No. 2 Villanova meets Penn at the Palestra in the teams' Big Five opener
No. 2 Villanova and Penn will play their Big Five opener on Tuesday night at the Palestra.
Villanova at Penn
When: Tuesday, 7 p.m., the Palestra
TV/Radio: Comcast SportsNet; WTEL-AM (610), WXPN-FM (88.5)
Records: Villanova, 6-0, ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll; Penn, 2-2. This is the Big Five opener for both teams.
Coaches: Villanova, Jay Wright (16th season, 360-157; overall 482-242); Penn, Steve Donahue (second season, 13-19; overall 213-233).
Series: Villanova leads, 46-17, and has won 13 straight games.
Last meeting: Villanova won 77-57 at the Pavilion, Dec. 28, 2015.
Points per game: Villanova, 78.2; Penn, 71.0.
Opponents' points per game: Villanova, 61.7; Penn, 64.8.
Villanova probable starters:
G Josh Hart, 6-5, Sr., 18.2 ppg., 5.8 rpg.
G Jalen Brunson, 6-2 ½, Soph., 11.8 ppg., 3.3 apg.
G/F Mikal Bridges, 6-7, Soph., 11.0 ppg., 5.3 rpg.
F Kris Jenkins, 6-6, Sr., 12.3 ppg., 3.8 rpg.
F Darryl Reynolds, 6-9, Sr., 4.5 ppg., 6.3 rpg.
Key reserves
F Eric Paschall, 6-7, Soph., 8.7 ppg.
G Donte DiVincenzo, 6-5, Soph., 7.5 ppg.
G Phil Booth, 6-3, Jr., 5.7 ppg.
Penn probable starters
G Caleb Wood, 6-4, Jr., 13.8 ppg., 3.5 rpg.
G Jackson Donahue, 6-0, Soph., 7.0 ppg., 3.0 apg.
G Matt MacDonald, 6-5, Jr., 4.8 ppg., 5.3 rpg.
G Matt Howard, 6-4, Sr., 13.0 ppg., 6.5 rpg.
F A.J. Brodeur, 6-8, Fr., 13.8 ppg., 6.8 rpg., 2.3 bpg.
Key reserves
G Darnell Foreman, 6-1, Jr., 6.0 ppg.
F Max Rothschild, 6-8, Soph., 5.0 ppg.
G Tyler Hamilton, 6-4, Soph., 2.8 ppg.
About Villanova: The Wildcats are coming off a five-day break after playing their first six games in a span of 13 days. … They are shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from three-point range, while knocking down an average of 9.8 threes. … Villanova averages the fewest turnovers (9.5 per game) among Big East teams. … Hart, a national player of the year candidate, posted his first double-double of the season, 13 points and 11 rebounds, in last Wednesday's 63-47 victory over the College of Charleston at the Pavilion. … Jenkins needs 13 points to reach 1,000 for his career. … Booth has missed the last three games with left knee inflammation; he is considered to be a game-time decision Tuesday night.
About Penn: The Quakers, who are playing their home opener, are coming off a disappointing 70-68 loss Saturday at Navy, going scoreless over the last 5 minutes, 21 seconds of the game. … They are shooting 46.1 percent from the floor and 38.8 percent from beyond the arc while averaging 9.5 threes per game. … Penn has forced 15.5 turnovers but is committing an average of 14.8. … Wood, a transfer from Lassen Community College in California, is averaging 17 points in his last three games and shooting 59.1 percent from three-point range. … Brodeur became the first freshman since Tony Price in 1976 to post a double-double in his first collegiate game – 23 points and 11 rebounds against Robert Morris.