Drexel and Penn tip off in the opening game of the Big 5 Classic on Saturday, December 7. (Photo: Aaron Bracy)
By AARON BRACY
December 9, 2024
It was another exciting week of basketball in the Big 5, with some outstanding performances both individually and as a team. There also were some disappointments and setbacks, as we detail below. Let’s take a look back at the games played between December 2–8.
5 Big 5 Stars from Last Week
1) Eric Dixon, Villanova: The fifth-year forward continued his domination of college basketball, averaging 27.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in wins over Cincinnati and Temple last week.
2) Xzayvier Brown, Saint Joseph’s: Brown recovered from an uncharacteristically poor performance at home against Princeton on Tuesday with a strong floor game in the Hawks’ win over La Salle in the Big 5 Championship, getting 21 points, six assists, and being voted by the media as the second winner of the Jack Scheuer VGH (Very Good Hoops) Award.
3) Cole Hargrove, Drexel: Hargrove has been a force down low this season, with four double-doubles. After getting 12 points and seven rebounds in Monday’s 78-73 home loss to Bryant, Hargrove battered Penn for 17 points and 13 rebounds in a 60-47 victory over the Quakers in the fifth-place game of the Big 5 Classic on Saturday.
4) Rasheer Fleming, Saint Joseph’s: Fleming has been the most consistent player for the Hawks and had a typically strong week, averaging 17 points and 8.5 rebounds while splitting at Princeton and against La Salle.
5) Wooga Poplar, Villanova: Poplar had an excellent week, both in scoring and in areas that don’t show up on the box score. He contributed 15 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in wins over Cincinnati and Princeton.
5 Big Takeaways from Last Week
1) Saint Joseph’s won the Big 5 title, but Villanova is the hottest team in the city right now. The Wildcats got back to playing stingy defense in Tuesday’s 68-60 upset victory over previously undefeated and No. 14 Cincinnati at the Pavilion. They followed that up with a dominating 94-65 victory over Temple in the third-place game of the Big 5 Classic.
2) Credit to the Hawks for their first back-to-back city championship since 2003–04 after Saturday’s banner-raising 82-68 win over La Salle. The game was set up to be a really good matchup before the Explorers’ Jahlil White (unknown reasons) was suspended for the game and big man Demetrius Lilley played just 16 minutes after hurting his wrist. It was a good-enough performance from the Hawks, though not overly impressive.
3) Temple really needs Lynn Greer III to run the offense. The Owls looked disjointed and out of sync against Villanova and will really benefit from Greer’s talent and experience when he returns from his suspension on December 15 against Hofstra.
4) Watch out for Drexel. The Dragons were cast aside by Coastal Athletic Association voters, who picked them 11th of 14 teams in the preseason poll, but this Zach Spiker-coached squad looks like it’s going to be a problem for league foes. Cole Hargrove has been a force down low, averaging 12.1 points and 9.0 rebounds that has included four double-doubles.
5) Penn still can be OK. The Quakers have looked really bad, and that’s being nice, thus far. They were dreadful in the fifth-place game against Drexel on Saturday, scoring just 17 points after halftime when they missed all nine of their three-point tries. But Penn has talent, led by transfer Ethan Roberts, who has played well, and still has plenty of time to get things together before Ivy League play begins. It says here that the Quakers, who were picked seventh of eight teams in the Ivy, will be among the top four who qualify for Ivy Madness.
Last Week’s Story Links
-12/4/24: Former Saint Joseph’s standout Amy Facer among this year’s inductees into the Big 5 Hall of Fame
-12/6/24: Temple’s Tiarra East voted inaugural Mel Greenberg MVP after leading Owls to Big 5 Classic title
-12/8/24: Bracy Column: Experiences and memories made up for the games in the second Big 5 Classic
Big 5 Pod Schedule/Results
Pod 1
11/12: St. Joe’s 83, Villanova 76
11/15: St. Joe’s 83, Penn 69
11/19: Villanova 93, Penn 49
Pod 2
11/12: Temple 69, Drexel 61
11/16: La Salle 71, Drexel 68
11/30: La Salle 83, Temple 75
Big 5 Classic Tripleheader
12/7: Wells Fargo Center
Big Five Classic, Wells Fargo Center
Fifth-place game: Drexel 60, Penn 47
Third-place game: Villanova 94, Temple 65
Championship game: Saint Joseph’s 82, La Salle 68
Big 5 Records
(Through 12/7/24)
Saint Joseph’s 6-3
Drexel 6-4
La Salle 6-4
Villanova 6-4
Temple 4-4
Penn 3-6
Big 5 Scoring Leaders
(Through 12/7/24)
1. Eric Dixon, Villanova, 25.7
2. Jamal Mashburn Jr., Temple, 21.9
3. Corey McKeithan, La Salle, 18.8
4. Ethan Roberts, Penn, 17.2
5. Xzayvier Brown, Saint Joseph’s, 15.9
6. Kobe MaGee, Drexel, 15.8
7. Erik Reynolds II, Saint Joseph’s, 15.4
8. Rasheer Fleming, Saint Joseph’s, 14.2
9. Yame Butler, Drexel, 13.8
10. Wooga Poplar, Villanova, 13.0
Big 5 Rebounding Leaders
(Through 12/7/24)
T1. Rasheer Fleming, Saint Joseph’s, 9.0
T1. Cole Hargrove, Drexel, 9.0
3. Demetrius Lilley, La Salle, 7.7
4. Nick Spinoso, Penn, 7.1
5. Wooga Poplar, Villanova, 6.7
T6. Eric Dixon, Villanova, 6.6
T6. Jahlil White, La Salle, 6.6
8. Steve Settle III, 6.5
9. Quante Berry, Temple, 6.0
10. Babatunde Durodola, Temple, 5.8
Last Week’s Results
Monday, Dec. 2
Bryant 78, Drexel 73
Tuesday, Dec. 3
Villanova 68, Cincinnati 60
Princeton 77, Saint Joseph’s 69
Northeastern 82, La Salle 68
Saturday, Dec. 7
Big Five Classic, Wells Fargo Center
Fifth-place game: Drexel 60, Penn 47
Third-place game: Villanova 94, Temple 65
Championship game: Saint Joseph’s 82, La Salle 68
This Week’s Schedule
Monday, Dec. 9
Penn at VCU, 7 pm
Tuesday, Dec. 10
Charleston at Saint Joseph’s, 7 pm
Holy Family at Temple, 7 pm
Wednesday, Dec. 11
FDU at Villanova, 7 pm, FS1
Saturday, Dec. 14
La Salle at North Carolina, 4 pm, CW
Drexel at Albany, 7 pm
Sunday, Dec. 15
Temple at Hofstra, Noon
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Aaron Bracy has been covering Philadelphia sports since 1996. His byline regularly appears on Associated Press stories. Follow Bracy on X: @Aaron_Bracy and like his Facebook and Instagram pages. His book on the 2003-04 Saint Joseph’s men’s basketball team is expected to be published on March 1, 2025. Read a summary and preorder it by clicking HERE. Contact him at aaron@big5hoops.com.