Brown providing a spark off the bench for Temple

A long-range shooter, Aaron Brown sticks out on the U.S. Virgin Islands senior men's national team.

But at Temple, the sophomore guard appears to be almost an afterthought.

All-Atlantic Ten guards Ramone Moore and Juan Fernandez get most of the attention. Guard Khalif Wyatt and sidelined starters Scootie Randall (left knee) and center Micheal Eric (right kneecap), are more well-known.

But if the Owls (4-2) are to win an A-10 title, Brown will probably have to play a vital role.

Word around Temple is that he's up to the task. His supporters point to Saturday's 86-74 victory over Central Michigan as evidence.

The reserve scored a career-high 21 points on 4-of-7 three-point shooting and finished with a season-best five rebounds.

The St. Benedict's Prep (N.J.) graduate's 22 minutes played was his longest stint since going 30 minutes as a starter in the season opener at Penn. The 19-year-old averaged five minutes off the bench in the other four games.

"He's just had a great day out there," Wyatt said. "We were looking for him, and he was rewarding us."

Finding open spots, Brown made four of his first five shot attempts. His lone miss during that stretch came on his second shot - a three-pointer.

"Coach [Fran Dunphy] keeps telling me to be ready, be ready," said Brown, who averaged 2.4 points in the first five games. "So when it is my time to go out there, I'll do what I got to do."

At the same time, Brown wants to prove that he deserves extended minutes. Brown started last season's final nine games in place of Randall after the swingman suffered a hairline fracture in his right foot.

But back then, he was basically just eating up space until Wyatt - then a star reserve - came in. And there's a reason why Brown's playing time was limited.

Though his long-range shooting has always been impressive, Brown didn't excel at the little things Dunphy requires to stay on the floor.

Saturday was different.

"I think I made a few big plays defensively, like the charge and few rebounds that helped us out a lot," he said.

Brown did indeed provide a spark off the bench that was missing in Temple's previous four games.

"It's just one game down," he said. "We got Toledo and Villanova and then Texas. I have to just keep going on."