Big 5 Classic
Philadelphia Big 5 logo
SportCollege basketball
Founded2023
No. of teams6
CountryUnited States
Venue(s)Wells Fargo Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
TV partner(s)NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus, Peacock
Sponsor(s)MHS Lift
Official websitebig5classic.com

The Big 5 Classic, officially known as the MHS Lift Big 5 Classic for sponsorship reasons, is an annual early-season college basketball tournament featuring the six member schools of the Philadelphia Big 5—Drexel, La Salle, Penn, Saint Joseph's, Temple, and Villanova. The tournament begins in November and concludes on the first Saturday in December with a triple-header at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Before 2023, the Big 5 members played each other once annually[lower-alpha 1] in a round-robin format, determining the "champion" as the school(s) with the most wins in Big 5 play. However, in January 2023, administrators from the five member schools agreed on a new format for Big 5 play. This included the creation of the concluding triple-header called the Big 5 Classic and the addition of Drexel University to the series. The motivation behind this change was to "resuscitate" the Big 5, as the series had experienced declining attendance figures in the preceding years.[1]

In the new format, the six schools are divided into two pods: Pod 1 includes Drexel, La Salle, and Temple, while Pod 2 features Penn, Saint Joseph's, and Villanova. Throughout November, before the Big 5 Classic in December, round-robin play occurs within each pod, with each team playing the other two teams in their pod. After pod play, the series moves to the Wells Fargo Center for the Big 5 Classic, a single-day, triple-header event with three games. The first game is the 5th place game, featuring the two teams that finished 3rd in each pod; the second game is the 3rd place game, featuring the two teams that finished 2nd in each pod, and the final game is the championship game, featuring the two teams that finished 1st in each pod. Tiebreaker rules for pod placement are currently unknown,[2][3] but a local media source speculated that NET rankings, which are not public in late November, would be used, if necessary.[4]

Brackets

2023

Campus site games

Campus-site games were hosted by the team listed second below.

Standings

Big 5 Classic

All games were played at the Wells Fargo Center on December 2.

Game recaps: [11][12][13]

5th Place Game
2:00 PM EST
NBCSP+, Peacock
  
No. 18 Villanova 55
Drexel 57
3rd Place Game
4:45 PM EST
NBCSP+, Peacock
  
Penn 92
La Salle 93*
Championship
7:30 PM EST
NBCSP+, Peacock
  
Saint Joseph’s 74
Temple 65

* – Denotes overtime period

Notes

  1. ↑ La Salle and Saint Joseph's play each other twice annually, as both schools are members of the Atlantic 10 Conference

References

  1. ↑ O'Neil, Dana. "Big 5 schools agree to new format". The Athletic. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  2. ↑ Gabriel, Kerith (2023-07-20). "The inaugural schedule and format are set for the new (six-team) Big 5". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
  3. ↑ "Big 5 officially adds Drexel, announces new series format". NBC Sports Philadelphia. 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
  4. ↑ Neiburg, Jeff (November 15, 2023). "The New Big 5 Has Had Plenty of Drama. Now, There are Essentially Two Semifinals on Nov. 29". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Brickus Puts up 18, La Salle Knocks off Drexel 67–61". The Associated Press. November 7, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Miller Scores 19 in Temple's 66–64 Win against Drexel". The Associated Press. November 14, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Temple Tops La Salle 106–99 in 3 OTs; 10 Players Foul Out and Teams Combine for 81 Free Throws". The Associated Press. November 29, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Saint Joseph's (PA) Wins 69–61 against Pennsylvania". Fox Sports. November 10, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Ivy League Penn Gets 22 Points from Tyler Perkins in 76–72 Win over No. 21 Villanova at the Palestra". The Associated Press. November 13, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Reynolds' 24 Points Leads Saint Joseph's to Win over No. 18 Villanova". The Associated Press. November 29, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Drexel Dragons Burst through Big 5 Classic with 57–55 Win over No. 18 Villanova". The Associated Press. December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Brantley, La Salle Knock off Pennsylvania 93–92 in OT for Third Place at Big 5 Classic". ESPN. December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Fleming Has 22, Saint Joseph's (PA) Beats Temple 74–65". The Associated Press. December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.

Official website of the Big 5 Classic

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