 Philadelphia Big 5 logo | |
| Sport | College basketball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2023 (men's) 2024 (women's) |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country | United States |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Venue(s) | Wells Fargo Center (men's) Finneran Pavilion (women's) |
| Most recent champion(s) | Saint Joseph's (men's) Temple (women's) |
| TV partner(s) | NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus, Peacock |
| Sponsor(s) | MHS Lift (2023) Toyota (2024–present) |
| Official website | big5classic |
The Big 5 Classic, officially known as the Toyota Big 5 Classic for sponsorship reasons, is an annual early-season college basketball tournament and showcase 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 with pod play and concludes on the first weekend in December with triple-headers for the men's and women's competitions.
Before 2023, the Big 5 members played each other once annually[a] in a round-robin format, determining the champion as the school(s) with the best record in Big 5 play. In January 2023, administrators from the five member schools agreed on a new format for the men's Big 5 play. This included the creation of the concluding triple-header, 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, held on the first Saturday in December. The first game is the 5th place game, featuring the two teams that finished third in each pod; the second game is the 3rd place game, featuring the two teams that finished second in each pod, and the final game is the championship game, featuring the two teams that finished first in each pod. The winner of the championship game is the champion of the Big 5 for that season. 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]
In June 2024, the athletic directors of the Big 5 member schools introduced the women's edition of the Big 5 Classic. The women's showcase follows the same pod and scheduling structure as the men's, however, the women's Big 5 Classic is held on the day before, the first Friday in December, and takes place at the Finneran Pavilion in Villanova, Pennsylvania.[5]
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
- ^ O'Neil, Dana. "Big 5 schools agree to new format". The Athletic. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Big 5 officially adds Drexel, announces new series format". NBC Sports Philadelphia. 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Center, Wells Fargo. "Big 5 Basketball Announces Major Updates | Wells Fargo Center". www.wellsfargocenterphilly.com. Retrieved 2024-12-07.