Penn won't have to worry about carrying the hopes and aspirations of championship-hungry Philadelphia on its shoulders during the NCAA Tournament.
That honor should go to Villanova, who received a No. 5 seed in the Syracuse Regional. The Wildcats, currently ranked 19th in the nation, will start their quest for a national championship on Friday against New Mexico in Nashville, Tenn.
"The draw is a tough draw but I think the seed is a respectable one," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "I think we earned it. Once you get to the Tournament, you're going to play a great team. I think we probably got the toughest 12 seed."
Wright said that he is wary of his opponent, well aware that at least one 12 seed has upset a five seed in 15 of the last 16 NCAA Tournaments.
And while the Wildcats will be favored on Friday, they face a tough road to the Final Four. Also in their bracket are powers North Carolina, Florida, Kansas and Connecticut.
Last year's Philadelphia darlings, Saint Joseph's, were left out of the Tournament altogether this season despite the fact that the Hawks won the regular season Atlantic-10 title.
St. Joe's seems to have been done in by a 3-8 record in nonconference play. Hawks fans will note, however, that their team played the sixth toughest nonconference schedule in the nation.
Coach Phil Martelli is not upset at the selection committee for leaving St. Joe's out of the field.
"I have full faith in that committee," he said. "I think they have every piece of data that they need."
The Hawks could have assured an NCAA berth with a win over George Washington in the Atlantic 10 championship game Saturday night, but the Colonials won, 76-67.
The Hawks will host Hofstra tomorrow night in the opening round of the National Invitational Tournament.
Joining them in the NIT will be Drexel and Temple.
Drexel will travel to take on Buffalo tomorrow night. A win by the Dragons, combined with a St. Joe's victory, will set up a rematch of the two Philadelphia squads.
This will be Drexel's third straight year in the NIT.
"I wish we could have been better," Dragons coach Bruiser Flint said. "We had a tough year, we had a lot of injuries, and our guys kind of persevered through it all season."
Temple will play at Virginia Tech tonight, as coach John Chaney returns to the sidelines for the first time since he sent a "goon" into the game against St. Joe's.
Those two teams could potentially meet up in the NIT semifinals on March 29 at Madison Square Garden.
