College basketball: Temple upsets No. 3 Villanova, 75-65

PHILADELPHIA — Juan Fernandez squashed No. 3 Villanova's reign as the best team in the city one 3-pointer at a time.

His early 3s kept Temple close, his first one of the second half gave the Owls the lead, and his big ones late in the game helped clinched their biggest regular-season victory in nearly 10 years. By the time Temple fans bellowed "Overrated!" and stormed the court, Villanova's perfect record and city dominance were finished.

Fernandez hit seven 3-pointers and scored a career-high 33 points and Ryan Brooks added 20 points in Temple's 75-65 victory over the Wildcats on Sunday.

"I've been thinking about this game all week," Fernandez said. "I know Temple didn't beat Villanova for a long time. I think we needed this win. I think we need to prove ourselves."

Fernandez led a sizzling 3-point attack that stunned the Wildcats (9-1) in the second half and helped them pull away for their first win over a top-five team since beating No. 1 Cincinnati on Feb. 20, 2000. The Owls (8-2) opened the half on an 11-0 burst and grabbed a lead in front of their raucous fans they would never surrender.

The fans demanded an encore after their biggest win in coach Fran Dunphy's four seasons, stomping the court and chanting "We Want Kansas!" in preparation for the top-ranked Jayhawks' visit on Jan. 2.

"What's it going to do for us down the line, I've got no idea," Dunphy said. "We'll figure it out later on."

The Wildcats hadn't lost a city series game since Feb. 4, 2008, against Saint Joseph's. Villanova has won 21 of its last 23 Big 5 games.

"We were going to get our first loss at some time," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "This team wasn't going to go undefeated, I promise you that."

Lavoy Allen had 10 points and 17 rebounds for the Owls in their fourth straight win. The Owls beat Villanova for the first time since Dec. 4, 2004.

"We haven't beaten them in quite some time and to get it now, where they are ranked in the country and this time of year, I think is a great confidence booster and show what we're capable of in the future," Brooks said.

The Owls made the NCAA tournament the last two seasons under Dunphy and were certainly not a pushover for Villanova.

But the Wildcats have dominated the city series like few teams in the 55-year history of the Big 5. The Wildcats had cruised through the city games like a No. 1 seed handles a 16 in the tournament.