College basketball is a big deal in Philadelphia with the Temple Owls being one of the biggest programs in the City of Brotherly Love. For decades, it’s been a challenge to find cheap Temple basketball tickets. The Owls have a proud history that dates back nearly a century. Whether they are playing their fierce intra-city rivals or competing for conference championships and NCAA Tournament spots, last-minute Temple basketball tickets are in high demand every time the Owls hit the court.

Starting at the Top

Temple holds a special place in college basketball history, having won the first-ever NIT in 1938. By virtue of that NIT title, the Owls were retroactively awarded the national championship for that season. Of course, that was just the beginning of Temple basketball. By the 1950s, the Owls were one of the marquee programs in the country, reaching the Final Four in 1956 and 1958. Eventually, Temple would take home another NIT championship in 1969.

Off the Chaney

The story of Temple basketball can’t be told without mentioning Hall of Fame coach John Chaney. While he had some controversial moments during his 24 seasons at Temple, Chaney was a legend who took the Owls to either the NCAA Tournament or NIT in all but his first season at Temple. Along the way, Chaney led Temple to eight Atlantic 10 regular-season championships and took the Owls as far as the Elite Eight on five occasions, an incredible accomplishment for a mid-major program.

The Legacy Continues

When Chaney retired in 2006, Fran Dunphy took over and continued to make Temple a winning basketball program. He guided the Owls to three conference championships and eight NCAA Tournament appearances during his 13 seasons. When he retired in 2019, Dunphy left the program to Aaron McKie, who played under Chaney in the 90s and was an assistant under Dunphy for five years. The former NBA first-round pick is unquestionably the perfect person to continue Temple’s proud basketball tradition.