It’s been a little more than a year since Temple basketball’s last home opener, but the world of college basketball has changed drastically since more than 7,000 fans piled into the Liacouras Center to watch Temple head coach Aaron McKie secure his first head coaching win over Drexel.
This time around, the Owls’ long-anticipated opener came in mostly imposing fashion.
Temple dismantled NJIT at both ends of the floor Saturday for much of the night, leading to a 72-60 win. They did so in front of a small handful of socially-distant media members and some fake crowd noise in what was, at times, an eerily quiet gymnasium.
Temple was nearing a finalized schedule to tip-off its season against the Highlanders on Nov. 25, but was forced into a two-week shutdown due to a positive COVID-19 test result. The program has been shut down multiple times since getting the team on campus over the summer, with the most recent shutdown forcing the postponement or cancellation of the first five games on the schedule.
About a month later, the Owls were finally able to take the floor and showcase their largely new roster.
“I was excited, more for them than selfishly myself,” McKie said postgame. “I just wanted to get out there. We have a lot of new guys.[I wanted] to see what they really had. I watch them in practice every day and practice against each other, but it was fun to see them against some different competition.”
Temple jumped out to a 9-0 lead early with a clear intent to strike first. Defensively, the Owls communicated well and rotated effectively, limiting interior penetration. They also forced a lot of mistakes with a 1-3-1 trap press, leading to five first-half turnovers.
Overall, strong team defense proved to be the difference-maker early on.
On the offensive side of the ball, Temple was able to knock down its first couple of shots, which helped ease some first-game jitters.
“I felt like our start was great, especially for the freshmen,” senior forward De’Vondre Perry said. “It calmed a lot of nerves. A lot of guys were excited and a lot of guys were anxious, but I feel like because we started off on a good foot, a lot of those nerves went out the window.”
Multiple freshmen saw significant minutes, including point guard Jeremiah Williams, who started Saturday’s contest, forward Nick Jourdain and redshirt freshman guard Damian Dunn.
Dunn, whose 18 minutes against Tulsa last year accounted for the backcourt’s only in-game experience in a Temple uniform, led the way in scoring with 18 points. He also managed to get to the charity stripe with relative ease, taking 13 free throws and connecting on 10 of them.
Dunn showed an innate ability to attack off the dribble and keep his composure rising into contact from mid-range.
“Getting to the line is a big part of my game,” Dunn said. “I love the physical side of the ball, getting to the line and getting guys in foul trouble. After that, there’s an advantage.”
Williams was the other half of Temple’s impressive guard tandem on opening night. He finished with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. The 6-foot-5 true freshman looked composed and confident on the floor, never showing his age.
“I was pretty impressed with both of those guys,” McKie said. “I thought he played with tremendous poise out there just getting us into what we wanted to do. ... I thought Damian Dunn was pretty good, too, but there was no surprise on my side when I’m watching how those guys performed.”
The first win of the season didn’t come without a bit of intrigue. Midway through the second half, NJIT took advantage of some sloppy play by an inexperienced Temple team, by way of an 11-0 run.
Foul trouble for forwards Jake Forrester and Arashma Parks forced the hand of the Owls into playing a smaller brand of basketball. That’s when the Highlanders put their foot on the gas, attacking the interior and exposing holes in the defense.
McKie had been wary earlier in the week of the ramifications of lack of practice time, but said his expectations were simple: play unselfish and play hard. Fulfilling both those promises was enough to put away the Highlanders early.
Perhaps the Owls’ most impressive feat was the way they shared the ball. McKie played a 10-man rotation, running quick subs and constantly keeping fresh legs on the floor. Of those 10, nine scored at least one basket.
Redshirt sophomore Tai Strickland was ruled a game-time decision, recovering from successful shoulder surgery in August. He was good to go by tip-off and saw significant minutes but struggled to get anything going, finishing the night with six points on 1-of-5 shooting from the field.
With McKie unsure about Strickland and Dunn’s availability for Saturday, and Butler transfer Khalif Battle missing the game with a hamstring injury, the Owls needed bodies.
Enter Dartmouth grad transfer Brendan Barry, who didn’t join his teammates until Thursday. The 6-2 guard practiced just once with his new team and provided 25 solid minutes off the bench. Barry only shot 1-of-4 from the beyond the arc, adding three points and five rebounds.
Still, his ability to learn on the fly impressed his teammates.
“I was surprised how well prepared he was when he came in a few days ago,” Perry said. “He’s a quick learner and he brings a different type of dynamic to our team, and he’s been a great addition.”
Perry, himself, finished with his first career double-double, tallying 12 points and 14 rebounds. Four of those boards came on a single offensive possession late in the first half.
Fellow senior captain J.P. Moorman II struggled to get going offensively for much of the night but was able to get involved in other ways and provided a spark toward the end of the game. While all 10 of his points came in the second half, he also pulled in four rebounds and helped distribute the ball with three assists.
Temple was fortunate to get away with playing beneath what it’s capable of in the second half.
To be competitive in conference play, starting with Tuesday's game at No. 6 Houston, it can’t afford to not play more complete games at both ends of the floor.
“My standards are high and my expectations are high for those guys,” McKie said. “So [my message is to] look at this and learn from it. We just want to get back at it tomorrow and continue to get better in our preparation for Houston on Tuesday.”