No. 15 Nova looks to extend streak vs Temple

No. 15 Villanova (18-6) vs. Temple (13-11)

Liacouras Center, Philadelphia; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: No. 15 Villanova looks for its seventh straight win in the head-to-head series over Temple. Villanova has won by an average of 18 points in its last six wins over the Owls. Temple’s last win in the series came on Dec. 5, 2012, a 76-61 win.

LEADING THE CHARGE: The dynamic Quinton Rose has put up 16.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and two steals to lead the way for the Owls. Complementing Rose is Nate Pierre-Louis, who is putting up 11.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game. The Wildcats have been led by Collin Gillespie, who is averaging 15.6 points and 4.6 assists.

KEY FACILITATOR: Gillespie has directly created 46 percent of all Villanova field goals over the last three games. The junior guard has 19 field goals and 14 assists in those games.

SCORING THRESHOLDS: Temple is 8-0 when it limits opposing offenses to 62 or fewer points, and 5-11 when opponents exceed 62 points. Villanova is 13-0 when holding opponents to 69 points or fewer, and 5-6 on the year when teams score any more than 69.

ASSIST-TO-FG RATIO: The Owls have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Wildcats. Temple has 52 assists on 81 field goals (64.2 percent) over its previous three outings while Villanova has assists on 37 of 72 field goals (51.4 percent) during its past three games.

DID YOU KNOW: Temple is rated second in the AAC with an average of 71.4 possessions per game. The uptempo Owls have raised that total to 73.6 possessions per game over their last three games.