The Pavilion – Villanova, PA
Tip-off: Tuesday, 7:00 pm ET
Line: Villanova -16.5, Total: 136.5

#1 Villanova will be looking to stay unbeaten with a home win over Temple on Tuesday night.

The Owls have gotten off to a solid start this season, as they are 7-3 SU and 7-2 ATS thus far. Temple has already earned a few impressive victories as well. The team has knocked off schools like Florida State and West Virginia, but a road win over Villanova would be a signature win for head coach Fran Dunphy’s program. That type of victory is not necessarily likely, though. The Wildcats have picked up right where they left off last season, as they are undefeated SU and 5-4 ATS. Villanova faced Notre Dame on Saturday, and the Wildcats won 74-66 as five-point favorites. That was a solid test for the team, and they’ll now look forward to facing an easier opponent on Tuesday. These teams met on Feb. 17, 2016, and Villanova won 83-67 as a 10-point favorite. The Wildcats are now 13-6 both SU and ATS against the Owls since 1997, and that includes a 7-1 SU and 6-2 ATS record at home. One trend favoring Temple in this one is the fact that Villanova is just 2-9 ATS in home games after a game where it made 88% of its free throws or better under head coach Jay Wright. The Wildcats are, however, 16-5 ATS in home games after seven or more consecutive wins since 1997. They do remain without G Phil Booth (Knee) indefinitely, though.

If Temple is going to win this huge road game at Villanova then F Obi Enechionyia (18.6 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 2.9 BPG) is going to need to show up in a big way for the Owls. Enechionyia is an absolute nightmare for opposing teams, as he is a lengthy forward that has the skill of a guard. On the year, Enechionyia is shooting 49.2% from the outside. It’s especially impressive considering he is attempting 6.1 threes per game. He is also a tremendous defender, and he’ll need to do everything he can to protect the rim in this one. Gs Shizz Alston Jr. (12.6 PPG, 4.6 APG, 4.1 RPG, 2.1 SPG) and Daniel Dingle (11.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.4 APG, 1.2 SPG) are the other guys that need to step it up for Temple. They make up one of the better backcourts in the American Athletic Conference, but they’re also going up against a whole other animal on Tuesday. Villanova has some of the best wing players in the nation, and Alston Jr. and Dingle will need to be ready to defend at a high level. They also need to shoot the three-ball well, which is something that hasn’t been easy for Alston Jr. this year. He is hitting just 26.8% from the outside, and the team needs him to be more accurate from there moving forward.

Villanova is coming off of an impressive comeback victory over Notre Dame and G Josh Hart (19.5 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 3.8 APG, 1.4 SPG) made it clear that he should be a favorite for the Naismith Player of the Year Award. Hart was insane in that game, finishing with 37 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals on 10-for-14 shooting from the floor. He got to the free throw line 14 times in that game and was perfect from the stripe. Look for him to play well in this game, as there are few players in the country that are capable of stopping him. He is a knockdown shooter from the outside and knows how to use his size to finish at the basket. F Kris Jenkins (13.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.0 SPG) should also be in for a big game in this one. Jenkins has improved his three-point shooting since knocking down the buzzer beater in the championship game last year. Jenkins is up to 41.5% from the outside this season and he is still doing a great job of guarding both big men and wings. The x-factors in this game will, however, be G Jalen Brunson (12.7 PPG, 3.4 APG) and F Darryl Reynolds (6.2 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.1 BPG). Brunson needs to play his usual brand of efficient basketball, and do his best to run this team in a tough game. Reynolds, meanwhile, needs to continue to clean the glass and defend the rim.