Last Saturday in Atlantic City, N.J., the Temple men’s basketball team (21-12, 11-5 A-10) defeated rival Saint Joseph’s University, 69-64, to win the Atlantic 10 Championship and advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001.

Temple, the No. 12 seed in the South Region, will take on fifth-seeded Michigan State on Thursday, March 20, at 12:30 p.m. in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The game, which will be held in Denver, will be broadcast on CBS and 1210 WPHT AM.

The women’s basketball team (21-12, 12-2 A-10) also finished strong at the A-10 women’s basketball tournament, held at Saint Joseph’s University. The team made it to the March 10 championship game, but fell, 47-42, to Xavier.

With an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, 11th-seeded Temple looks ahead to their first-round game against sixth-seeded Arizona State on Sunday, March 23, at 9:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.

President Ann Weaver Hart encourages everyone to wear Temple colors on Thursday, March 20, and Sunday, March 23. In addition, the university will provide an opportunity for the Temple family to watch the men’s and women’s basketball games together. Light refreshments will be provided.

Men’s game: March 20, 12:30 p.m. The Great Court in Mitten Hall, and the Howard Gittis Student Center, room 200.

Women’s game: March 23, 9:30 p.m. Howard Gittis Student Center, room 200.

Temple Athletics will also be hosting a men’s basketball viewing party on March 20, located at The Field House, 1150 Filbert St., Philadelphia.

This story originally appeared at www.owlsports.com.

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