Welcome to The Sports Bank’s third annual college basketball season preview series. Two years we looked at 99 teams in 99 days. Last year, we were slightly more aggressive and expanded to 111 teams in 111 days and will do so again as we look ahead to the 2012-2013 season.
We will rank the 75 power conference teams and top 36 mid-majors in reverse power ranking order. We’ll break down rosters, transfers, incoming freshmen, non-conference schedules, and pick a player to watch for each team.
The Temple Owls have been the model of consistency, winning twenty-plus games in each of the past five seasons. The Atlantic 10 is arguably as loaded as it has ever been meaning Fran Dunphy’s team has their work cut out for them this season before heading to the Big East.
TEMPLE OWLS
Last Season: 2nd, 14-2 in A-10, 26-8 overall
Predicted A-10 Finish: 6th
Projected Depth Chart
F/C: Anthony Lee (So)/Devontae Watson (Fr)
F: Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson (Jr)/Jake O’Brien (Sr)/Jimmy McDonnell (So)
G/F: Scootie Randall (Sr)/Daniel Dingle (Fr)
SG: Khalif Wyatt (Sr)/Dalton Pepper (Jr)/Quenton DeCosey (Fr)
PG: T.J. DiLeo (Sr)/Will Cummings (So)
Gone: PG-Juan Fernandez, SG-Ramone Moore, C-Michael Eric, SG- Aaron Brown (transfer-Southern Miss)
2012-2013 Outlook:
Temple loses four of their top six scorers from a year ago and nearly lost a fifth when star guard Khalif Wyatt spent his 21st birthday in Atlantic City getting arrested in a prostitution sting. Shockingly, the Owls’ top player won’t miss any court time which is crucial considering both Ramone Moore and Juan Fernandez have graduated.
Dunphy also gets a needed boost with the return of wing Scootie Randall who missed all of last season while recovering from knee surgery. Randall’s return provides some needed experience and a number two scorer. West Virginia transfer Dalton Pepper becomes eligible and will be a three-point threat off the bench, helping to replace what the team loses with Aaron Brown choosing to transfer. Freshmen Daniel Dingle and Quentin DeCosey add even more depth and Dingle should crack the rotation right away.
An area of concern will come at the point guard where T.J. DiLeo figures to see an expanded role. He is by no means a true point guard and Wyatt should have the ball in his hands a whole lot while sophomore Will Cummings could also factor into the equation.
Up-front, Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson brings some athleticism to the frontcourt. Anthony Lee figures to replace Michael Eric in the middle but expect to see a lot of Boston transfer Jake O’Brien as well. He becomes immediately eligible after graduating from BU and choosing Temple over the likes of Ohio State, Boston College, Providence, and Virginia. O’Brien missed all of last year due to a foot injury and is face up four who likely would have been American East POY candidate. Jimmy McDonnell and freshman Devontae Watson are other frontcourt options for Dunphy.
Based on their recent run of success, I’m probably not giving Temple enough credit heading into this season. Dunphy has been able to reload time and time again but replacing Moore and Fernandez won’t come easy especially in the stacked A-10.
Player to Watch: Khalif Wyatt
Wyatt had the luxury of running alongside Fernandez and Moore last season and while Randall will be a solid wingman this year, defenses will be keying in on stopping Wyatt. He will carry more responsibility in having to initiate the offense since Fernandez is gone and how well he can double up his load might be the determining factor to see if Temple can finish near the top of the A-10.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/13 at Kent State
12/5 at Villanova
12/8 vs. Duke (at Izod Center in NJ)
12/22 vs. Syracuse (Gotham Classic at MSG)
1/6 at Kansas
OTHER 111 IN 111’S:
#52 Washington Huskies
#53 California Golden Bears
#54 Kansas State Wildcats
#55 Nevada Wolfpack
#56 Colorado Buffaloes
#57 Iowa State Cyclones
#58 Northern Iowa Panthers
#59 Colorado State Rams
#60 Iowa Hawkeyes
#61 South Florida Bulls
#62 Valparaiso Crusaders
#63 Illinois Fighting Illini
#64 Arkansas Razorbacks
#65 Wichita State Shockers
#66 George Mason Patriots
#67 Virginia Cavaliers
#68 Villanova Wildcats
#69 Maryland Terrapins
#70 Marshall Thundering Herd
#71 Iona Gaels
#72 Northwestern Wildcats
#73 Oklahoms State Cowboys
#74 Rutgers Scarlet Knights
#75 USC Trojans
#76 UConn Huskies
#77 Harvard Crimson
#78 Xavier Musketeers
#79 Ole Miss Rebels
#80 Clemson Tigers
#81 Oregon State Beavers
#82 Texas A&M Aggies
#83 Providence Friars
#84 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
#85 Oklahoma Sooners
#86 Lehigh Mountain Hawks
#87 Washington State Cougars
#88 Long Beach State 49ers
#89 Belmont Bruins
#90 Vanderbilt Commodores
#91 Dayton Flyers
#92 Houston Cougars
#93 UCF Knights
#94 Old Dominion Monarchs
#95 Oregon Ducks
#96 LSU Tigers
#97 South Carolina Gamecocks
#98 Seton Hall Pirates
#99 Georgia Bulldogs
#100 DePaul Blue Demons
#101 Boston College Eagles
#102 Penn State Nittany Lions
#103 Arizona State Sun Devils
#104 Virginia Tech Hokies
#105 Texas Tech Red Raiders
#106 Auburn Tigers
#107 Wake Forest Demon Deacons
#108 TCU Horned Frogs
#109 Mississippi State Bulldogs
#110 Utah Utes
#111 Nebraska Cornhuskers
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag.)
You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.