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Published Dec 18, 2024
Big game against Davidson awaits the Owls
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John DiCarlo  •  OwlScoop
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Temple will be shooting for the program's 2,000th win when it hosts Davidson Wednesday night at the Liacouras Center.

If the Owls get it, it won't come easily.

The 8-2 Wildcats' only losses have come to No. 24 Gonzaga and No. 3 Arizona, and they're taking a three-game winning streak to North Broad Street. Reed Bailey, a 6-foot-10 forward, leads an efficient offense and three Davidson players averaging double-figure scoring and has posted 18.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.

"The offense, their system, their flow, they move the ball," Fisher said during a call with reporters Tuesday morning. "You're going to see more passes than dribbles."

Temple, meanwhile, will be aiming for its third win in a row after it shut down a depleted Hofstra team, 60-42, on Sunday that was missing its leading and fourth-leading scorers. Nevertheless, it was the team's best defensive effort of the season, and Hofstra's 42 points were the fewest by a Temple opponent since 2019.

Fisher said Tuesday that he talks to his team about points per possession, not only on the first shot attempt, but the second as well. He said his team had allowed an impressive 0.76 points per possession on opponents' first shot attempt, but previous rebounding struggles were getting in the way.

"It's that extra possession we give up that's really been hurting us this year," Fisher pointed out.

A 54-39 rebounding advantage was a big factor for Temple in Sunday's win against a poor-shooting Hofstra team. The Owls will have to be similarly sharp against a Davidson squad that's not likely to miss as much.

Fisher talked Tuesday about point guard Lynn Greer III's Temple debut, the return of Chris Clark, freshman forward Dillon Battie's minutes and a few other topics during Tuesday morning's interview, which you can listen to here.

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