So you're all probably wondering why the Villanova line is so low at -3 and -2.5 at some places against Temple. Seems like an easy pick right? Well unfortunately its not. Some sports writers believe today would be a great day for an upset considering its A Big 5 City Rivalry Game at the Liacouras Center (Home of Temple). Everyone thought Temple would be subpar this season without its leading scorer Dionte Christmas, however, they are sitting a 7-2 record with notable wins over Siena, Virginia Tech, Penn State and a 1pt loss to Georgetown. How are they doing it you ask? One word...Defense. Coach Dunphy has them playing tight defense usually man to man or 2-3 zone. Look at their statistics on cbssports, its quite impressive.
Although they play great defense, their offense is somewhat inconsistent. They don't have anyone who lights it up each night like they did with Dionte Christmas. It's more of a balanced attack with Lavoy Allen, Ryan Brooks, and Juan Fernandez. If Allen gets into foul trouble, which may happen considering Villanova guards like to attack the paint, then expect Temple to shoot a lot of jumpers because Temple's other big man Craig Williams likes to shoot the 3 and Michael Eric is still developing his low post offense.
As for match ups, Villanova has better guards, but for Forwards/Centers it's even. Really, this game is gonna be all about guard play and how they control the pace of the game. Depth wise, Villanova wins easily hands down with having a deeper bench that includes a McDonalds All-American.
Overall here's my opinion:
Temple can win if they manage to slow the game down, somewhere in the low 60's, and shoot the ball very well. Most importantly, they need Villanova to shoot horribly today. With all that said, I'm taking the -3 spread for the following reasons:
-Temple's rotation off the bench isn't very strong
-They are gonna primarily rely heavily on Lavoy Allen and he'll probably get into foul trouble like he did against Tennessee last year at home.
-No more prime time player at Temple
Thoughts?
Although they play great defense, their offense is somewhat inconsistent. They don't have anyone who lights it up each night like they did with Dionte Christmas. It's more of a balanced attack with Lavoy Allen, Ryan Brooks, and Juan Fernandez. If Allen gets into foul trouble, which may happen considering Villanova guards like to attack the paint, then expect Temple to shoot a lot of jumpers because Temple's other big man Craig Williams likes to shoot the 3 and Michael Eric is still developing his low post offense.
As for match ups, Villanova has better guards, but for Forwards/Centers it's even. Really, this game is gonna be all about guard play and how they control the pace of the game. Depth wise, Villanova wins easily hands down with having a deeper bench that includes a McDonalds All-American.
Overall here's my opinion:
Temple can win if they manage to slow the game down, somewhere in the low 60's, and shoot the ball very well. Most importantly, they need Villanova to shoot horribly today. With all that said, I'm taking the -3 spread for the following reasons:
-Temple's rotation off the bench isn't very strong
-They are gonna primarily rely heavily on Lavoy Allen and he'll probably get into foul trouble like he did against Tennessee last year at home.
-No more prime time player at Temple
Thoughts?
