Temple Wins Third Straight A-10 Title
Ryan Brooks will be playing in his third straight NCAA tournament. (Icon SMI)
By Ronak Patel
ronakspatel@hotmail.com
Sunday, March 14, 2010
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – In 2007, freshmen Luis Guzman and Ryan Brooks watched the final seconds of Temple's Atlantic 10 first round 72-66 loss to St. Joseph's from the bench. The loss finished their season at 12-18 in coach Fran Dunphy's first season after replacing legend John Chaney.
"We were sitting on the sidelines after the loss and I told Brooks 'never again do I want to have this feeling again,'" said Guzman.
At the time, Guzman, who was Chaney's recruit but chose to stick it out with Dumphy, wasn't aware how prophetic his words would become three years later.
Now as seniors, they weren't reminiscing on the bench reflecting on a loss, instead, they were pointing up "3" fingers to signify Temple's third straight A-10 tournament title, a 56-52 victory over Richmond Sunday at Boardwalk Hall. Ever since Brooks' declaration, the Owls have gone 9-1 in the tournament and reclaimed their throne as the conference's elite program.
"I wouldn't have it any other way," said Guzman. "I went from not playing my freshman season to starting my sophomore and an up-and-down junior and this year was a great season."
Guzman's journey from Paramus Catholic High School (N.J.) to senior floor leader typifies Temple's march to the conference perch. The past three seasons, not much was expected from the Owls. They were picked to finish fifth this season in the conference after losing all-world guard Dionte Christmas, but led by the two aforementioned two seniors; the Owls are in a position that recalls the days of Mark Macon. Temple has 29 victories and perhaps, a few more to come in the tournament. The 29 victories are the second highest total in program history, behind 32 wins registered by ex-Owls great Mark Macon's teams (1986-87 and 87-88).
"It took a lot of patience and hard work," said Brooks, who wasn't highly recruited out of Lower Merion High School outside of Philadelphia. "We had a lot of ups and downs and both of us players and maturing into men. I think we bought in and players came in afterwards and learn to build a tradition and start something new.
"Luis and I wanted to be the jump-starters of bringing the Temple program back to life and Temple is moving in the right direction."
The headline grabbers for Temple in its wire-to-wire victory over Richmond were sophomore Juan Fernandez, who scored 18 points, and junior big man Lavoy Allen, who controlled the paint with 11 rebounds and dished out three assists. Both were named to the all-conference team and Fernandez nabbed tournament MVP honors.
But to understand the root of Temple's success against Richmond, it starts with Guzman and Brooks' ability to check A-10 Player of the Year Kevin Anderson, who went 6-of-15 for 14 points. Anderson scored three points in the first half and didn't find any success until the game's final five minutes, when he led a furious Richmond rally that fell short. But Guzman and Brooks split duty on Anderson and were doing something that most teams in the A-10 haven't been successful at this year, which was bumping him on cutters and off-screens.
"He doesn't like contact," said Guzman, who finished with four points, two steals and three rebounds. "That's how I play. I was bullying him a couple of times and he wouldn't back off, but kind of held him down for 35 minutes and last five minutes, he attacked the basket well, we came through though."
Anderson didn't come out and admit the pair made it hard for him, but did say they play solid. Anderson didn't hit his second field goal until the seven-minute mark of the second half.
"Temple's perimeter is sound defensively," said Anderson. "They play really tight and pack it in on the wings. But me personally, we weren't hitting shots."
Mooney stated Anderson and his team could've been fatigued but credited Brooks and Guzman for their defense work on his star player.
"I think we were tired," said Mooney. "I'm sure we're a little tired but I didn't think it dictated the outcome of the game.
"They are all very good perimeter defenders. Their guys are not only fast but disciplined, they know how to defend and very rarely out of position. We were going to have to make shots over the top but we didn't do it."
Brooks, who's played consistent minutes since he was a freshman, finished with 12 points but it was his eight consecutive points early in the second half that help push Temple's lead from seven to 12. And it was his 4-out-of-4 free throw shooting in the final minute that iced the championship.
"Our focal point was to start each half and throw the first punch," said Brooks. "I think we did a great job of doing that all three games and in the second half was very crucial to make a run and see where the team is mentally.
"This game, we got a little stagnant in the second half and they made a little run. We are battle-tested. We've been in low scoring games and high scoring games, games where we can't hit shots and our defense has to step up."
The path that Brooks and Guzman took to Sunday's championship game was different, but Dunphy couldn't have been more proud of their impact on the program.
"They've been terrific," said Dunphy. "They've taken different paths to be honest. Ryan has played a lot more than Luis has, but I can't tell you how proud I am of Luis for hanging in there. He didn't get a lot of opportunities his first three years but really understood the task at hand this year and what his job was going to be. I think he committed to that defensively but very happy for them."
With Temple's NCAA tournament first-round doldrums (have lost the past two years in the first round) on the horizon, it's a good bet they may exercise them this year. And if they do, don't be surprised if Guzman and Brooks are in the mix.
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