Temple will face Memphis in AAC tournament quarterfinal
Temple's most dramatic win this season came over Memphis. Now the two teams will play against each other in an American Athletic Conference quarterfinal Friday (2 p.m.) at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn.
Temple's most dramatic win this season came over Memphis. Now the two teams will play against each other in an American Athletic Conference quarterfinal Friday (2 p.m.) at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn.
The Owls earned the No. 4 seed while Memphis is seeded fifth. The top five AAC teams receive first-round byes.
On Feb. 7, the Owls won at Memphis, 61-60, on Josh Brown's jumper with 2.4 seconds left. It was the only game this season between the teams.
"It was a great win because Memphis is a really good basketball team," Temple coach Fran Dunphy said. "We know we are going to have our hands full."
Temple (22-9) is on the cusp of earning an NCAA bid, but still might need to win at least one game in the AAC tournament. Memphis (18-13) needs even a deeper run than Temple to qualify.
Dunphy has consistently refused to speculate about Temple's NCAA's chances. "We have to win each game," he said.
The Owls' seed was determined Sunday after Memphis lost at Cincinnati, 77-65. That gave Cincinnati the No. 3 seed. Had the Bearcats lost, Temple would have been seeded third. Cincinnati will face the winner of the Connecticut-South Florida game on Friday at 9 p.m.