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The Other Top 25: Temple surges up ranking

The Owls move up eight spots to No. 12

NCAA Basketball: Memphis at Temple
Khalif Battle is averaging 17.7 points per game, which is fourth-best in the American. He scored 25 and 26 in Temple’s two games this week.
Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

Following its upset of No. 1 Houston, Temple made its first appearance in the Other Top 25 last week. This week, the Owls jumped eight spots to No. 12.

Aaron McKie’s club has won four straight games, which matches its longest win streak of the season. This week, the Owls earned a pair of overtime victories.

Temple won at UCF 77-70 Saturday. The Owls overcame an early double-digit deficit and were led by Khalif Battle’s 26 points. The win moved Temple to 5-0 on the road in the American Athletic Conference, which is the program’s best start away from home in conference play since the 1987-88 season.

Earlier in the week, the Owls defeated South Florida 79-76 at home. Battle led the way in this game as well with 25 points. He is averaging a team-high 17.7 points per contest, which is good for fourth in the AAC.

Temple is back in action Sunday when it welcomes Houston into the Liacouras Center.

The Cougars remained No. 1 in the Other Top 25 and were followed by Saint Mary’s one point behind. Florida Atlantic, Gonzaga and San Diego State rounded out the top five.

Charleston, who suffered its second loss of the season at the hands of Hofstra, dropped to No. 6. Boise State and Memphis each jumped two spots to claim Nos. 7 and 8, respectively.

New Mexico split its two games this week and placed ninth. The Lobos lost at Nevada in double overtime last Monday and bounced back with an eight-point win over Air Force Friday.

North Texas joined the top-10. The Mean Green sit in second place in Conference USA behind FAU.

Five new teams joined the ranking this week: Liberty at 17; Oral Roberts at 18; Sam Houston State at 19; Drake in a tie for 20; and Toledo in a tie at 24.

The Flames are tied atop the ASUN standings and sit at 47 in KenPom. The Golden Eagles are a prefect 10-0 in the Summit League. The Bearkats are just 1.5 games out of first in the WAC. The Bulldogs are 8-4 in a Missouri Valley Conference where the top eight teams are separated by just two games. The Rockets have won five straight and are one game out of first in the MAC.

The Other Top 25: Jan. 30, 2023

Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points Record Previous
Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points Record Previous
1 Houston (2) 74 20-2 1
2 Saint Mary's (1) 73 19-4 2
T-3 Florida Atlantic 67 21-1 6
T-3 Gonzaga 67 18-4 T-3
5 San Diego State 63 17-4 5
6 Charleston 57 21-2 T-3
7 Boise State 56 17-5 9
8 Memphis 51 17-5 10
9 New Mexico 49 19-3 7
10 North Texas 40 18-5 12
11 Kent State 37 17-4 8
12 Temple 35 14-9 20
13 Nevada 33 16-6 13
T-14 Utah State 31 17-5 11
T-14 Saint Louis 31 15-6 T-15
16 Dayton 26 14-8 14
17 Liberty 24 18-5 NR
18 Oral Roberts 23 19-4 NR
19 Sam Houston State 18 16-5 NR
T-20 Drake 16 17-6 NR
T-20 Loyola Marymount 16 16-7 T-22
T-22 VCU 12 16-6 T-22
T-22 San Francisco 12 15-9 21
T-24 Marshall 10 18-5 T-15
T-24 Toledo 10 15-6 NR

Others Receiving Votes:

UNLV 9; Siena 8; UAB 6; UCF 5; UC Santa Barbara 4; Cincinnati 3; Towson 3; Youngstown State 2; Louisiana 2; Akron 1; Furman 1

Dropped from Ranking:

UAB; UCF; UNLV; Iona; Santa Clara