Who’s Playing
Buffalo Bulls @ Temple Owls
Current Records: Buffalo 5-6, Temple 7-5
How To Watch
- When: Sunday, December 29, 2024 at 3 p.m. ET
- Where: Liacouras Center — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- TV: ESPN University
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $14.28
What to Know
The Temple Owls and the Buffalo Bulls will round out the year against one another at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday at at Liacouras Center. The timing is sure in the Owls’ favor as the squad sits on four straight wins at home while the Bulls have been banged up by five consecutive losses on the road.
The experts predicted Temple would be headed in after a win, but Rhode Island made sure that didn’t happen. Temple took an 85-79 hit to the loss column at the hands of Rhode Island last Saturday. The Owls’ loss signaled the end of their three-game winning streak.
Despite the defeat, Temple had strong showings from Shane Dezonie, who went 7 for 9 en route to 17 points plus three steals, and Steve Settle III, who went 6 for 10 from beyond the arc en route to 18 points plus eight rebounds and two steals. What’s more, Dezonie also posted a 66.7% three-point shooting accuracy, which is the highest he’s posted since back in March. Less helpful for Temple was Jamal Mashburn Jr.’s abysmal 0-5 three-point shooting.
Meanwhile, the oddsmakers predicted a rough match for Buffalo last Thursday and boy were they right. They were completely outmatched by Georgia on the road and fell 100-49. The matchup marked the Bulls’ lowest-scoring game so far this season.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Buffalo struggled to work together and finished the game with only eight assists. They were dismantled by their opponents in that department as Georgia racked up 24.
Temple’s loss dropped their record down to 7-5. As for Buffalo, they now have a losing record at 5-6.
Sunday’s contest is shaping up to be a scrappy match: Temple hasn’t given up the ball easily this season, having only averaged 9.9 turnovers per game. It’s a different story for Buffalo, though, as they’ve been averaging 15.4. Given Temple’s sizable advantage in that area, Buffalo will need to find a way to close that gap.
Going forward, Temple is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 15 points. Against the spread, they have been a house darling this year with a chancy 3-7-1 ATS record.
Odds
Temple is a big 15-point favorite against Buffalo, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Owls as a 14.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 149.5 points.
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