NCAA Profile: Temple Owls

Team: Temple Owls

Conference: American Athletic Conference

Coach: Fran Dunphy

Record: 21-11, 14-4

KenPom Ranking: 86

Good wins: swept Cincinnati, swept UConn, SMU, Tulsa, at Houston

Impact players: Quenton DeCosey (15.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg), Obi Enechionyia (11.2 ppg), Jaylen Bond (10.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg), Devin Coleman (9.3 ppg, 40% from downtown)

How did they get in?: Temple finished first in the AAC regular season standings thanks to beating every top team in the conference at least once. They didn't perform to expectations in the non-conference season (they were 4-5 at one point) but they also did test themselves playing North Carolina, Butler, Utah, Wisconsin and St. Joe's. The Owls also owns an RPI ranking of 63 and a 7-9 record versus the top 100.

How far can this team go?: Because of their great balance, the Owls have a chance to knock off reeling Iowa in the opening round and even have a chance to knock off Villanova in the second round. They know the Wildcats well (given that they played them already this season) and they too should have a strong showing from their fans in Brooklyn.

Last time in the NCAA Tournament: 2013 when they lost to Indiana by six in the second round.