By: Josh Abrams 

(Photos: Mike Nance )

Philadelphia, PA – Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center was one to remember for anybody who affiliates themselves with the six Philadelphia universities that make up the new Big-5. The arena that hosts our hometown 76ers served as the place to be if you were looking for non-stop college basketball.

And it’s safe to say; the event did its part living up to the perceived hype, and some more.

A tripleheader spanning from the middle of the afternoon to the end of the night, the first two games were nail-biters that came down to the final possession. Drexel’s stifling defense stuffed Villanova for an upset of the ages, while La Salle’s Khalil Brantley hit a half-court buzzer-beating three pointer to take down Penn in overtime. The third and final contest of the day saw St. Joe’s defeat Temple, giving the Hawks the ultimate bragging rights and a coveted Big-5 Classic title.

There was an awful lot of action that took place in all three games; let’s check out how it all unfolded!

Starting off the day in South Philadelphia were the Villanova Wildcats and Drexel Dragons, who played for fifth place in the newly renovated Big-5 grouping.

The win was just the Dragon’s second against the Wildcats, and with ‘Nova ranked 18th in the nation via AP polls, Drexel knocked off their first nationally-ranked team since 2010, when they beat a Rick Pitino-led Louisville squad.

Williams led the way for Drexel on both sides with 12 points, six rebounds and five rejections, while Moore chipped in with seven points, six rebounds and five assists. The former gets the game ball for his timely offense and especially superb defensive play at the end of the game, and along with his teammates, embraced the underdog mentality.

“It’s great,” said the senior from Nottingham, UK on knocking off Villanova and being a huge reason why. “Our whole team believed in each other, to give me the ball in that position, and just knowing that I got their back on defense. So everyone believing in each other, having faith, that’s what kind of led us to this point.”

Drexel led wire-to-wire but Villanova constantly kept the game at arms’ reach. Normally, in years past at least, this situation would be flipped (sometimes on its side), as the Wildcats have been known to beat up on Big-5 opponents in recent seasons. But Villanova HC Kyle Neptune knew better than to overlook an opponent who was searching to put themselves on the map in the Big-5.

“They (Drexel) made some really tough shots early,” said the second-year head coach. “Made some timely shots late, really executed that stuff down the stretch, a lot of credit goes out to them. I thought they did a great job keeping us off-balance (offensively). I thought we got some good looks… just couldn’t get stops down the stretch.”

Abington native Eric Dixon led all scorers in the game with 21 points, while Jordan Longino added 13 points for the Wildcats. They head to Kansas State on Tuesday for their next matchup. Drexel’s next opponent is no slouch either; they trek over to Princeton on Tuesday to take on a Tigers team currently receiving top-35 recognition from the likes of the AP.

The second game of the afternoon told the first game to hold its beverage. What could possibly top a smothering, game-sealing block that gave David the win over Goliath?

Ask La Salle’s Khalil Brantley, whose answer is a buzzer-beating half-court heave that banked off the glass and down the net, preserving a nail-biting 93-92 overtime win over Penn after Clark Slajchert’s running layup with four seconds left gave the Quakers a two-point lead.

The junior guard shared what went through his mind in the waning seconds of overtime when La Salle initially went back down by two points.

“I can’t even put into words,” remarked the Bronx native. “My mind kind of went… (back to) the whole Temple thing. I feel like I let my team down in that game, missing two free throws at the end of second overtime to give us the two point lead… after (Slajchert) makes that layup I’m like I gotta do it for these guys, figure something out, get the ball in the basket and win it for my team.”

Brantley led all Explorers in scoring with 26 points, while fellow junior guard Daeshon Shepherd poured in a splendid 19 point performance. In total, six La Salle players reached double-digit scoring in this one, a quality that helps support head coach Fran Dunphy’s claim that his team has “arrived.”

“There’s points in the year (where) you don’t question how much heart and determination that your teams have,” said the Big-5 encyclopedia himself. “But then you arrive; there’s a moment that (you realize) ‘it’s going to be okay.’ That’s where I think I am and I’m hoping they do too.”

It can be rather difficult to think that when you have an absolute whirlwind of a week like the one Dunphy and his Explorers just experienced. They played 55 minutes of basketball on the road at Temple on Wednesday, then had to regroup within the next three days to get ready for Penn. After playing the entire game in the excruciating defeat to the Owls, Brantley recorded 37 minutes versus the Quakers. Backcourt teammate Jhamir Brickus played all but two minutes against Temple and stayed in the entire game against Penn.

For the second game in a row, La Salle found themselves trailing by three possessions as the under-four-minute media timeout approached in the second half. But a dunk from Shepherd and three pointer from freshman Tunde Vahlberg-Fasasi quickly cut Penn’s lead down to three, helping set up a finish no one would forget.

Even though his team came up on the short end of the stick, Penn head coach Steve Donahue understands anyone who laid eyes on the game was fortunate enough to see one that truly represents the Big-5 and its chaotic but also legendary reputation.

“I thought both teams just played in spirit of what the Big-5 is all about,” Donahue said. “I think the kids, our guys in particular, gave it their all. When you lose a game like that, it’s pretty hard to handle but it is what it is.”

The coaching matchup of Donahue and Dunphy brought together the two coaches who have been around the Big-5 longer than any of the other coaches on Saturday. The former expressed his thoughts on the logistics of it coming into the inaugural event.

“I’ve always been a big proponent of improving what the Big-5 had become,” said Donahue, “I’ve been watching as a fan since I was in sixth grade, 1973, and so I loved it, but the world has changed, college athletics has changed. I thought it was important that we made this kind of move. I think it’s brought a really good spotlight on something that’s really special to our city… I hope we continue to figure out ways to make it better.”

Dunphy even took it a step further and had his team bond in a way where most other schools don’t even get this opportunity.

“And these guys (the players) look at me like ‘you’re out of your mind’, and, pretty much, they’re correct. But I think it’s important to do those kinds of things. I want Philadelphia to be great; every time we talk about it I want it to be great.”

The championship game to cap off the day featured two seas of dark red packing both sides of the WFC, with St. Joe’s pulling away late in the second half and taking down Temple by a final score of 74-65.

Camden native Rasheer Fleming led the way for the victorious Hawks, scoring a career-high 22 points on 8-11 FG shooting. He also grabbed nine rebounds and was a menace on the defensive end, blocking four shots. Roman Catholic alum Lynn Greer III added 14 points and six rebounds, while fellow guard Erik Reynolds II chipped in with 11 points and five assists.

Being from a town that sits just 15 minutes southeast of Philly, Fleming is no stranger to how significant the day was to the city. After all, the 6'9" sophomore forward leads a pack of ten Hawks who call Philadelphia or one of its many surrounding suburbs home. 

"Yeah, for sure," said Fleming when asked if it meant anything to him being from the area and winning the inaugural Big-5 Classic. "My whole family are diehard Sixers fans, so it was a good feeling to win this." 

St. Joe's head coach Billy Lange, who calls Haddon Heights, NJ home and has been in and around the Philly area as a coach for the last decade, was extremely grateful to be a part of the event. He made sure to give much-deserved praise to those, both in front and behind the scenes, who successfully organized such a large, amazing gathering. 

"Great event, credit to the people that put the event on," the fifth- year head coach said. "Just a tremendous idea, conception of it, and to bring it to life here in Philadelphia in this building, everybody deserves credit that put it together." 

You certainly do not have to educate somebody like Greer on the significant and rich history that belongs to the Big-5; his dad played at Temple and is a Philly guy through and through. The younger Greer displayed a sense of relief when inquired about his feelings of his team being declared champions of the new Big-5. 

"It feels great," Lynn said. "It was a really good test for me and my teammates to just go out there, and be the best Hawks we could be. And that's what we did tonight." 

Despite St. Joe's getting out to fast starts in both halves, Temple hung tough and refused to go down without a fight. The Owls were led offensively by the efficient shooting of junior guard Jordan Riley (20 points on 6-10 shooting) and freshman guard Zion Stanford (19 on 7-11). The latter, a local product himself from West Catholic, had a career night as the scoring total was his personal best, and his nine rebounds also matched a career high. 

Said Stanford on what has been key for him and his success so far in his young career: "I feel like just trusting in myself... having my coaches give me confidence to do the things that I do. My teammates look for me, and they feel confident in my play... going in working every day and just believing that you can play on a big stage." 

Temple  head coach Adam Fisher and his squad might have come up short of a Big-5 title, but the Owls leader was enthusiastic to take part in the new format regardless of the responses that came from the new look. 

"When you change something, you get a lot of feedback, whether it's positive, negative, whatever it is there's going to be feedback," Fisher said. "There's so many people that had to do so many things to put this on, and I thought it was really special. I thought it was a great experience today for our student athletes." 

The first game between Drexel & Villanova tipped off a little after 2 PM, and the final buzzer of Temple and St. Joe's sounded just before 10 PM. The official results and standings of the Big-5 in 2023 can be found below!

1. St. Joe's (3-0)

2. Temple (2-1) 

3. La Salle (2-1)

4. Penn (1-2)

5. Drexel (1-2)

6. Villanova (0-3)