Boston College will look to pick up its first road win since March 2024 when it faces Temple on Saturday in Philadelphia.
The Eagles (1-2), who lost 60-59 to Central Connecticut State at home on Tuesday, are playing the Owls (2-0) for the second consecutive season. The schools met in Boston last year, with the Eagles defeating Temple, 72-69.
Boston College finished 0-10 on the road last season and 12-19 overall, missing the NCAA Tournament for the 16th consecutive year.
Cold shooting is not helping this year’s iteration get off the ground.
The Eagles shot 50% (12 for 24) from the foul line in a season-opening 83-78 overtime loss at Florida Atlantic. They shot 17.9% (5 for 28) from 3-point range in last week’s 76-47 triumph over The Citadel.
The struggles continued in Tuesday’s loss to the Blue Devils. Boston College shot 20.6% (7 for 34) from beyond the arc, with leading scorer Donald Hand Jr. (16.3 ppg) missing 11 of his 12 attempts from 3-point distance.
“We probably took four or five more than we needed to take,” head coach Earl Grant said after the game.
They will have to improve dramatically if they are to have a chance against Temple, which has won comfortably over Delaware State (83-65) last week and Big 5 rival La Salle (90-63) on Tuesday.
Arkansas State transfer Derrian Ford led the Owls with 22 points against the Explorers, followed by Aiden Tobiason with 16, Jordan Mason with 14 and Gavin Griffiths with 10.
Temple coach Adam Fisher has preached a share-the-ball mentality for his team, which posted 20 assists in the Tuesday win — the most for the team since it dished 21 against Tulsa on Feb. 19, 2023.
Five players are averaging in double figures, led by Tobiason (19.5 points per game), while Temple’s bench is averaging 19 points as well.
“That’s kind of how it’s been all summer,” Tobiason told reporters after the win over La Salle. “We want each other to score, so that’s really how we play. “
