Southern Methodist @ Temple preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 10, 2018 ) Temple 66, Southern Methodist 64

Temple is coming off a disappointing loss, but the Owls won't be getting any sympathy cards from SMU. The Mustangs aim to break a four-game losing streak Wednesday when they visit Temple in American Athletic Conference action.

Its last time out, Temple was crushed by Tulsa 76-58 as leading scorers Shizz Alston Jr., Quinton Rose and Nate Pierre-Louis combined to shoot 8-of-31 from the field. “The ball’s been bouncing our way a lot this season, and today, it didn’t really bounce our way, and we kind of let that affect us a little bit,” Alston said. The Mustangs have lost six of their last seven, most recently a six-point setback against Central Florida. Jimmy Whitt Jr. had a career-high 23 points for SMU, but the team remained winless this season when scoring fewer than 69 points.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN3

ABOUT SMU (12-11, 4-7 American): The Mustangs have one of the league's most explosive scorers in Jahmal McMurray (17.5 points), who has made 74 3-pointers - nearly twice as many as the next-closest teammate. After Murray went scoreless in five minutes against UCF, coach Tim Jankovich said: "He was late for practice yesterday, so that was a big part of it. And it's been hard for him to practice. Last week he didn't one time and then this two days before the game he only practiced once because he's a little dinged up. Hopefully he'll get healthy quickly." If McMurray is hurting against Temple, the Mustangs could lean on Whitt and Isiaha Mike, who notched his first double-double of the season (18 points, 10 boards) against the Knights.

ABOUT TEMPLE (17-7, 7-4): The Owls endured a putrid effort against Tulsa, as only Alston (4-of-14) made more than two field goals and the team as a whole managed a total of five two-point baskets in the game. Rose committed seven turnovers and shot just 2-of-12 from the field, although he did knock down multiple 3-pointers for the sixth straight outing. Pierre-Louis has scored in double figures in 12 of the last 13 games and was 2-of-4 from 3-point range against Tulsa after going 2-of-18 from long distance in the previous six games.

TIP-INS

1. This will be the first meeting between the teams since the Owls upset the Mustangs 66-64 last season.

2. After six straight games with at least three turnovers, Pierre-Louis has gone five straight games without committing more than two in a game.

3. The Mustangs' last four losses have come by a total of 14 points.

PREDICTION: Temple 67, SMU 60