St. Joe’s win over Penn draws a lively crowd, offers reminder of what makes Big 5 hoops special

Midway through the second half, St. Joseph’s freshman guard BJ Ranson drilled two consecutive three-pointers. The first came from the Hawks’ logo at center court and sent the St. Joe’s faithful into a frenzy. The second, a catch-and-shoot from the corner, forced a Penn timeout as Hagan Arena raised a few more decibels.

“That building got so loud tonight,” said Hawks coach Steve Donahue. “As loud as I can ever remember in my career.”

On Saturday, St. Joe’s defeated Penn, 83-77, in front of a near sold-out crowd. The Hawks (4-0, 1-0 Big 5) were led by junior guard Khaafiq Myers, who scored a career-high 30 points. Meanwhile, Penn (1-3, 0-1 Big 5) senior sharpshooter Michael Zanoni willed the Quakers in the absence of two starters. He logged 36 points — another career-high.

Following the game, Donahue made his way over to the St. Joe’s student section — which has become a mini tradition for Donahue in his second year at Hawk Hill. The former Quakers coach banged the student sections’ drum and thanked them for spending their Saturday night at Hagan.

“First of all, all the teams are really good, and when you play City Series rivalry, you know what it’s going to be like,” Penn coach Fran McCaffery said. “Lead changes, intensity, crowd, stuff like that. So it’s not like I didn’t expect what happened tonight in terms of atmosphere. That’s what makes it special.”

The crowd’s intensity was not lost on Myers, either. The 5-foot-10 guard saw similarities between Saturday’s atmosphere and what he experienced while playing at Neumann Goretti.

“It’s super special, man,” Meyers said. “It reminds me of the Catholic League. ... It’s always going to be a dog fight when you’re playing the Philly team, and it just means something.”

Penn will host Division III opponent DeSales at the Palestra on Monday (7 p.m., ESPN+). Meanwhile, St Joe’s is slated to face Wagner at home on Tuesday (7 p.m., ESPN+).

During truTV’s broadcast of Villanova’s 80-59 win over La Salle on Nov. 10, former Wildcats coach Jay Wright was asked about Villanova’s impending exit from the Big 5. Wright described the departure and its ensuing aftermath as a “family quarrel.”

That might be a pretty fitting description, given the amount of back-and-forth between the school’s coaches.

On Oct 22, following the initial announcement that the other Big 5 schools would move on without Villanova, Wildcats Kevin Willard described the move as “not a Villanova decision.” Willard blamed Temple athletic director Arthur Johnson, who he said blocked the Wildcats’ proposed format.

» READ MORE: Kevin Willard says Villanova ‘didn’t opt out’ of Big 5, calls current format ‘stupid,’ blames Temple AD for fracture

One of the formats under consideration would have seen the two teams with the highest NET ranking from the previous season receive a bye and a home game before the Big 5 Classic. Villanova is consistently ranked higher in the NET compared to the other Philadelphia programs.

Sources indicated to The Inquirer that Temple was not the only program against the proposed format. Following Saturday’s game at Hawk Hill, McCaffery lamented Villanova’s proposal.

“I’m a very practical guy,” McCaffery said. “They don’t want to be in the Big 5. Then don’t be the Big 5. … But I will say the proposal was not a proposal. When a proposal is unanimously declined four seconds after it’s presented, it’s not a proposal. So I don’t have any animosity toward [Villanova]. I consider Kevin [Willard] a good friend. He’s a good man. He’s a very good coach. Been coaching against him for years. A lot of respect for Villanova. And they made a decision to do what’s right for their program, and I respect that. I’m not hating on anybody.

“The proposal was not anything that anybody would have ever ever considered seriously. And they should have known that before they proposed it.”

» READ MORE: Big 5 men’s basketball schools to move forward with round-robin format without Villanova in 2027-28

During his availability, Donahue noted he was not “privy to any conversations” but expressed disappointment about Villanova’s exit.

“There’s so many changes in college,” Donahue said. “I get it. I just hope that we can somehow figure out ways back to this again in this environment. That all six of us can make it happen again because tonight was special.”

Penn was without two starters on Saturday. Senior point guard AJ Levine and junior wing Sir Mohammed. Levine was seen wearing a walking boot on his right leg. Additionally, sophomore wing Dorian Glogovac and freshman guard Chase Geremia did not dress.

McCaffery declined to offer specifics about the players’ availability moving forward.

“I really don’t [have an update],” McCaffery said. “It’s not going to be imminent — I’ll put it that way.”

For the Hawks, junior wing Jaiden Glover-Toscano got the start after playing just 13 minutes in the team’s previous matchup against South Florida. Glover-Toscano, who is dealing with a lingering hand injury, logged eight points (went 3-for-18), eight rebounds, and three assists.

“The hands definitely bothering him,” Donahue said. “There’s no doubt he’s not 100%, and he wasn’t 100% last year. This is ongoing with him.”