NBC Sports Philadelphia anchor/reporter Amy Fadool and senior producer Sean Kane get you set for all the weekend’s local college basketball games with Fastbreak Friday. Look for this column every Friday during the college basketball season.
Central Florida (17-10, 8-7 AAC) at Temple (15-12, 7-8), Sunday at 2 p.m.
AF: There was a time when Temple was a bubble team to make the NCAA Tournament. Only about a week ago, the Owls had rattled off five straight wins, including an overtime winner against a Top 25 team in Wichita State.
But the Owls came crashing back to reality in the last week with a disappointing effort against Houston, a game they should and could have won. Their once-promising resume took a serious hit.
All is not lost, and a win this weekend would certainly help get them get back on the right track, coupled with a very nice run in the AAC Tournament in two weeks.
Temple owes Central Florida too. In their meeting at the beginning of January, Fran Dunphy’s crew managed a measly 39 points. And yes, that was for the entire game. The Owls are a different team, but they can fall back into the doldrums that we saw earlier in the season.
The home court and the pressure of needing wins will work in Temple’s favor.
Temple 71, Central Florida 67
Dartmouth (6-17, 2-8 Ivy) at Penn (19-7, 9-1), Friday at 7 p.m.
Harvard (14-11, 9-1 Ivy) at Penn (19-7, 9-1), Saturday at 7 p.m.
SK: There's a good chance the Ivy League regular-season championship will be decided Saturday at the Palestra. Penn and Harvard enter the penultimate weekend of the Ivy League schedule with identical 9-1 conference records, four games clear of third-place Yale. Harvard beat Penn 76-67 back on Feb. 10 on the Crimson's home court in Massachusetts. It remains Penn's only conference loss of the season, one the Quakers will be eager to atone for this weekend.
Penn needs to be careful not to overlook last-place Dartmouth on Friday night but the Quakers can survive against Dartmouth with just an average effort. The true test comes Saturday against Harvard, a game that will likely determine the regular season champion and top seed in the Ivy League Tournament. I expect Penn to put forth its best performance of the season against Harvard. The Quakers are the best team in the conference and they'll prove it on Saturday night, hopping into the driver's seat in the Ivy League title race in the process.
Penn 75, Dartmouth 62
Penn 77, Harvard 67
Saint Joseph's (12-15, 7-8 A-10) at Richmond (9-18, 7-8), Saturday at 6 p.m.
AF: There are teams who have a run of bad luck and there are teams who are positively snake-bit and cursed.
I hate to say it, but I think St. Joe’s falls into that latter category. Take out the roster-altering injuries for a moment, and what really sticks out are the Hawks' 11 losses by six points or less. If you give them just half of those wins, they're 17-10. And that is a whole different outlook on the season.
One of those close losses came this week on a buzzer-beater against George Mason. Not only did it erase a valiant 20-point comeback by the Hawks, it was also déjà vu to the previous meeting. George Mason also nailed a buzzer beater to beat St. Joe’s back on Jan. 10. The hits keep coming.
But Phil Martell’s team has a lot to be proud of, even if their record says otherwise. They are still one of the top teams in the nation in several defensive categories and lead the country in fewest turnovers.
Here’s hoping the skies are sunny in Richmond this weekend.
Saint Joseph’s 75, Richmond 70
La Salle (11-17, 5-10 A-10) at Fordham (9-18, 4-11), Saturday at 4 p.m.
SK: La Salle is coming off a heartbreaking 95-93 overtime loss to No. 18 Rhode Island at home on Wednesday. Senior guard B.J. Johnson was tremendous in the loss with 29 points and a career-high 23 rebounds. Johnson's performance marked the first time a La Salle player had more than 20 points and 20 rebounds in a game since legend Lionel Simmons in 1990. Johnson's 23 rebounds were one short of the Atlantic 10 record set by George Washington's Yinka Dare in 1993.
Johnson's heroics weren't enough to secure a win for La Salle. The Explorers have dropped four of their last five and are 4-10 since the calendar turned to 2018. Despite those recent struggles, I see a victory on the horizon for La Salle at Fordham Saturday. The Explorers beat the Rams, 75-67, at home six weeks ago, and they should have some additional confidence from their strong showing against Rhode Island.
La Salle 74, Fordham 70
UNC-Wilmington (9-19, 6-10 CAA) at Drexel (12-18, 6-11), Saturday at 4 p.m.
AF: WOW! Is it weird to start that way? Not if you saw the Drexel-Delaware game Thursday. Historic would be another one-word introduction, too. In case you missed it, Drexel pulled off the largest comeback in NCAA Division I history. Down 34 points, the Dragons came all the way back to beat their CAA rivals. Thirty-four points is an astronomical number in college basketball. As mentioned above, there was a game this year Temple scored 39 total.
The biggest thing about that comeback win wasn't Tremaine Isabell’s 29 points, it’s the fight the Dragons showed Zach Spiker and the Drexel faithful.
This has been an up-and-down season for Drexel — five straight losses in early January, followed by four straight wins and then another four losses. They could have easily packed it in, but they did not, despite trailing Delaware by that massive margin.
It’s senior day for the Dragons this weekend and I’m feeling the love from the DAC after that historic performance.
Drexel 78, UNCW 70
Prediction records
Sean Kane: 27-10
Amy Fadool: 21-19
For the preview of No. 3 Villanova at Creighton, click here.
