Temple Beat Dookane

[vee4xu]

Well, looks like Dookane is back in it's usual sucky form having lost twice since beating X last Saturday. I am glad this game ended like this because Temple is 7-3 and lost to Xavier, so X has the tie-breaker.

With SJU losing and ud playing here, this game really puts X's desitiny in it's own hands to win the regular season crown. Also, Temple goes to the dump to play the melonhumpers at the end of the season.

[kyxu]

Why should we expect Duquesne to compete anymore? They beat Xavier, so it's about time for them to call it a season now, right?

Duquesne has lost three of their last four, with their lone win coming against us. In that span, they've lost to SLU, Richmond and now Temple. Not exactly murderer's row. In their three losses, they averaged 22% from three. Against us, of course, they shoot 47%.

Really dislike Duquesne.

[X-band '01]

URI is now above the Mighty Dukes in the standings - UD has Temple at home but must still travel to URI later in the season. In terms of tiebreakers, Xavier cannot afford to lose at St. Joe's, however.

[coasterville95]

Well, Doo-Kane packed 4,029 in today, its not quite a sell out, but from what I understand better than what they have been averaging. Good on them if they start getting more people in the doors.

I know, they didn't have the Snuggie Crew - the added attraction of the Snuggie Crew sold our game out!

All kidding aisde, I was hoping they would come around and go on a tear the rest of the season, make our loss look as good as it possibly can.

On a different note: Great job Owls and Explorers for helping hold of St. Joe's in the standings.

[D-West & PO-Z]

Well, Doo-Kane packed 4,029 in today, its not quite a sell out, but from what I understand better than what they have been averaging. Good on them if they start getting more people in the doors.

I know, they didn't have the Snuggie Crew - the added attraction of the Snuggie Crew sold our game out!

All kidding aisde, I was hoping they would come around and go on a tear the rest of the season, make our loss look as good as it possibly can.

On a different note: Great job Owls and Explorers for helping hold of St. Joe's in the standings.

What do people belive would be better? Temple staying in the top 50 and that being another good win or Duquesne dropping below 100 and being a bad loss? I'm not sure, but I think right now I am glad Temple won.

[waggy]

Nice win for Temple. The recently added freshman, Juan Fernandez, has made this team better. It's not huge production, but he makes a few nice plays a game, and does good things in end game situations. It's telling that Dunphy has him in the game in these situations. Add him to Christmas, Inge and Brooks and it's a really really good backcourt.

I think Temple is better than rankings such as Sagarin currently suggest. They had a loss or two in the OOC to MAC teams when Levoy Allen was not in the line up. Ignore those losses and add Fernandez to the mix and they might be a top 30 team now.

Considering Inge is a senior that has had a mostly inconsistent career but who very talented, and that Brooks is an upperclassman as well, and I really think this is a team to look out for.

[coasterville95]

That's a valid point you make - our resume takes a hit just by virtue of the game being played.

Either Owls win and move Dukes closer and closer to "Bad Loss" Territory, or Dukes win and push the Owls closer to being out of the "Good Win" category.

Which would I rather have? Well, whatever makes our team look the best come Selection Sunday of course! Part of me wants the committee and the talking heads, when talking about Xaiver go "and NO BAD LOSSES", I think we have enough quality wins, particularly in the out of confernece schedule.

Of course, I do have to look at the Owls and the Dukes as programs and I have to go along with the chances of the Owls remaining a good win at the end of the season are much better than the chances of the Dukes not being a bad loss by the end of the season. So from that standpoint, I have to go along with you, and that Temple winning was the better outcome for us, all around. Look at how many RPI points the Dukes gained just be beating us, I wonder where they would be with a loss, since surely just playing us put a bit of polish on their RPI.

That all said, and recently in light of all the blabbering, ridiculous or not, that Mick Cronin, and P-Doc have been doing lately about our conferences reputation, I would like to see the Dukes get better. The only way our conference will be seen in a better light is if more and more members start becoming competetive teams, being the best they can be, playing decent out of conference schedules and being succesuful in those campaigns. If the Dukes truly are ready to step it up and represent, then good on them, just don't do it when we are playing!

The Dukes pulled in 4,029 for Temple, not a ranked team, but a confernce game nonetheless. Surely they had a bit of Muskie Hangover selling some of the seats, but that sounds better than what they have been getting in there. If you account that we brought, according to Byron and Joe 1,000 fans to that game, the home attendance is comparable. I hope for everybod's sake, it doesn't fall back off now that they lost.