page_title: Temple Owls
section_title: Men's Basketball
hierarchical_section_title: Temple Owls / Men's Basketball
caption_attribution_description: w:Liacouras Center (Temple)
context_page_description: The Temple Owls are the athletic teams that represent Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school's sports teams are called the Owls. The current athletic director is Patrick Kraft.
  The owl has been the symbol and mascot for Temple University since its founding in the 1880s. Temple was the first school in the United States to adopt the owl as its symbol or mascot. The owl, a nocturnal hunter, was initially adopted as a symbol because Temple University began as a night school for young people of limited means. Russell Conwell, Temple's founder, encouraged these students with the remark: "The owl of the night makes the eagle of the day."
context_section_description: In 1938, the Owls, who finished with a 23–2 record, won the inaugural National Invitation Tournament by routing Colorado 60–36 in the championship final. Because the NCAA Tournament was not held until the following year, Temple's NIT championship earned the Owls national title recognition. The team was also retroactively named the national champion by the Helms Athletic Foundation and the Premo-Porretta Power Poll.
  During the 1950s, the Temple basketball team made two NCAA Final Four appearances (1956, 1958) under legendary Head Coach Harry Litwack. Litwack would be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame after concluding a 21-year coaching career that included 373 wins. Head Coach John Chaney, also a Hall of Famer, won a total of 724 career games and took Temple to the NCAA tournament 17 times. His 1987–88 Owls team entered the NCAA tournament ranked #1 in the country, and he has reached the Elite Eight on five occasions. He was consensus national coach of the year in 1988. Former NBA players Eddie Jones of the Miami Heat, Aaron McKie of the Los Angeles Lakers, Rick Brunson of the New York Knicks, and Mardy Collins, formerly of the Los Angeles Clippers, are also part of Temple's basketball heritage.
  On March 13, 2006, Hall of Fame head coach John Chaney retired.
  On April 10, 2006, University of Pennsylvania head coach and La Salle University alumnus Fran Dunphy was named the new Temple's Men's Head Basketball coach. Dunphy had coached the Quakers for 17 straight seasons prior to the move.  Dunphy and his Owls won the Atlantic-10 tournament in 2008 beating St. Joseph's University. The Owls were rewarded with a 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament and paired against 5th-seeded Michigan State, losing that game 72–61. In 2009, the Owls won their second consecutive Atlantic-10 tournament against Duquesne, for their conference leading 13th title.
  Entering the 2009–10 season, Temple Men's Basketball program ranked sixth in NCAA All-Time wins with 1711.
caption: Liacouras Center, home of Temple Owls basketball and volleyball teams since 1997.
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