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By AARON BRACY aaron@big5hoops.com December 11, 2024 VILLANOVA, Pa. – Wooga Poplar smiled broadly at the question, even chuckling a little. The reporter’s query was about playing at the Wells Fargo Center and his first-half dunk in Villanova’s victory in the third-place game of the Big 5 Classic on Saturday. But the expression, likely, could’ve been a reaction to … [Read more...] about Wooga Poplar beginning to find his comfort zone at Villanova

By AARON BRACY aaron@big5hoops.com December 10, 2024 There were two big questions after Saint Joseph’s dropped a 78-75 defeat to Charleston at Hagan Arena on Tuesday night: 1) How did the Hawks give up an 11-point lead at home with 11 minutes, 35 seconds remaining? 2) What is going on with Erik Reynolds II? Before addressing them, however, let’s point out high … [Read more...] about Home loss to Charleston raises two big questions for Saint Joseph’s

By AARON BRACY aaron@big5hoops.com December 9, 2024 John Giannini was stunned when he received the phone call from La Salle athletic director Ash Puri to share the news of the former Explorers coach’s induction into the Big 5 Hall of Fame. “I didn’t think that was even a possibility,” Giannini, who won 212 games in 14 seasons at La Salle, said Monday on the Bracy … [Read more...] about Former La Salle coach John Giannini on his induction into the Big 5 Hall of Fame, the Explorers’ Sweet 16 run, and how the Big 5 Classic can be even better

By AARON BRACY aaron@big5hoops.com 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, … [Read more...] about Big 5 Weekly Roundup, December 2–8: Villanova’s Eric Dixon is the top star after dominating performances in two wins

By AARON BRACY aaron@big5hoops.com December 8, 2024 PHILADELPHIA --Just a few minutes after 2 o’clock, the referee threw the ball into the air, starting a frenzy of Philadelphia basketball that ended some 7 1/2 hours later but much too soon. Let’s get something out of the way right off the bat: None of the three Big 5 Classic games on Saturday at the Wells Fargo … [Read more...] about Bracy Column: Experiences and memories made up for the games in the second Big 5 Classic