Demon Deacons Meet Temple For Thursday Action
12/19/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2000
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Game #10
(6) Wake Forest (9-0) at Temple (4-6)
Dec. 21, 2000 7:00 p.m.
Liacouras Center (10,206)
Philadelphia, PA
Tip Time: 7:05 p.m.
Television:
ESPN. Dave Strader (play-by-play) and Len Elmore (color analysis) call the action. Ray Tipton produces.
Radio:
The Deacon Radio Network. Stan Cotten (play-by-play) and Mark Freidinger (color analysis) call the action.
The Records:
Wake Forest is 9-0 following a 92-52 win over visiting Radford Monday night. Temple has not played since a Dec. 14 loss to visiting Wisconsin, 66-58.
The Rankings:
The Deacons are ranked 6th in the Associated Press poll this week (WFU's highest AP ranking since being ranked No. 5 on Feb. 24, 1997) and 6th in the ESPN/USA Today poll. Temple is not ranked.
WFU Coach Dave Odom:
Odom (Guilford '65) is in his 12th season at Wake Forest with a record of 230-121. In 15 years overall, he is 268-163. Odom, a three-time ACC Coach of the Year, owns the second-most wins in WFU history and the eighth-most wins in ACC history.
Temple Coach John Chaney:
Chaney (Bethune-Cookman '55) is 411-172 in 19 seasons with the Owls, 636-231 in 29 seasons overall.
The Series History:
Temple leads, 10-8.
The Officials:
Announced on game day.
Deacons Face Pre-Christmas Road Test At Temple Thursday Night
Sixth-ranked Wake Forest, off to a 9-0 start, faces one of its biggest tests of the young season Thursday when it plays on the road at Temple Thursday night in Philadelphia (ESPN/7:00 p.m.).
The Deacons overcame a sluggish start Monday night to whip visiting Radford, 92-52. Sophomore Josh Howard, who is averaging 19.3 points over the last three games, led the Deacons with a career-high 22 points and Craig Dawson matched a career-best with four three-point field goals.
Temple, 4-6, has lost six straight after getting off to a promising 4-0 start. The Owls' record is misleading considering the difficulty of the schedule. Temple's losing streak has included two losses to Duke and a 66-58 loss last Thursday to Wisconsin.
The Owls lead the all-time series, 10-8. The Deacons, however, have won three of the last four meetings including a 77-72 victory in Winston-Salem last season.
Things To Know About Thursday's Game
- The Deacons enter Thursday's game with a 14-game winning streak -- the second-longest streak nationally -- dating back to last season's NIT title run. Only Michigan State (19 straight wins) owns a longer current streak. The Spartans play at Seton Hall Tuesday night.
- The 14-game winning streak is the longest in Dave Odom's 12 seasons at Wake and the longest since the 1980-81 team began the season 14-0.
- Remarkably, Wake Forest has held opponents to less than 40 percent shooting in 16 consecutive games.
- Sixth-ranked in the AP poll, Wake Forest enters the Temple game with its highest national ranking since being ranked No. 5 on Feb. 24, 1997. WFU is also ranked sixth in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
- The Deacons are looking to begin the season 10-0 for the first time since going 13-0 in Tim Duncan's senior year (1996-97).
- WFU owns a modest four-game win streak in road games, including road wins this season at Richmond and Michigan.
- Senior Rafael Vidaurreta should play in his 100th career game.
Wake Forest-Temple Series History
- Temple leads the all-time series, 10-8.
- Wake Forest has won three of the last four meetings including a 77-72 win over the 10th-ranked Owls in Winston-Salem (Dec. 4, 1999).
- The WFU-Temple rivalry stretches back to the 1930-31 season. The two teams have met at least once each decade since the 1930s.
- Wake is 4-3 all-time against Temple in games played in Philadelphia. The last time the teams met in Philly (Feb. 7, 1993), the Deacons came away with a 106-69 victory.
- WFU coach Dave Odom is 3-1 all-time against Temple. Owl coach John Chaney is 3-3 all-time against the Deacons.
- Temple dominated the series from 1978-79 to 1985-86, winning four straight meetings.
- Wake Forest is 63-65 all-time against teams currently in the Atlantic 10. Wake's last game against an A-10 team was the win over Temple last season.
- Richmond, which Wake Forest beat earlier this season, will join the Atlantic 10 next season.
A Look Back At Last Year's 77-72 WFU Win Vs. Temple
Wake Forest jumped out to a 25-9 lead, limiting Temple to just 5-of-31 shooting (16.1 percent) in the first half, then held on for a 77-72 win over the visiting, 10th-ranked Owls.
Temple cut a 26-point halftime lead all the way to 10 (66-56) with 2:56 remaining, but the Deacons answered to hold off the Owls. Robert O'Kelley, who made 7-of-10 shots in the first half, including four three-point field goals, paced the Deacons with a team-high 22 points. Craig Dawson came off the bench for 16 points.
Temple's Mark Karcher made 12-of-33 field goal attempts en route to 33 points to lead all scorers. Lynn Greer chipped in 22 points for the Owls.
Quick Notes About Thursday's Game
- On paper, Thursday's game appears to be headed for a low-scoring affair. Wake Forest is holding opponents to just 54.4 points per game. Temple opponents are scoring 64.4 points per contest.
- Wake Forest will not face a coach this season with more victories than John Chaney (636). Between the two head coaches -- Chaney and Wake's Dave Odom -- they have 904 career victories.
- Wake could have selected an easier non-conference road schedule this season. The Deacs have already played at Richmond and Michigan and will play at Cincinnati in January.
- The Deacons were in a similar position last season at this time, owning an 8-1 record and hitting the road to play at Arkansas in their final game before Christmas. Wake beat the Razorbacks, 70-64, in an ESPN-televised game.
More From Wake's 92-52 Win Over Radford Monday
Wake Forest overcame a sluggish start to whip visiting Radford, 92-52, Monday night in Joel Coliseum. More from that game:
- Sophomore Josh Howard scored a career-high 22 points and recorded a career-best five steals.
- Junior Craig Dawson came off the bench to match a career-high with four three-point field goals.
- The Deacons shot 53.1 percent from the field.
- Wake held Radford to just 37.0 percent shooting -- the 16th straight game the Deacons have held foes to under 40 percent shooting.
- Wake Forest's 17 steals were a season-high.
- The Deacons forced a season-high 26 turnovers.
- Senior Robert O'Kelley was held without a field goal for the first time since his freshman season, but he managed a career-high four steals.
- Wake Forest was out-rebounded, 38-34.
Deacons Putting Up Impressive Numbers
Through the first nine games of the season, Wake Forest has put up numbers worthy of its No. 6 national ranking. The Deacons rank in the top 10 nationally in five different statistical categories.
- Wake Forest ranks sixth nationally and first in the ACC in field goal percentage (.524) despite shooting under 50 percent in four of its last five games.
- Meanwhile, Wake ranks eighth nationally in field goal percentage defense (.351). The Deacons have held 16 straight opponents to less than 40 percent shooting.
- While it's very early in the season, Wake is averaging more more than 80 points per game (81.7 ppg.) for the first time since 1990-91.
- Defensively, the Deacs rank fourth nationally in scoring defense (limiting opponents to just 54.4 points per game).
- Wake's scoring margin (+27.3) ranks fourth nationally.
- With 167 assists and just 109 turnovers, the Deacons lead the ACC in assist-turnover ratio.
- Nine different Deacons are averaging at least 10 minutes per game.
- Individually, senior Josh Shoemaker leads the ACC in rebounds (10.0 rpg.) and in defensive rebounds (7.78 pg.).
- Junior Darius Songaila leads the ACC in free throw percentage (.852).
- Junior Broderick Hicks leads the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio (4.14).
- Josh Howard ranks second in the ACC and 23rd nationally in field goal percentage (.633).
Good Shooting: A Team Thing
Wake Forest's field goal percentage (.524), the best percentage in the ACC and the sixth-best field goal percentage in college basketball, is truly a team effort. Consider:
- Six of Wake's top eight scorers are shooting 50 percent or better from the floor.
- All five frontcourt players -- Josh Howard (.633), Darius Songaila (.535), Antwan Scott (.574), Josh Shoemaker (.583) and Rafael Viduarreta (.500) -- are all shooting 50 percent or better.
- Howard ranks second in the ACC in field goal percentage behind only UNC's Brendan Haywood (.648).
- Craig Dawson, who leads the team with 20 three-point field goals, ranks fourth in the ACC in three-point field goal percentage (.476).
Streak Continues: Deacons Hold 16 Straight Opponents To Less Than 40 Percent Shooting
The one constant in Wake Forest's 14-game winning streak has been defense. The Deacons have held their last 16 opponents to less than 40 percent shooting.
The last time a team shot 40 percent or better against Wake Forest came March 2, 2000 when Virginia shot 41.9 percent from the floor against the Deacs in the regular season finale.
The last time a team shot 50 percent or better versus Wake came on Feb. 22, 2000 when Duke shot 55.4 percent in Cameron Indoor Stadium (18 straight games under 50 percent).
This season, the Deacons lead the ACC and rank eighth nationally in field goal percentage defense (35.3 percent).
Wake ranks second in the ACC in steals and third in the ACC in blocked shots.
Deacons Earn Highest Ranking Since Feb. 24, 1997
Wake Forest remained at No. 6 this week in the Associated Press Poll and the Deacons gained a spot to No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
The last time Wake was ranked this high came on Feb. 24, 1997 when the Deacs were ranked fifth in the AP poll. Wake has been ranked in the AP top 25 all seven weeks this season.
The latest polls demonstrate just how difficult the Wake Forest schedule is this season. Six different Deacon opponents are ranked in the Associated Press poll: (1) Duke, (9) Kansas, (14) Virginia, (15) North Carolina, (20) Maryland and (22) Cincinnati.
Three other Deacon opponents received votes for one or both major polls this week -- Georgia Tech, Georgia and Richmond.
More Poll Stuff
The Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) saw Wake jump from No. 15 to No. 10 this week. Toledo remains ranked No. 1 in the Index. The Deacons are ranked No. 1 in the latest Sagarin computer poll.
The Last Time The Deacons Were Ranked As High As...
No. 1 -- none
No. 2 -- February 10, 1997 (2nd)
No. 3 -- February 10, 1997 (2nd)
No. 4 -- February 17, 1997 (4th)
No. 5 -- February 24, 1997 (5th)
No. 6 -- December 18, 2000 (6th)
Winning Streak Ties For Longest In The Modern Era
Dave Odom has had many good teams and numerous talented players. But until now, he's never had a team that has won 14 games in a row.
Wake's 14-game winning streak is the longest since the 1980-81 Deacon team began the season 14-0. No Wake Forest team in the modern era has won more than 14 consecutive games.
You have to go back to 1926 and 1927 to find a longer winning streak in WFU history. Wake won its final five games of the 1925-26 season and began the 1926-27 season by winning 15 straight.
Howard Sparks Defense
If you listen to his head coach, Josh Howard would lead the nation in blocking shots on the perimeter -- if the NCAA tracked such a statistic. Dave Odom is only guessing, of course, but he does help illustrate the havoc that the 6-6 Howard causes away from the basket. Howard has 13 blocked shots this season (ranking second on the team behind Antwan Scott and eighth in the ACC) and almost all of those have come near or beyond the three-point line. He's a big reason opponents are shooting just 23.7 percent from behind the arc.
Howard is tied for the team lead and tied for eighth in the ACC in steals (17) after pilfering a career-high five Monday night.
Vidaurreta Back In Action, Deacs Near Full Strength
Wake Forest senior center Rafael Vidaurreta, who underwent knee surgery in late September, saw his first action of the season Saturday night against Georgia. Vidaurreta played eight minutes, grabbed four rebounds and scored two points. He looked a little more comfortable Monday night versus Radford, scoring six points in 12 minutes of action.
As Vidaurreta's health improves, Wake Forest nears full strength for the first time this year. Ervin Murray has recovered from mononucleosis, which kept him out of practice the entire preseason.
Robert O'Kelley, Darius Songaila Near Scoring Milestones
With 19 more points, senior Robert O'Kelley will become the 11th-most prolific scorer in Wake Forest history. O'Kelley enters the Temple game with 1,619 career points and will soon pass Bob Leonard (1,637 points from 1964-66) for 11th place.
Junior Darius Songaila (974 career points) enters the Temple game needing 26 points to become the 39th player in Wake Forest history to score 1,000 career points.
Scott, Songaila Climb Blocked Shots List
Antwan Scott, who has 17 blocked shots (1.9 bspg.) this season, is climbing Wake's list of all-time shot blockers. Scott, just a junior, ranks ninth on WFU's all-time blocked shots list with 72. He needs three blocks to pass Rodney Rogers for eighth place.
Junior Darius Songaila (57 career blocks) needs just one blocked shot to tie Daryl Peterson (1975-76) for 10th place on Wake's all-time blocked shots list.
Shoemaker Leads ACC In Rebounding
When senior center Rafael Vidaurreta underwent surgery in late September, Wake Forest coach Dave Odom expected senior Josh Shoemaker to step up. Shoemaker has exceeded almost everyone's expectations. While Shoemaker's numbers may decline slightly with the return of Rafael Vidaurreta, he is currently the only player in the ACC averaging double-figure rebounds (10.0 rebounds per game). He has four double-figure rebound games this season.
Vidaurretta, Shoemaker Moving Up Rebounds List
Senior Rafael Vidaurreta, with 653 career rebounds, ranks 15th in Wake Forest career rebounding history. He needs four boards to pass Alvis Rogers for 14th place. Vidaurreta is 47 rebounds shy of becoming the 11th player in Wake Forest history to garner 700 career rebounds. Senior Josh Shoemaker (536 career rebounds) ranks 23rd in Wake Forest rebounding history. He needs eight caroms to move into 22nd place.
Senior Trio Has Combined For 310 Career Games Played
With much of his senior season remaining, only 12 players in Wake Forest history have played in more games than Robert O'Kelley (106 games played). O'Kelley ranks 13th in WFU history for games played and he should move into 11th place on Jan. 2 when the Deacs host Virginia. Josh Shoemaker is hot on O'Kelley's trail with 105 games played, tying for 14th in school history.
Rafael Vidaurreta will become the 17th player in Wake Forest history to play in 100 games Thursday at Temple.
O'Kelley One Of ACC's Most Prolific 3-Point Shooters
Two of the most prolific three-point shooters in Wake Forest history are current members of the Deacs.
Senior Robert O'Kelley ranks third in WFU history and 10th in ACC history with 246 career three-point field goals. He needs three more treys to pass Tony Rutland (248) for second place in WFU history and for ninth place in ACC history.
Junior Craig Dawson (120 three-pointers) stands alone in sixth place on Wake's all-time three-point field goals list after sinking four treys Monday night against Radford.
O'Kelley ranks second at WFU for career three-point field goal attempts (680). Only Randolph Childress (832) has more career attempts. Dawson ranks sixth for three-point attempts with 310.
Wake Likely To Redshirt Schoetz
Wake Forest coach Dave Odom would like to redshirt 7-0 freshman Dshamal Schoetz. Schoetz has been impressive, but could benefit greatly from a redshirt year, Odom said. The German native did not begin playing basketball until the age of 15.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Craig Dawson is the nephew of NBA standout Jerry Stackhouse. "Uncle Jerry" was in attendance at the Nov. 28 game against Michigan.
- Deacon assistant coach Barry Sanderson is the son of legendary and former Alabama coach, Wimp Sanderson.
- Dave Odom's sons -- Ryan (American) and Lane (Missouri) -- are both working as Division I assistant coaches.
- Through Monday, Wake Forest was one of just six teams in the nation with a record of 9-0 or better. The Deacs are one of just 16 undefeated Division I teams overall.
- Wake Forest has won 14 consecutive November games. The last time the Deacs lost in November was a 59-48 loss to Temple in 1998.
- Wake's 29 assists in the season opener against Mount St. Mary's are the most assists in a game by an ACC team this season.
- Wake Forest's Nov. 16 season opener marked the third-earliest season opener in school history.
- The Deacons have won seven straight season openers and are now 11-1 in season openers under Dave Odom following a Nov. 16 win over Mount St. Mary's. Wake is 69-28 all-time in season openers.
Deacon Point Guards Combine For 55 Assists, 14 Turnovers
Wake Forest's predominant point guards -- juniors Broderick Hicks and Ervin Murray -- have an assist-to-turnover ratio that any coach would love.
With a combined 55 assists and just 14 turnovers between them, the duo has dished out nearly four assists to go with every turnover. Hicks leads the ACC in assist/turnover ratio.
Hicks leads the Deacs with 29 assists to go with seven turnovers. Murray has 26 assists and just seven turnovers.
Hicks has started all nine games and is averaging 19.2 minutes per game. Murray, who emerged as the starter late last season, is averaging 16.7 minutes per game.
Senior Robert O'Kelley, the starter at big guard, and freshman A.W. Hamilton, also see action periodically at point guard.
Temple's Schedule: Nation's Most Difficult So Far
According to the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), Temple has played the nation's most difficult schedule this season. The Owls have played No. 1-ranked Duke twice, Indiana, Memphis, New Mexico, Miami, Delaware, Villanova, Penn State and Wisconsin.
Wake Forest's schedule is ranked 70th out of 319 Division I teams. Speaking of RPI, the ACC is ranked second behind the Big Ten and the Atlantic 10 is rated sixth.
Wake Forest Head Coach Dave Odom
Wake Forest head coach Dave Odom (Guilford '65) owns a career record of 230-121 in 12 seasons with the Deacons, 268-163 in 15 seasons overall. Odom was the head coach at East Carolina for three seasons before taking over the Deacon program in 1989-90. The three-time ACC Coach of the Year has led Wake to 10 consecutive postseason appearances. Odom has already reached a pair of milestones this season:
- On Nov. 18, Odom won his 223rd game at Wake Forest, passing Carl Tacy as the second-winningest coach in WFU history and the eighth-winningest coach in ACC history.
- Odom needs seven ACC victories this season to become just the ninth person to win 100 ACC conference games.
Deacs Will Take Time Off For The Holidays
Following Thursday night's game at Temple, Wake Forest will take four days off before regrouping on Dec. 26. The Deacons' next game will come at home on Dec. 29 versus Navy (7:00 p.m./FSNS-TV).
Quotebook
"Darius Songaila (is) one of the most underrated players in the country. I think the world saw how good he is by the way he played in Sydney."
-- Shane Battier, Duke senior forward
"Wake Forest is a terrific team. A lot of teams might be big and strong, but these guys have skill."
-- Joe Scott, Air Force head coach
"He has that smile all the time and you wonder what's so special about the guy, he's so happy. He just draws you into all that happiness. He's crazy in his own way."
-- Darius Songaila on teammate Antwan Scott