The Owls alpha the new academy basketball division in Charleston.
One of the better gripes about Fran Dunphy’s contrarily ablaze apprenticeship career at Temple University has been his adeptness to recruit talent.
Although he’s accumulated a 230-136 (62.8 percent) acceptable allotment in his 11 year apprenticeship career with the Owls, abounding accept questioned his adeptness to draw the blazon of aptitude that could accomplish a abysmal run in the NCAA Tournament out to North Broad.
His 2017-18 recruiting chic may assuredly blackout his critics.
Forwards De’Vondre Perry, J.P. Moorman II and Justyn Hamilton forth with bouncer Nate Pierre-Louis accomplish up the Owls’ accomplished apprentice class. They’ll be abutting an already abysmal Temple aggregation that is apprenticed to accomplish some babble this season, which gets underway Thursday adjoin Old Dominion (2-0) in the Charleston Classic.
“All four of them accept appear in and been accessible to go appropriate from the alpha and it has been exciting,” Dunphy said of the freshmen. “The competitiveness at convenance has risen exponentially and it has been great.”
The Owls, who accomplished 17-17, 7-11 aftermost season, are abiding four of their top bristles arch scorers from a year ago in Shizz Alston Jr. (13.9 PPG), Obi Enechionyia (13.1 PPG), Quinton Rose (9.7 PPG) and Alani Moore II (6.5 PPG).
Josh Brown, who averaged 8.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.9 assists in the Owls’ 2015-16 campaign, was alone as a medical redshirt for the majority of aftermost division while convalescent from an Achilles injury. The aggregation hopes to accept him at abounding backbone this division at point bouncer and that he can booty ascendancy of the Owls’ breach like he has done in the past.
“I feel acceptable and it was aloof acceptable to be out there again, admirers out there auspicious on us,” Brown said afterwards Temple’s 70-60 exhibition win adjoin Jefferson. “There was a lot of electricity, I was a little afraid and it was aloof a acceptable dress call for us.”
The Owls will accept a boxy assignment in their opener, adverse an Old Dominion aegis that has bound their opponents to aloof 53.5 credibility per game, which ranks 19th in the country.
“They’re an outstanding arresting aggregation who apparently appetite to accumulate the backing low during the advance of the game,” Dunphy said. “We’ll accept our easily full. They’re a adept aggregation that apperceive what they’re doing.”
Temple’s bold adjoin the Monarchs will air at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN3.
