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The Puerto Rico Tip-Off tends to be one of the marquee opening tournaments of the college basketball season, and the 2015 version does not disappoint. The tournament begins on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. ET on ESPNU with the Temple Owls facing the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Both Minnesota and Temple have been picked to finish in the bottom half of their conferences, but they stand a chance at going to a postseason tournament thanks to the difficulty of the Big 10 and the American Athletic Conference, respectively. An early-season win on a neutral court would likely put an end to one of these teams’ March Madness hopes and push the other towards the NCAA tournament bubble.
Minnesota has opened the season with two wins as expected, despite a shaky victory over the University of Louisiana-Monroe. The Golden Gophers are in the midst of a transition season, and any wins over talented teams like Temple could be massive in terms of the future of the program and recruiting.
Temple, on the other hand, opened the season with a great game against the No. 1 team in the country, the North Carolina Tar Heels. Sure, the Owls lost 91-67, but Temple hung with UNC for the majority of the game, something that should be applauded for a team searching for their identity.
This game could easily go either way, but I would give Temple the upper hand, at least on paper. The Owls looked far more impressive in their loss to UNC than Minnesota did in either of their victories, and on a neutral court with more rest, I’m giving this game to Temple.
Prediction: Temple 72, Minnesota 67
Taylor Sturm is a Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS, like him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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