The University of Pennsylvania men’s basketball team was defeated by Villanova in the Big 5 Classic championship game held at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia on Saturday night. Villanova secured a 90-63 win, marking its first city series title since the introduction of the pod format three years ago.
Penn now holds a 5-4 record for the season and finished its Big 5 campaign with two wins and one loss. Villanova improved to 7-1 with this victory.
During the game, Penn made 11 three-pointers, which was just one short of their season high. The team was outrebounded by Villanova, 38-33, but managed to score more second-chance points than their opponent, finishing with 13 compared to Villanova’s nine.
Senior Cam Thrower scored 11 points for Penn, achieving double digits for the first time since November 9 against American. He was successful on all three of his attempts from beyond the arc. Junior TJ Power also contributed 11 points along with four rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Michael Zanoni matched them with another 11 points after making five out of nine shots from the field.
Sophomore AJ Levine added nine points and four assists. Michelangelo Oberti led Penn in rebounds with five, while Dylan Williams had five assists without any turnovers. Freshman Jay Jones scored all nine of his points in the second half.
Senior Ethan Roberts did not score during the game and left due to injury in the second half after previously scoring a combined total of 61 points against Saint Joseph’s and Drexel earlier in pod play.
For Villanova, Bryce Lindsay led with 18 points followed by Devin Askew with 17 and Matt Hodge with 12. Duke Brennan recorded a double-double with 15 points and ten rebounds as well as two assists, three steals, and two blocked shots. Acaden Lewis provided seven assists for Villanova.
Penn never took the lead during Saturday’s contest but managed to tie twice early in the first half before Villanova pulled ahead decisively before halftime. A strong run at the end of the first period gave Villanova a significant advantage going into halftime, which they maintained throughout the rest of the game.
Next up for Penn is a home game against Lafayette on Monday at The Palestra before fall exams begin.
