CSN anchor/reporter Amy Fadool and producer Sean Kane get you set for all of the weekend's local college basketball games with Fastbreak Friday. With the regular season ending this weekend, this is the final Fastbreak Friday column of this college basketball season.
No. 2 Villanova (27-3, 14-3 Big East) at Georgetown (14-16, 5-12 Big East), Saturday, Noon
SK: Second-ranked Villanova pays a visit to Georgetown on Saturday having already wrapped up a fourth straight Big East regular season championship. But the Wildcats still have plenty to play for -- namely the No. 1 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament.
A win Saturday followed by a Big East Tournament title would lock up the top seed in the East for Villanova. But a loss at any point jeopardizes things depending on how other top teams around the country fare in their conference tournaments.
There is also the possibility that the Wildcats could play Georgetown twice in the next five days thanks to a potential Big East quarterfinal matchup looming next week at Madison Square Garden. With that in mind, Villanova won't want to give the Hoyas any confidence heading into the postseason. Add it all up and there is plenty at stake for 'Nova on Saturday afternoon.
This game could be best summarized as a tale of two coaches. On one hand, there is Jay Wright, fresh off a national championship and guiding a 27-3 team into the regular season finale. Wright has had Villanova ranked in the Top 5 all season long, and he's done it without the services of two of his projected top seven players. Junior guard Phil Booth played just three games before knee soreness sidelined him for the remainder of the season. Then there's star freshman big man Omari Spellman, who was ruled academically ineligible in late September.
Factor in a rib injury to starting forward Darryl Reynolds three weeks ago (Reynolds is expected to return Saturday after missing the last five games) and Wright has been using a six-man rotation. Yet here are the Wildcats, in prime position to become only the third repeat national champions in the last 25 years. Wright has done some terrific coaching jobs during his 16 seasons at Villanova. This year ranks near the top of the list in my book.
On the other hand, there is Georgetown's John Thompson III, presiding over a second straight dismal season that is destined to end without a NCAA Tournament appearance. Hoyas fans aren't accustomed to missing out on the Big Dance in back-to-back years, and the collective patience for Thompson has grown thin.
Georgetown's 2007 Final Four run is a full decade old now and the Hoyas haven't advanced out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament since. Georgetown was supposed to be a pillar of the new Big East when the league formed four years ago. Instead, it's been one of the worst teams in the conference the past two seasons and it seems the only thing saving Thompson's job at this point is his father's legendary status in the Georgetown program.
Villanova should finish the regular season strong at Georgetown's expense. Look for big outings from Washington, D.C. natives Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins accompanied by the typical steady play from point guard Jalen Brunson.
Villanova 80, Georgetown 70
Temple (15-15, 6-11 AAC) at South Florida (7-20, 1-15 AAC), Sunday 2 p.m.
AF: Temple had a bit of recent bad luck but is looking to end the season on a high note, facing the worst team in the American Athletic Conference. Before getting a win last week over Tulane, the Owls dropped two heartbreakers to Central Florida and UConn by a combined three points.
That's how things have been for Temple this season. Call it snakebitten or just the way the cookie crumbles, it's not been an easy season for Fran Dunphy. But there is sunshine in the clouds, Tampa sunshine. Temple will travel to Tampa this weekend to face South Florida. The Bulls have only one conference win, and they lost by nine to the Owls last month.
To add insult to injury, on the trip home from a loss to Houston last week, South Florida accidentally left two of its players behind at the airport. The guys had fallen asleep and no one realized they weren't on board until the flight was taking off. How's that for a metaphor of the Bulls' season? The players caught the next flight. And at least it wasn't a holiday like Christmas when they missed their flight. My co-author of this column knows all about that. But it's still not a great look for a struggling team.
Shizz Alston continues to impress in his freshman season on North Broad. He's certainly seemed to be relishing the role of scorer as well as leader on the court. Look for big things from him next season.
Temple will get a much-needed win this weekend before heading to Hartford for the conference tournament next week.
No heartbreak here, only sunshine and a W for Temple.
Temple 78, USF 68
Fordham (13-17, 7-10 A-10) at La Salle (14-14, 8-9 A-10), Saturday 2 p.m.
SK: It's a matchup of two middling A-10 teams to close out the regular season at Tom Gola Arena on Saturday. La Salle and Fordham occupy ninth and 10th place respectively in the conference standings.
It will be Senior Day for Jordan Price and the rest of the Explorers' seniors. Price sure could use a strong performance to wrap up the regular season -- he's averaging just 5.7 points and shooting 26.9 percent from the field in the last three games.
As a whole, La Salle has sputtered down the stretch. The Explorers are 3-9 in their last 12 games, a span of futility that began with an embarrassing 38-point loss at VCU and most recently featured a 15-point loss at lowly Saint Louis. There is some good news entering Saturday's matchup -- La Salle won by 15 at Fordham a month ago.
The recent history between these two teams combined with the Senior Day festivities at Gola Arena has me leaning towards the Explorers. Loyal readers of this column know that La Salle has let me down several times this season, but I'm riding one last time with Price and company. The Explorers finish the regular season on a high note before heading west to Pittsburgh for the conference tournament next week.
La Salle 74, Fordham 68
Dartmouth (6-19, 3-9 Ivy League) at Pennsylvania (12-13, 5-7 Ivy Legaue), Friday 7 p.m.
Harvard (18-7, 10-2 Ivy League) at Pennsylvania (12-13, 5-7 Ivy Legaue), Saturday 7 p.m.
AF: It's a big weekend for Penn. The Quakers are vying for the fourth seed, the final spot in the first-ever Ivy League tournament. Of course, they made it tougher on themselves last weekend with the loss to Columbia, a team they are tied with since both are 5-7 in the conference.
The good news first. Penn is at home this weekend while Columbia is on the road and has to play at Yale. But there is some not-so-good news. Penn has to face Harvard, the second best team in the Ivy. Ideally, Penn needs two wins this final weekend, however, there are plenty of scenarios where the Quakers can get in, going down to a third and fourth tiebreaker that relies on the team's ranking in things like the RPI, Sagarin and KenPom ratings.
Yes, that's how complicated this could become for the fourth seed to be named to the Ivy League tournament. Bottom line, Penn needs to win, especially against Harvard. Of course, the Quakers have to beat last-place Dartmouth, and they need Columbia to lose either to Yale or to also-last-place Brown. Because if Penn beats Dartmouth but loses to Harvard, all Columbia would need is one of the two wins. The Lions split with Harvard this season, and Penn would have been swept by the Crimson and that would be that.
I don't mean to dismiss the Dartmouth game because the Big Green beat Penn by three points a month ago. But I think this will come down to Saturday's game for the Quakers.
So let's focus on the Harvard matchup. The Crimson only have two losses in Ivy League play, one I just mentioned to Columbia and the other to Princeton. Two conference losses by a combined four points. Harvard faced Princeton a month ago and lost on a last-second shot. The Crimson are hoping for a sweep on their end and having Princeton get swept for a chance at the top spot, but that's another whole scenario. Harvard has won six in a row, winning by an average of nearly 12 points in that span. Tommy Amaker's crew is also scoring more than 80 points a game in those six wins. On the flip side, Steve Donahue's team has won five of its last six games, the lone loss at Columbia. In their last six games, the Quakers are scoring nearly 76 points and in their wins were by an average of about 11.5 points. So this is setting up to be quite the game.
I'm an optimist. I like a good story. And I am picking the Quakers. From starting 0-6 in the conference to fourth place and a spot in the first-ever Ivy League tournament at the Palestra.
Penn 75, Harvard 73
Penn 72, Dartmouth 68
Saint Joseph's (10-19, 3-14 A-10) at Duquesne (10-20, 3-14 A-10), Saturday 2 p.m.
SK: St. Joe's limps into the regular season finale riding a nine-game losing streak. Following Wednesday's 19-point home loss to Rhode Island, Phil Martelli issued a massive indictment of his team's effort. "That was participation, that wasn't competition," Martelli told reporters.
To be fair, the Hawks have been ravaged by injuries, including a season-ending torn ACL for leading scorer Shavar Newkirk and a fractured foot for starting point guard and second-leading scorer Lamarr Kimble. Newkirk and Kimble are the two best players on the St. Joe's roster and it's unrealistic to expect the Hawks to win consistently without them.
But it's clear that Martelli isn't happy with his team's effort, injuries or no injuries. The Hawks have a chance to get back in their head coach's good graces Saturday against the only team below them in the A-10 standings. Like St. Joe's, Duquesne is 3-14 in conference play and has lost 12 of its last 13 games.
Both teams will be out to get some much-needed momentum heading into next week's A-10 Tournament. Something tells me the Hawks will answer the bell in this matchup. They're in desperate need of a win and have had their competitive spirit questioned by none other than their coach. Expect strong efforts from Charlie Brown and James Demery in a narrow St. Joe's victory.
St. Joseph's 63, Duquesne 60
Drexel (9-22, 3-15 CAA) at James Madison (9-22, 7-11 CAA), Friday 8:30 p.m. -- First round of CAA Tournament
AF: Drexel had a tough first season under Zach Spiker. The Dragons did win nine games in the regular season, three more than last year. But they finished with an identical 3-15 conference record. Still, there were bright spots, namely two freshmen in Kurk Lee and Kari Jonsson.
Lee is only two points away from setting the Drexel record for points as a freshman. He also is fourth in the CAA with nearly 5 assists per game.
Jonsson, the freshman from Iceland, made an incredible 63 three-pointers this year. And that's with missing the last three games. The experience these freshmen received will pay dividends for Spiker in seasons to come.
Next up for Drexel, the first round of the CAA tournament. They'll face JMU, with the Dukes having swept the Dragons this season. Like Drexel, JMU only has nine wins, but it has double the number of conference wins. JMU also just beat the Dragons on their senior day. So while there will be a revenge factor in mind, as well as trying to salvage something positive for next season, I just don't think Drexel has enough left in the tank. The good news is that Jonsson should play in this one, and he can be a difference maker.
JMU 77, Drexel 70
Prediction records
Sean Kane: 28-11
Amy Fadool: 23-15