-throws Made Per Game: 15.3

Rebounds: 436 (36.3 per game)

Rebound Margin: -0.2

Assists: 186 (15.5 per game)

Turnovers: 136 (11.3 per game)

Turnover Margin: -3.2

Steals: 104 (8.7 per game)

Blocks: 48 (4.0 per game)

Opponent Averages :

Scoring: 771 (64.3 PPG)

Field Goal %: 42 (283-of-677)

3-Point FG %: 31 (61-of-198)

3-Pont FG Made Per Game: 5.1

Free-throw %: 71 (144-of-202)

Free-throws Made Per Game: 12.0

Rebounds: 438 (36.5 per game)

Assists: 123 (10.3 per game)

Turnovers: 174 (14.5 per game)

Steals: 67 (5.6 per game)

Blocks: 36 (3.0 per game)