Heading Further West

Just two days after their 71-59 loss to Kansas, the Temple Owls will be heading further west to take on a 4-5 Long Beach State squad. They'll look to extend their record to 6-4 after tonight. The 49ers, looking to go .500 tonight, are coming off a 75-61 loss to Montana State, and are trying to shake off a 4-game losing streak. Coincidentally, the first three games the 49ers had lost in were all away games. It's a battle in The Golden State: The Temple Owls vs. The Long Beach State 49ers.

As mentioned before, Long Beach State is coming off their 4th straight loss to Montana State. Prior to this matchup, the 49ers had lost three in a row on the road to Weber State, Syracuse, and San Francisco. In these games, the team averaged a point differential of 12 points per loss. As a team, however, LBSU averages 70.2 points, compared to the 73.6 points they have given up.

Long Beach State: Advantages

Long Beach State has been able to produce consistently when it comes to scoring the basketball. Don't be surprised if the 49ers attempt to out-hustle the Owls with their depth; the team has a solid 11-man rotation that they use regularly, and the majority of these guys find efficient ways to provide for their team. Two key players to look out for are Donovan Morris (left) and Stephon Gilling. Morris, averaging a solid 16 points per outing, has carried this team to their current record. The 6'3" senior guard is a team player, complimenting his points with 4 rebounds and 2.5 assists. The other guy that will be on the scouting report is 6'2" guard Stephon Gilling. The junior is also a double digit scorer, averaging 10 points per game. Along with this Gilling averages 2 rebounds and 1 assist to just 25 minutes of play. Another situation that might erupt is the fact that Long Beach State has two 7'0" centers on the bench. Along with 6'10" Brian Freeman, this could potentially cause some problems down low for the Owls.

Long Beach State: Disadvantages

What is very surprising is that Long Beach State averages a mere 33 rebounds per game. With so much height down low, it seems ironic that they do not produce much more. Temple have been able to take advantage of the glass in many games, despite only managing 36 boards of their own. Another problem that LBSU might face is the possibility of a bad shooting night, which really is unpredictable. As a team, the 49ers shoot 43% from the court- look for Temple to possibly move into a zone defense in order to force the outside shots.

Our quick look at the Owls' opponent. Now here's what Temple has on them.

Temple Owls: Advantages

Coming off a disappointing loss to Kansas this weekend, the Temple Owls will look to bounce back from what was a unusual performance. Their record is currently 5-4, and this game is looked at as a way to bounce back for their upcoming match against Villanova. The team leaders for TU are seniors Dionte Christmas and Sergio Olmos. Christmas, the All-American Candidate, has shown that he can easily take over games when the time comes. His 21 points per game will hopefully propel the team to their 6th win of the season. Down low, there is Center Sergio Olmos. In only his 5th game of the year, Sergio is going to have to take control when he faces a wall of defenders against Long Beach State's tall post game. After a disappointing showing against Kansas late in the game, Sergio and the team hope that his presence will cause more of a problem, as it did against Tennessee. The Owls' main advantage in this game will be guard play. With their overall taller backcourt, Temple will have to be aggresive offensively and defensively to bounce back.

Temple: Disadvantages

Something that anyone familiar with Temple basketball can agree to is that this team so far has been so inconsistent. You never know whether you'll get the Temple that beat Tennessee, or the Temple that lost to Miami (OH). All that matters is that this team needs to be prepared for this game BEFORE looking ahead to Villanova. Long Beach State has the potential to play with good teams- they gave Wisconsin a good game. Coming off of a loss, the Owls will need to keep a better mindset then Long Beach State. They are sure to be determined to knock off Temple to end this 4 game losing streak. The Owls will need to come out early, and jump the gun.

There's our quick look into both teams. Here's a view of our projected starters for this matchup:

Semaj Inge- (8 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists)
Casper Ware- (9 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists)

Ryan Brooks- (13 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist)
Donovan Morris- (17 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists)

Dionte Christmas- (21 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists)
Stephon Gilling- (10 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist)

Lavoy Allen- (10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists)
Cornel Williams- (6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist)

Sergio Olmos- (12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist)
Brian Freeman- (2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists)

Hoot To Watch For: In this game, we're going to say to watch for Temple's guardplay as a whole to be a main factor. Dionte Christmas, Ryan Brooks, Semaj Inge, and Luis Guzman (right) can all use their size. Long Beach State has two athletic backcourt players, so it will be a pretty intense matchup. Sergio Olmos has a lot in for him, that is if the big men are played.

Should be an interesting game. Check it out via radio on 1210 WPHT, or www.thebigtalker1210.com at 9:00 EST.

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