Temple believes inexperience does not matter in NCAA game against Iowa

The Temple basketball team is proud of being an urban school, and takes the subway (when necessary) to get around in Philly.

In Brooklyn, site of their NCAA Tournament first round match against Iowa, they will take the subway too.

On an unexperienced team like Temple, one that has just one player with Big Dance minutes on the roster, keeping things as close to normal as possible will be key.

And getting every player’s best, as the No. 10 Owls look to pull a minor upset over No. 7 Iowa, will be the key to making it to the second round.

“That’s all out the window,” Dunphy told CSNPhilly earlier this week, alluding to their inexperience. “If Devin Coleman rises up for a wide-open jumper at 22 feet, does he say, ‘I don’t have any experience, I don’t know if this will go in?’ None of that is happening.”

Temple won its regular season conference crown thanks to a 14-4 AAC mark. An at-large bid got them into the tournament after a semi-finals exit in the conference tournament.

Iowa makes its third straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament after finishing third in the Big 10.Among their top accomplishments in league play is a sweep of Michigan and Michigan State (both also in the tournament).

The Owls haven’t faced the Hawkeyes in over three decades and face the looming threat of Villanova waiting for them in the second round in the Eastern region. But none of that matters to Dunphy.

“We’re playing basketball and that’s what we’re going to do,” the ACC coach of the year said, no stranger to tournament play. This is Temple’s seventh appearance under his tenure.

Dunphy hopes the Owls continue to protect the ball. They boast the fewestturnovers in all of college basketball.

Things tip off at approximately 3:10 p.m. Friday on truTV (30 minutes after the conclusion of No. 2 Villanova’s game at the Barclays Center against UNC Asheville).