Big 5 awards: Steve Donahue and Denise Dillon earn Coach of the Year, among other honors

The Big 5 honored St. Joseph’s Steve Donahue and Villanova’s Denise Dillon with its Coach of the Year awards on Monday after voting by coaches and media members.

Under Dillion, the Wildcats finished 25-8 and were the only Big 5 women’s team to advance to the NCAA Tournament. The appearance marked Villanova’s 14th time in the tournament and broke a two-year drought. The Wildcats fell to Texas Tech, 57-52, in the first round.

Donahue and the Hawks defied expectations this season, finishing third in the Atlantic 10 and 24-12 overall. After a subpar start, St. Joe’s won 13 of its final 16 games in the regular season. The Hawks made it to the semifinals of the conference tournament before being eliminated by Virginia Commonwealth. They accepted a bid to the NIT, where they picked up their first win in the tournament in 20 years.

The Big 5 awards for the Hawks did not stop there. Senior guard Derek Simpson was named men’s Player of the Year. Simpson averaged 13.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.2 assists this season. He was one of seven players in the country to average 13-5-5. Simpson has exhausted his eligibility.

The women’s Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year also came from the Main Line.

Villanova sophomore guard Jasmine Bascoe is Player of the Year after averaging 18.9 points, 4.8 assists, and 4.0 rebounds. The Ontario native scored a season-high 31 points against Big East rival Providence on March 7. She will be returning to the Wildcats next season.

Freshman Kennedy Henry also will be running it back with Villanova after opting not to enter the transfer portal. She averaged 9 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists to earn Rookie of the Year.

Villanova’s Acaden Lewis, a freshman guard who has transferred to Miami, was named the Big 5 men’s Rookie of the Year. He averaged 12.2 points, 5.3 assists, and 1.9 steals. He also set the Wildcats’ freshman program records for assists with 176 and steals with 63.

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Temple sophomore guard Aiden Tobiason, who is heading to Syracuse with two years of eligibility left, was named Most Improved Player. After averaging 4.8 points in his freshman season, Tobiason logged 15.3 points per game this season.

On the women’s side, Gabby Casey of St. Joe’s earned Most Improved Player. The junior guard averaged 15.7 points, an uptick from her 7.7 points as a sophomore.

The Big 5 also released its men’s and women’s first and second teams:

First team men

Second team men

First team women

Second team women