Coach Leibo heads back to the nest

Over the last two seasons, Penn and Temple basketball have formed ties that run even deeper than Big 5 rivalry.

Last season, the coaching matchup between current Temple and former Penn coach Fran Dunphy and his former player, current Penn coach Jerome Allen garnered most of the attention. This season, though, the path of Dan Leibovitz may be just as interesting.

Leibovitz — a first-year assistant coach under long-time friend and former classmate Allen — makes his return tonight to the place where he spent 10 successful years as the top assistant to Hall of Fame coach John Chaney. However, while he may be familiar with the school and the program, Leibovitz will enter the Liacouras Center as an opponent for the first time.

“I’m excited about it, but I think it’s going to be very strange,” Leibovitz said. “It’s going to be a different feeling and will bring back a lot of memories.”

Those memories are likely to be fond ones.

During his tenure with the Owls (12-4) from 1996-2006, Leibovitz played an integral role in leading the team to several successful seasons, including two Atlantic-10 conference championships and five NCAA Tournament appearances.

He was largely responsible for recruiting some of Temple’s best players including former NBA player Mardy Collins, who signed with a Turkish team Sunday. He was also named Best Assistant in the A-10 for the 2005-2006 season.

Fortunately for Penn (5-7), the Leibovitz effect may already be taking place.

“Even though he is Dan Leibovitz, I feel like we have a touch of coach Chaney on our staff,” Allen said. “I don’t think we have enough time to talk about the things he brought [from] coach Chaney, but it’s all been positive.”

The Quakers can only hope having Leibovitz on their side tonight will provide the X-factor in a game that heavily favors the Owls.

Penn enters tonight’s game with a three-game losing streak and has lost seven of its last eight meetings with Temple.

The Owls, on the other hand, are a perfect 7-0 at home this season, winning by an average margin of 15.6 points.

However, the undeterred Quakers believe they have what it takes to help change the head-to-head record — currently at 43-22 all time in favor of Temple — as long as they stay consistent.

“I think we’ve shown flashes of what we could be,” Leibovitz said. “You might not ever put together 40 minutes, but we have to be consistent for close to 40 minutes.”

Putting on a complete performance will involve ignoring the potential distractions.

In a game with several notable storylines, the Penn coaches’ concerns that the players may become sidetracked are valid. Allen wants to make sure that it does not become an issue.

“We’re just going to try to remove ourselves and our stories from the equation and make it about the guys we currently have,” Allen said.

While Leibovitz wasn’t as quick to downplay the personal significance of returning to his old stomping grounds — where he also received a master’s in Sport Management and Leisure Studies — he asserted that the team’s goals and mindset have not changed.

“I’ve spent a lot of time there, so it has a special place in my heart,” Leibovitz said. “But we want to win every game for the same reasons, so it’s not really about me.

“When it starts up, it’ll be like any other game.”

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.