5-2 St. Joe's playing much better than last season

We're months away from knowing the best college basketball team in the city. But know this much: St. Joseph's is playing the best basketball in the city right now.

The Fieldhouse was a happening place again Wednesday night for the Drexel game, and the Hawks student section was full, and fully into it, watching St. Joe's put on a deluxe dunking and shot-blocking show with underpinnings of solid fundamental basketball at both ends. A ton of highlights for a 62-49 final score.

All this counts as a most interesting development, since Phil Martelli started four sophomores and a junior and saw no slippage when he gave a sophomore and a freshman the most minutes off his bench.

Ronald Roberts has to be as good as any sixth man in the city, sharing the frontcourt rotation with shot-blocking machine C.J. Aiken and high-motor Halil Kanacevic.

It's too early to know what this still-young St. Joe's team can do. It's not too early to realize the Hawks, now 5-2, have put the last two 11-win seasons behind them.

Snapshots from the rest of city hoops.

Temple. Losing center Micheal Eric for a projected six weeks with a knee injury is a devastating blow to the Owls defense. It's hard to see Temple being an NCAA-level team without Eric. His return will be crucial.

Villanova. Wildcats fans are reeling right now after a loss to St. Louis and a blow-up against Santa Clara, but they should understand that virtually everybody on the team has a new role this season. There is plenty of talent, so 'Nova should be, and obviously has to be, a lot better in February.

Penn. The talk of Zack Rosen's possibly being the best player in the city this season isn't hype. Right now, it's the truth. Even double teams can't always stop Rosen, who is almost acrobatic in creating openings for himself, then getting a sound shot off. Jerome Allen said he needs much more effort from all his guys for the Quakers to contend in the Ivies. Marin Kukoc was giving it Tuesday against Manhattan, ensuring him more minutes.

Drexel. "Still to be determined" describes the state of the projected Colonial Athletic Association favorite. Bruiser Flint saw some self-inflicted wounds Wednesday at St. Joe's. We saw St. Joe's doing the inflicting and Drexel allowing it to happen. The return of Chris Fouch is a positive development.

La Salle. There may not be any great teams in the city, but there aren't any bad teams. The Explorers have done their part to prove that with near misses against Villanova and Pittsburgh and solid recent wins, led by guards Tyreek Duren, Earl Pettis, and Ramon Galloway.

What's up with the latest round of nonaction on Big East expansion?

Brigham Young's ill-fated attempt to keep home television revenue took that school out of the running for Big East football-only expansion.

Potential football-only addition Boise State has 100 percent of the leverage right now, so San Diego State is the latest candidate to be discussed for football only, since Boise is looking for another Western school to be added.

Isn't that the natural final step for this whole realignment fiasco? The Aztecs are about 15 minutes east of the Pacific Ocean, so why not?

There's another big factor in play. The power conferences, at their bullying best, now are talking about doing away with automatic qualifiers for the BCS bowls, meaning the Big East, its bones almost picked clean, may not get an automatic invite for its champion to one of the big bowls. Since that's most of the reason Boise State is looking at joining the Big East, the school must be taking a hard second look at joining. And if Boise passes, the football expansion almost inevitably collapses.

What else can the Big East do to appease Boise? Some suggestions:

1. All home games for the Broncos. Somebody makes their way to Idaho every Saturday.

2. No? Then every school in the league paints its turf blue.

3. Give Boise veto power over all future invitees in perpetuity. If Connecticut or Louisville leaves next year and Boise wants Eastern Washington in, go for it. Eventually, Big East football will be centered in eastern Montana.

4. On a rotation, two Big East teams have to go to Boise each season. ESPN gets to show a live feed of Rick Pitino on the plane as Louisville makes the trip next season.

5. Move the Big East headquarters from Providence, R.I., to Boise, Idaho. If you're going to live with this arrangement, you should really have to live with it.