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Posted at 2:25 PM EST.

7:00 PM EST. The Wildcats made the big jump to #1 in the nation this week after a 10-0 start to the season. Villanova also benefited when both Duke and Kansas suffered their first defeats this season, thus allowing the Wildcats to slide up to #1. A 10-game win streak makes a great headline, but 'Nova has faced just one ranked team so far this season on its way to playing the 126th toughest schedule in America according to KenPom. The Wildcats have played the weakest schedule of any team in the top-5 with Arizona State being the next closest at 87th. Despite the relatively weak competition, the 'Cats rank just 30th in the country in both scoring offense and defense. Villanova lost its unquestioned leader last season, Josh Hart to the NBA after the senior guard averaged 18.7 points per game last season. 'Nova lost another double-digit scorer in Kris Jenkins, whose points in the low post have not been replaced so far this season, but the 'Cats continue to win anyway.

Temple is a two-man show with both Shizz Alston and Quinton Rose both averaging over 17 PPG. Alston has been dynamic from beyond the arc by shooting an impressive 53.5% this season. Head coach Fran Dunphy threw his squad to the Wolves, and the Owls have responded well by going 6-2 while playing the 14th most difficult schedule in the country. Temple is already battle-tested in this early season, but its results in the market have the Owls stock slumping. At the window, Temple has covered just one of its last five games, which helps to provide us with this great opportunity.

The Wildcats have dominated the Power 5, which is an informal grouping of the programs that play in the Philadelphia area. The last time 'Nova lost a game to one of their Philly Brothers was 2012. The Wildcats have been feasting on much weaker competition than the Owls, and it’s also worth noting that 'Nova has been doing it at home. This game is the first of a four-game trip that will see Villanova not return home until the New Year. 

Temple doesn’t need any extra motivation when playing Villanova in a Big Five basketball game, but some was provided Monday when the Wildcats moved to No. 1 in the Associated Press poll. Now Villanova will play its first game as this season’s top team and we’re pretty sure that we don’t have to remind you that you will always pay a premium to back the #1 ranked team in the country. That doesn’t mean that the #1 ranked team is an automatic fade but when the game sets up this nicely this early in the season and the underdog is being undervalued like this one is, the timing to bring down the hammer is right. Man, these are some sweet points.  

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