The men’s basketball team opens its season tonight.
Really.
It might seem a bit early, especially considering the Owls didn’t play their first game until Nov. 21 last season, but the Owls tip off their second season under Fran Dunphy tonight at 7:30 p.m. against No. 7 Tennessee.
But the real reason the basketball season opener has flown under the radar is the event taking place at Lincoln Financial Field tomorrow. That’s where the football team welcomes No. 23 Penn State at noon.
Honestly, when is the last time the basketball team played under the shadow of its gridiron counterpart?
It is now.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s featured sports article yesterday was a preview of the football game. They’ve run coverage of the football team on the front page of the sports section several times this week. The Owls usually garner coverage deep within the section.
The athletics department is staging a pep rally at City Hall at 4:30 p.m. tonight. City Hall. Fans are aso attempting a “Cherry-Out” at the game.
But let’s be honest. The reason for much of this coverage revolves more around Penn State coming to town for the first time since 1991. Or the fact that Al Golden will be trying to outduel his former coach, Joe Paterno, for the first time. (Paterno missed last season’s game while recovering from an injury). There aren’t too many people out there actually picking the Owls to upset the Lions, despite an optimism surrounding Temple’s program for the first time in a long while.
Once this game passes, it’s likely the attention will shift to the basketball team, which is taking on its own ambitious schedule.
The Owls enter tonight’s game against a No. 7 Volunteers team expected to not only compete for a Southeastern Conference championship, but also make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
Dionte Christmas and Mark Tyndale lead an Owls team focused on improving its defense, a glaring weakness last season when the Owls finished with their first losing record in 23 seasons.
Lavoy Allen, a 6-foot-9 forward from Pennsbury High, is expected to change help change that, but remember he still is a freshman. Playing in front of 22,000 screaming Volunteers fans could be an overwhelming experience for each of the Owls, especially the freshmen.
Still, Christmas and Tyndale, the Atlantic Ten Conference’s top two scorers, respectively, look to bring excitement to the Owls tonight, even if everyone’s focused on Penn State.
