There's a chance they could be Temple's opening opponent in the NCAA's Midwest Regional on Friday, if they get past Pac-12 runner-up Cal (24-9) in tonight's first-round game in Dayton, Ohio.
So what would Wright's scouting report look like?
"Well, they're so long and strong, so solid on defense, and they pack it in, use their length," he said. "The best way to have success against them is to be able to move them and then be able to beat them off the dribble, which I think Temple can do. This year, we just didn't have the ability to do that. That's why we struggled with them. In the past, we could.
"They just switch and keep everybody in front of them. But when you get them moving and make them guard the dribble, they can be vulnerable. I think Temple is a difficult matchup for them.
"Usually when you play them it comes down to can you score. I think Temple's guards are going to score. If you look at [USF's] scores, they're always in the 50s. Somebody who can get into the 60s on them can beat them. Temple's guards have size. [USF] gives other guards space. If you have smaller guards, that can give you trouble. But I think the size of Temple's guards makes that difficult."
So you kind of get an idea who Wright is moving along on his bracket sheet.
But the Bulls obviously know what works for them. And they're not going to change now.
"[It's a] team style of play," USF senior guard Ron Anderson Jr. told reporters yesterday in Dayton. "We pride ourselves on defense a lot. I think that's been the foundation . . . [It's a] brand of basketball. I mean, history kind of shows that different teams have succeeded different ways. And this is certainly not the first time you've seen a defensive team go out and be successful.
"A lot of times nowadays people are more interested in the flashiness of a game or how high somebody's jumping or how many blocked shots you can get. But when it's all said and done, it all boils down to fundamentals. That's where you start. And for us, it's really helped. If it's going good, we want to stick to it. A win is a win. We're excited to be here and we're excited that our defense has helped get us here."
Sort of sounds like a former Temple coach.
Contact Mike Kern at kernm@phillynews.com
