By THOMAS ST. MYER
tstymer@muncie.gannett.com

(Published Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009) PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Good news for Ball State: Its next opponent shudders at the mere thought of playing zone defense.

SIU-Edwardsville played a 2-3 zone Saturday and held the inside-oriented Cardinals to 33-percent shooting.

Bad news for Ball State: Its next opponent plays smothering man-to-man defense.

The Cardinals play their first road game of the season today, 600 miles away from the friendly confines of Worthen Arena. Ball State (2-0) faces Temple (2-1), an opponent as rugged as its home, Philadelphia.

“We make our money off man-to-man,” Temple coach Fran Dunphy said. “We have (zone), but it’s not something we’re great at, so we don’t think a lot about it. We’ll see how it goes, but it’s not something we do.”

The Owls held Delaware to 56 points on 33-percent shooting in their opener. Temple followed with a masterful defensive performance a week ago against Georgetown. The No. 19 Hoyas committed 16 turnovers and shot 35 percent from the field en route to only 46 points. The 46 proved to be enough, however, as Temple scored 45.

Temple faces the unenviable task of replacing shooting guard Dionte Christmas and his 19.5 points per game.

“Hopefully we can hang our hat on the defensive end, and then we’ll see what we can do on the offensive end,” Dunphy said. “As a coach, you say, this year we don’t have him and that’s the way it is. We have to see if we can make it up in a lot of different ways. We’ve been spreading the scoring around, and that’s what has to happen for us.”

Two guards top the Owls in scoring through the first three games. Senior Ryan Brooks averages 15.3 points per game, though on only 37-percent shooting. Sophomore Juan Fernandez follows at 13 points per contest. Two other Temple guards average 20-plus minutes a game in Luis Guzman and Ramone Moore.

On the surface, this game comes down to a showdown between the Ball State frontcourt and Temple backcourt. But 6-foot-9 junior forward Lavoy Allen (9.7 points and 12.0 rebounds) provides the Owls another player for the Cardinals to be concerned about.

“It’s certainly going to be a challenge for us to guard them, but you can’t disrespect their frontcourt either,” Ball State coach Billy Taylor said. “We’ll have our work cut out for us.”

For the Cardinals, a road test against this caliber of an opponent serves as an excellent barometer on where they stand early in the season. Ball State won only three of its 13 true road games last season.

“We just want to go out there and get that experience in,” sophomore forward Jarrod Jones said. “They’re a great team, so we should be ready to compete when we step on the floor.”