La Salle's Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi shoots as Penn's Cam Thrower (5) and Nick Spinoso defend in the Big 5 Classic third-place game on December 2, 2023. (Photo: Wells Fargo Center)
By AARON BRACY
September 25, 2024
The Big 5 Classic got another boost with Monday’s announcement that the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association is the title sponsor in a three-year deal that follows the news in June that the event will remain at the Wells Fargo Center at least through 2026. The WFC hosted the first-ever one-day, winner-take-all Big 5 tripleheader last season.
Now known as the Toyota Big 5 Classic, the second annual men’s event will be held on Saturday, December 7, 2024, with a tripleheader featuring all six Big 5 teams – Drexel, La Salle, Penn, Saint Joseph’s, Temple and Villanova. Toyota also signed on as the sponsor for the first-ever women’s event, to be held on Friday, December 6, 2024, at Villanova. Officials also announced that tickets for the event are now on sale HERE.
In light of Monday’s announcement, Big5Hoops.com kicked off a five-part series on the Big 5 on Monday that features the following:
–Monday: A look back at the inaugural Big 5 Classic last season
–Tuesday: Toyota’s Paul Muller on why the event is a good fit
–Today: Wells Fargo Center’s Mike Sulkes on expectations for this year’s event
–Thursday: A close look at the matchups this year
–Friday: Big 5 mailbag
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The inaugural Big 5 Classic delivered on the court in a big way, with three fantastic games that culminated with Saint Joseph’s getting a banner raised to the Wells Fargo Center rafters with a victory over Temple in the first-ever Big 5 championship game.
The banner was the brainchild of WFC general manager Mike Sulkes, a former collegiate ice hockey player who brought the idea to Philadelphia from Boston’s popular Beanpot, the four-team ice hockey tournament that features Harvard, Northeastern, Boston University and Boston College. Sulkes’ banner was a brilliant idea that brought just a little more cachet to the event.
As each of the city’s six Division I teams eye its name on the banner in the second edition, which will be held on Saturday, December 7 at the WFC, Sulkes and his team have been working behind the scenes on ways to raise even more interest in the event. The WFC made a three-year commitment in June to host the Big 5 Classic through at least 2026, and the event got a boost with Monday’s announcement that the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association would be the title sponsor for all three years in the newly named Toyota Big 5 Classic.
Securing a title sponsor was a big step for the Big 5.
“When he had a vision for the Big 5 Classic and what it could become, there were a lot of key factors for the success of this event,” Sulkes told Big5Hoops last week. “That included alumni, student bases, the Philadelphia sports fans, all of the great charities and nonprofits around Philadelphia. And, finally, it was important to connect with the corporate community of Philadelphia. You need that corporate support for these events to take off and have some staying power.
“To have a great partner like Toyota on a multiyear deal is an absolute great fit, and it really kind of cements the Big 5 Classic as an event that’s going to continue on for a long time. It’s a huge key for the long-term success of the event.”
The environment was spectacular. It had the classic Big 5 feel with that modern event experience. Word of mouth is going to be a huge key. We’re hoping people want to come back and experience it again.” — Wells Fargo Center general manager Mike Sulkes (pictured)
With a corporate partner secured, the focus now is to continue to build up the event. That includes increasing attendance, which was announced at 15,125 last season. Smartly, Sulkes and his team created an NCAA tournament-type atmosphere by having student sections representing each school behind the basket for each game, along with the schools’ bands and cheerleaders. Students threw streamers at the first made basket, rekindling the great tradition of Big 5 games at the Palestra from days of old.
Overall, it was a great start. This season, Sulkes hopes even more people will experience it.
“If you were here at the arena last year, you felt that it was a celebration of Philadelphia basketball, a celebration of Big 5 basketball,” he said. “It kind of had that festival tournament-type of feel. It felt closer to the NCAA vibe. The number one key is the word of mouth that people are trying to get their friends, their buddies, their families to come with them this year. I think that’s the number one thing we’re banking on. All three games were great in their own way. The environment was spectacular. It had the classic Big 5 feel with that modern event experience. Word of mouth is going to be a huge key. We’re hoping people want to come back and experience it again.”
Tickets for the event went on sale on Monday. They start as low as $30 for all three games. For fans and alumni of the specific teams, they can purchase tickets through the schools to sit in their respective six sections on the lower level. Those tickets are $100, down from $150 last season.
“There are all different ticket types no matter what type of experience you want to have,” Sulkes said. “I think we have a price point and an experience for everyone.”
And whoever comes and stays for the end will see a banner raised to the rafters. That isn’t going anywhere.
“We’ll be ready for whoever takes the crown this year,” Sulkes said.
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Coming tomorrow: A close look at the matchups for this year’s Toyota Big 5 Classic
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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.