Temple @ Southern Methodist preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 9, 2017 ) Southern Methodist 66, Temple 50

SMU has lost two games in a row and aims to snap that mini-skid against another scuffling team when it hosts Temple on Wednesday. The Owls have lost five in a row, including their first four games in American Athletic Conference action.

SMU's non-conference slate included big victories against Arizona and USC, but the AAC season has gotten off to a disappointing start with two wins followed by a close loss to Tulane and a blowout at the hands of Cincinnati. "Beyond frustrating," SMU coach Tim Jankovich said after his team committed 18 turnovers while shooting 35.7 percent against the Bearcats. "It was as frustrating as any game I can remember in a number of years. Whenever you turn the ball over that many times and just play so sloppy, it's just really hard." Shake Milton averages 17.0 points per game and has only been held below 14 three times all season while shooting above 40 percent from 3-point range for the third straight year. He certainly will be a key focus defensively for Temple, which is coming off one of the worst offensive performances in school history.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

ABOUT TEMPLE (7-8, 0-4 AAC): The Owls were dreadful offensively in every facet against Central Florida their last time out, shooting 32.1 percent from the field, 4-of-22 from the arc and somehow only attempting one foul shot the entire game, not to mention 19 turnovers. “Where we will be at the end of the year is a mystery at this point,” Owls coach Fran Dunphy said. “I’m hoping that we can come back to where we were in terms of our success rate. This is a very difficult league and well coached and well played. We’ve got our hands full but looking forward to the challenge.” Temple's starters combined for only seven baskets against UCF with its three leading scorers - Quinton Rose, Shizz Alston Jr. and Obi Enechionyia - combining to go 3-for-20 with 12 turnovers.

ABOUT SMU (12-5, 2-2): Jarrey Foster (16 points) led the way against Cincinnati and also had nine rebounds, narrowly missing out on his first double-double of the season. Five of the team's top six scorers on the year are threats from 3-point range, with Milton and Ben Emelogu leading the squad at 40 3-pointers apiece. Emelogu is shooting 60.6 percent from the arc - the leading mark in Division I - and it's an incredible turnaround for a player who shot 26.7 and 29.2 percent from long range the last two seasons, respectively.

TIP-INS

1. SMU won last season's two meetings by a combined 30 points.

2. SMU F Ethan Chargois (12.1 points) has averaged only seven points in the last three games and fouled out in only 21 minutes versus Cincinnati.

3. In his last four games, Enechionyia is shooting 9-of-39 (23.1 percent) from the floor.

PREDICTION: SMU 62, Temple 52