Friday, Oct. 12 I saw John Chaney at his Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and he was complaining about his team. They must be good. This ranking, however, assumes that the tough-minded and talented David Hawkins will be back in uniform around Christmas. Hawkins is an instinctive, high-energy player who is great in transition, and can score, rebound and defend. With or without Hawkins, Chaney will again be sneering and ranting at his best player, Lynn Greer, who plays the point and is truly a special player. Greer had as much responsibility as any player in America last year, and will have just as much this year. He is a lefty with a smooth stroke, active hands and a great step-back jumper. With Kevin Lyde locking down the middle and, if his NCAA Tournament performance is any indication, being more of a force offensively, Temple should again be a tough out.

14
Temple
LAST SEASON: 24-13
2001 FINAL RANKING
ESPN/USA Today: No. 16

Why No. 14?
The Owls don't have David Hawkins for the first semester because of grades. They lost Quincy Wadley. But they still have Lynn Greer, Kevin Lyde and Alex Wesby. Temple always seems to do more with less. John Chaney is hitting his peak with this squad and his defense. Don't be surprised to see Temple ride the rollarcoaster with the wins and losses but still return to the tournament in March. Temple is confident that it win late in the season. The Owls will be challenged in the Atlantic 10, but that won't matter once the tournament starts. They still will be one of the toughest outs in the field.

Will Rise If ...
The Owls get David Hawkins back in December, Kevin Lyde doesn't get hurt again and Ron Rollerson can be a productive member of the team. The Owls won't struggle defensively and Lynn Greer is one of the toughest points to guard. Alex Wesby is a 3-point threat and newcomers Nile Murry, Hawley Smith and Glenn Elliott could produce sooner than most of John Chaney's first-year players. This team is also driven to get Chaney back deep in the tournament again.

Will Fall If ...
The Owls need options and not having Hawkins or a healthy Lyde or in-shape Rollerson could be problems. Temple's defense takes time and Chaney might not tolerate missteps by his newcomers who will have to play more than normal. Temple has another brutal schedule and can't get discouraged. They made another late run last season, but how many times can they do that?

-- Andy Katz, ESPN.com

SCOUTING REPORT: One A-10 coach's take on the Owls

“

The first thing you've got to do is get the ball down the floor quickly. You must limit turnovers because they can turn turnovers into layups very quickly. They're not a great shooting team and a lot of times they shoot with the intent of getting the offensive rebound. You must push the ball against them and you've got to make a decent amount of 3-point shots against them because you will get shots. They're so efficient and the right guys, like Lynn Greer, take the right shots. It's better to put a bigger player on him. Lyde is so tough to move away from the basket but you've got to play behind him and the basket. If you give him an angle he'll make the shot in the post." ”

2001-02 TEMPLE ROSTER
Player	Yr.	Pos.	Ht./Wt.	Key 2000-01 Stats
(4) Glen Elliott	Fr.	F	6-9/235	Should step right into frontcourt rotation of big widebodies
(14) Lynn Greer	Sr.	G	6-2/175	PTS: 18.2 | AST: 5.5 | 3PT%: 37.9
(34) David Hawkins	So.	G	6-4/215	PTS: 10.4 | REB: 4.4 | FG%: 39.8
(22) Jay Jameson	Sr.	G	6-0/170	Sat out last season after transferring from Long Island University
(1) Greg Jefferson	Jr.	F	6-5/205	PTS: 2.0 | REB: 2.5 | FG%: 56.1
(42) Kevin Lyde	Sr.	C	6-10/260	PTS: 12.8 | REB: 8.9 | FG%: 51.5
(21) Nile Murry	Fr.	G	6-3/195	Murry can be a big backup to Greer, but is versatile enough to play next to him
(3) Brian Polk	So.	G	6-4/205	Sat out 2000-01 season as partial qualifier
(30) Ron Rollerson	Sr.	F	6-10/290	PTS: 3.1 | REB: 4.2 | FG%: 56.2
(15) Hawley Smith	Fr.	F	6-5/210	If he adapts to Chaney's defense, his outside shot will earn him PT
(40) Rouldra Thomas	Sr.	F	6-8/210	PTS: 0.2 | REB: 0.7 | AST: 0.1
(23) Alex Wesby	Sr.	F	6-6/190	PTS: 10.1 | REB: 5.5 | FG%: 39.3
Head Coach: John Chaney (431-179, 19 years; Overall: 656-238, 29 years) Assistant Coaches: Nate Blackwell, Dan Leibovitz Home Court: Liacouras Center (10,206); Philadelphia

2001-02 TEMPLE SCHEDULE

November 8: Florida (a) 9: Maryland/Arizona (b) 29: Charlotte

December 1: Penn State 3: at Wisconsin 5: at Duke 8: Villanova (c) 18: Alabama (d) 20: Memphis 22: DePaul 30: Penn

January 6: at Fordham 9: Duquesne 12: Rhode Island 16: at St. Bonaventure 19: at UMass 23: Richmond 26: at N.C. State 30: Fordham

February 2: St. Joseph's 6: at Rhode Island 9: at G.Washington 13: at LaSalle 16: UMass 20: Xavier 23: St. Bonaventure 27: at Dayton

March 3: at St. Joseph's 6: A-10 Tournament