These are the numbers that matter from Saturday’s Big 5 Classic men’s tripleheader
From clutch performances to a buzzer-beating three, here are two numbers from each game that helped determine the final scores in the third annual men’s Big 5 Classic.
Wins and bragging rights.
That’s what was on the line in the third annual men’s Big 5 Classic at Xfinity Mobile Arena. In the aftermath of the tripleheader, La Salle knocked off Drexel, 69-64, in the fifth-place game, St. Joseph’s snuck by Temple, 70-69, in the third-place game, and Villanova took home the championship with a dominant 90-63 victory against Penn.
The win for the Wildcats marked their 30th Big 5 title — and first in the new format.
The day was filled with competitive matchups, clutch performances, and for the second year in a row, a buzzer-beating three-pointer. These are the two numbers from each game that helped determine the final scores.
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Drexel vs. La Salle
1: Drexel and La Salle were tied at 21 with 10 minutes, 11 seconds left in the first half. Then, La Salle turned it up a notch. The Explorers held the Dragons to just one point for the remainder of the first half as they opened up a 19-point lead. Drexel missed its final 16 field goal attempts of the first half and shot 9-for-36 overall in the first 20 minutes.
La Salle made five of its last six shots to end the first half to take a 41-22 lead into the locker room.
21: La Salle forward Josiah Harris guided finished with a season-high 21 points to lead all scorers. The Radford transfer entered averaging just 6.1 points per game.
Harris scored the Explorers’ first eight points and 12 of their first 14 to give them an early advantage. The forward routinely had his way in the paint as he lived off short hook shots or turnaround jumpers.
Drexel limited Harris to just seven second-half points, but one bucket was a clutch layup in the closing minutes to push La Salle’s lead back to nine. Harris also added 13 rebounds and shot 10-for-14 from the field.
Temple vs. St. Joseph’s
10: Temple held a 65-60 lead with two minutes and four seconds left in its third-place game against St. Joe’s.
Then, Deuce Jones II happened.
The former La Salle transfer turned Hawks guard had just five first-half points before finding his groove in the final 2 minutes. Jones scored the final 10 points for the Hawks, capped off by a buzzer-beating three pointer to give them a 70-69 win. He finished with a team-high 17 points.
Jones got his buckets in a variety of ways. He got free for an easy layup at the basket, made a step back three-pointer, then got another layup on three straight possessions to tie the score at 67. With the clock ticking below 7 seconds, it was Jones who had the ball. He fired up a contested three that found the bottom of the net to seal the Hawks’ third place victory.
26.9: Temple’s three-point shooting percentage is predicated on how well the offense performs. The Owls were just 1 of 4 this season in games where they shot below 40% from beyond the arc, and, against St. Joe’s, that trend continued.
The Owls struggled with their three-point shooting and shot just 26.9% from deep. They went 7-for-26 from three, their second-worst percentage this season. Temple especially had issues in the first half, going just 3-for-14 from three.
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Villanova vs. Penn
18: In the championship game, Villanova and Penn played a fairly even first half. Both teams made seven three-pointers, Villanova only had four more rebounds, and Penn had one less turnover. Yet the Wildcats led 44-29 entering the locker room.
What was the advantage? Villanova’s success in the paint.
The Wildcats outscored Penn by 18 points in the paint, with a 20-2 advantage in the first half. Forward Duke Brennan led the way with 12 points on 6 of 8 shooting from around the basket. The Quakers could not find the same success around the rim with just two points down low.
Villanova continued to dominate the paint in the second half as it extended its lead beyond 20 points. The Wildcats finished the game with 34 points in the paint compared to Penn’s 16.
48.4%: One of the Wildcats’ strengths through their first seven games has been their three-point shooting. Villanova entered the game against Penn shooting 36.4% from deep, which is third in the Big East Conference. Against the Quakers, the Wildcats had their second-best three-point shooting performance of the season.
Villanova shot a blistering 48.4% from beyond the arc to run away from Penn and win its first Big 5 Classic title and its 30th Big 5 crown in program history. The Wildcats went 7-for-14 from three in the first half and followed that up by going 8-for-17 in the second half. Bryce Lindsay led the way with five threes for Villanova, all coming in the second half for the guard. Additionally, five different players made at least one three to guide the Wildcats to victory.