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The American Conference has been whittled down to a two-team race, as the SMU Mustangs are only a half-game behind Cincinnati as the two teams prepare to clash this week. Before SMU plays that crucial contest, it must travel to face off against the Temple Owls.
The Mustangs can’t be looking past this matchup, as any lack of focus could allow Temple to pull off the upset at home. SMU has been great this season and must avoid turning this into a trap game.
The Mustangs have been really good throughout the year and hope to put together another strong performance.
At 9 p.m. ET, tune into ESPN2 for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Thursday, February 9, 2017, at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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Odds at BookMaker.eu
Temple is 13-11 straight up and 11-9-2 against the spread. The Owls have played in ten home games on the season and has gone 5-4-1 against the spread in those matchups. Temple has been the underdog in 11 matchups this season and has gone 5-5-1 against the spread in those games.
SMU is 20-4 straight up and 14-4-1 against the spread. The Mustangs have played in eight road games this season and have gone 5-2-1 against the spread in those matchups. SMU is 13-3-1 against the spread as the favorite on the season and will aim to keep it rolling.
Key Stat
58.3. That’s how many points per game SMU is holding opponents to this season. The Mustangs rank No. 3 in the nation for points allowed.
The team comes into this matchup on a six-game winning streak. It’s fresh off a 76-53 victory over Tulsa on February 4th and also defeated East Carolina 86-46 last week.
The Mustangs have held six opponents to less than 50 points this season. In its only loss since December, SMU fell to No. 22 Cincinnati 66 -64, holding the Bearcats 11 points below their average in the loss. A lot of college basketball’s best teams have the ability to run their opponents off the floor, but the Mustangs do it with defense.
Revenge Angle
SMU defeated Temple 79-65 the first time these two conference foes met this season on January 4th. Behind Semi Ojeleye’s 19 points and nine rebounds, the Mustangs led by 18 at halftime and never looked back in the win.
Since that first meeting, The Mustangs have gone 7-1 and come into this rematch as the favorite once again. Temple, on the other hand, has gone 3-4 since the loss to the Mustangs last month and sit eighth in the American Athletic Conference right now.
SMU has won four of the last five matchups between these two programs with Temple’s only win in that span coming in 2016. A win against a conference opponent this week would be a big boost for the Owls.
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If SMU plays up to its capability, it has the ability to cruise in this one. It showed the blueprint in the first matchup at home. However, with the showdown with Cincinnati looming, there is the very real consideration that this one is overlooked and remains close from start to finish.
Temple is a mediocre program but gets this game at home and has the ability to make this a good game. It is tempting to take the Owls to pull the upset because it would pay off in a lucrative way on the moneyline.
However, SMU has played too well this season to blow this one. The Mustangs should be able to pick up their seventh consecutive victory to set up a gigantic matchup against the Bearcats next time out.
College Basketball Odds: SMU 67, Temple 62
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