Sad

Coach John Chaney retired today. This is especially sad for me, not because of wins & losses and not because I know Coach at all. He is the only Temple coach I have ever known, and is a childhood hero of mine. My father showed me what he did for kids that never had a shot in the world, and as I grew older I really learned to appreciate his philosophy. He helped people, and its sad that he won't get the chance anymore.

Growing up in the Lower Northeast Philly, I would often hear some very very racist comments directed at him. I always thought the people who spouted this venom never understood him. "Where are the white players? He hates white people." That's what you'd hear. John Chaney would take anyone. No one understood how difficult it is to recruit on North Broad Street (but we'll see just how hard it is now that he's gone).

I might be rambling, but its because I'm sad. I don't want to think about who the new coach will be right now, I just want to celebrate my hero.

Lets Go St. Joe's

Thats a hard title to type. The Owls came up small, a day before I predicted, but certainly not unexpected. It was sad to watch Mardy Collins go out as the only player on the floor for the Owls who had his head there.

Though I will be rooting for the Hawks tonight in their tough match up against Xavier (basically a home game). If you had asked me 24 hours ago if I'd root for St. Joe in this game, I would have laughed, but their fans changed my mind. When Collins left the game, the St. Joe fans gave him the standing ovation that he deserved. They won me back with that one.

On a seperate note, how lousy are Cincinnati sports fans? They all showed up for the late Xavier-Fordham snore fest, but the US Bank Arena was nearly empty for the classic Big-Five match up in the opening game. Thank goodness the tournament comes to Atlantic City for the next two seasons...

No Work, All Play, Dead Hawk

Well today's the day. An epic battle, quite frankly. With all four "bye teams" bounced from the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament, the bigs have to be THRILLED that Temple - St. Joe Round III will be their first semi-final matchup. Lots of intrigue, years of rivalry, and both teams fighting for an unlikely NCAA birth.

I'm going to admit right now that there is really no way that I can break this game down with any kind of objectivity or intelligence. I'm excited because the Owls have played very well, I'm scared because if anyone knows how to hurt Temple, its Phil Martelli, but overall I'm just glad I'm still able to root for my boys. And it doesn't hurt that we get to beat up St. Joe while we're at it. On that note, a little info on how I will be enjoying today's game.

First, the t-shirt. A must for any Temple - St. Joe game...



Next, the venue. Its gotta be Tony's Place. The pizza is arguably the best in the City, and you can't argue that its the coldest Miller Lite you'll drink on the East Coast. If you're bored, I'll be right at the bar around 6 PM.

And most importantly, I'll be up at the bar with my dad, the guy who made me the Temple freak I am. It'll be old times once again, and expect me to pull all of my hair out with nerves.

Til tomorrow, I hope...

Oh by the way

This win today, and my total fan-boy reaction are both big parts of the A-10 tournament being a thumbnail sketch for the season. I have pushed my chips "all-in" with this team many times this year (17 times probably) and nearly lost my emotional shirt almost as much (14 times). The roller coaster has been severe this season, and impressive back to back wins are very much like the slow climb up the hill before the monster drop. Here's hoping the climb will continue into next weekend...

Oh by the way, I'm 27 years old and my life at this moment revolves around a mediocre college basketball team. I rule!

Decompressed

Now that I've been able to digest this win and exhale, its time to break it down a little.

The stat of the game, and the key to most Temple wins, was turnovers. The Owls only turned the ball over 11 times against the trapping press of George Washington, while forcing 19 Colonial errors. This +8 helped Temple overcome a 45-36 rebounding deficit which at times felt like it was far more. GW only shot 32% from the floor, but pulled down 19 offensive rebounds and was able to stay in the game with put backs.

While Antywane Robinson led the team with 19 points, the player of the game was easily Mark Tyndale. His play, which has been erratic all season, was nearly flawless today, with 15 points and 13 rebounds. If he could only shoot a fould shot (3 - 9), he may have scored 20. For the second day in a row, the Owls were able to win despite a lackluster scoring effort from All-American Mardy Collins who had just five points on 2 of 8 shooting.

At this moment, tomorrow night's A-10 Semi-finals looks like it may be a Big 5 rubber match. With 15:55 left in the second half, St. Joe's leads St. Louis 38 - 20. Barring an unlikely comeback, it looks like Philly's birds of prey will be matching up one more time as they each make a late surge for the NCAA tournament.

Look for an afternoon update from me to pre-game the Owls' semi-final matchup, but a postgame exhale may have to wait until Saturday. This game has "watch it in a bar" written all over it!

26 - 2

GAH! Temple wins 68 - 53, controlling the second half despite being outrebounded by about 8000. I don't have a ton of insight into this right now, as I am just ecstatic. Only 11 turnovers by the Owls against the press. Looks like I'll be busy tomorrow night!

Breather

While I hyperventalate over the game (16 - 16 at the moment), here's something funny I just heard on the 1210 AM broadcast...

Temple color commentator John Baum: "Temple needs to keep denying GW from beyond the arc. GW is 5 for 5 from inside the arc, but only 2 for 3 from beyond"

Salisbury States the Obvious

In today's Inquirer, Dustin Salisbury wraps his head nicely around what I've been saying about the Owls all season, "You can tell with us before the game what kind of game we're going to have," Salisbury said.

As stated below, Temple was world-beating yesterday, and without a doubt, can run through the entire four-day tournament with this kind of performance. You know the Owls are clicking when All-American Mardy Collins shoots 2 - 7 from the field for only 6 points and they run off with a 29 point win.

Today is the big test for the Owls, as they match up with top seed George Washington at high noon today. I really expect another strong performance from Temple today. The season has been dotted with games where Chaney's gang rises to a big occasion. Hopefully the blog will continue after 2 PM today...

Philadelphia Will Do

Thanks to my boy DMac for the link at Philadelphia Will Do. He's doing a great job over there, and I read that thing at least 10 times a day. Stay tuned for more Nostredamus-like predictions here at T2A1P.

Step One -- Complete

The Owls make a mockery out of Rhode Island, 74 - 45. This tournament-long microcosm of the season begins with Temple looking unbeatable (see also "The Maryland Game," "The Alabama Game," etc.). This will of course turn bad at some point (see "The UMass Game," or "The Fordham Senior Night Game").

But, the first step of liveblogging is correct...

Wednesday, March 8, 2006: WE WIN!!

My Prediction

Here is my liveblogging of Temple's ENTIRE Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament Performance...

BEFORE IT HAPPENS!

Wednesday, March 8, 2006: WE WIN!!

Thursday, March 9, 2006: WE WIN!!

Friday, March 10, 2006: WE WIN!!

Saturday, March 11, 2006: WE CHOKE!! NIT!!