Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell

NEWARK, Del. -- The University of Delaware men’s basketball team opens its 2009-10 regular season on Saturday when the Blue Hens welcome Temple to the Bob Carpenter Center for a 12 noon tip-off with the Owls.

The Blue Hens, led by fourth-year head coach Monté Ross, are coming off a 13-19 season in 2008-09 when Delaware finished ninth in the Colonial Athletic Association with a 6-12 league mark.

Delaware will be led by junior guard Jawan Carter, a Preseason CAA Honorable Mention honoree who ranked third on the team and sixth in the CAA by averaging 15.0 points per game last season. Carter also led the Blue Hens with 62 three-pointers made and a 77.8 free throw percentage, while he recorded eight 20-point performances on the year.

Junior guard Alphonso Dawson (at right) also returns to the UD backcourt after ranking third on the Blue Hens with both 14.1 points and 5.3 rebounds a year ago. Dawson reached double figures a team-best 25 times last season, and he scored at least 20 points in seven contests.

Junior D.J. Boney looks to move back into the starting lineup after posting 4.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 2008-09, while fellow junior guard Edwin Santiago will see significant playing time after averaging 2.3 points last year.

Redshirt sophomore Hakim McCullar, who sat out last season after transferring from the University of Rhode Island, will lead a deep and talented UD frontcourt, while sophomore Adam Pegg will see significant action after averaging 1.6 points during his rookie campaign.

Temple went 22-12 overall and 11-5 in the Atlantic 10 a season ago, and the Owls won the conference tournament before falling to Arizona State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Temple will be led by 6-9 junior forward Lavoy Allen, a Third Team All-Atlantic 10 and All-Defensive Team selection in 2008-09. Allen led the Owls and ranked third in the league with 9.0 rebounds per game, and he was second on the squad with 10.9 points per contest. The other returning starter for the Owls is 6-4 senior guard Ryan Brooks, who started all 34 games and ranked third on Temple with 10.6 points per game.

Temple is 35-6 all-time against Delaware although the teams have met just once since the 1981-82 season, a 56-49 Temple victory in the 2000 Preseason NIT at the Liacouras Center.