Whose House?

You would think that on the heels of the nationally-televised airing of a documentary about a famous building on 33rd street, Penn and its Big 5 rivals would make an effort to reverse a trend that the final minutes of the documentary addressed: the Big 5’s gradually waning commitment to the Palestra. As Penn wraps up Big 5 play tomorrow against Temple, it’s worth taking a look at where the city’s rivalry games are being held.

This season, Penn will have wound up playing only two of its four Big 5 games at the Palestra. Dunphy Bowl II will take place tomorrow at Temple’s licorice factory, or whatever that gym is called. Sure isn’t referred to as “the cathedral.” Dunphy’s alma mater, La Salle, prefers to take on his current squad at Tom Gola Arena. Though St. Joe’s has gladly invited Temple to the Palestra for their second meeting this season, the Owls will host the first one against their A-10 and Big 5 rival at the Liacouras Center (I did a little research… they’ve been calling it that since 2000!).

To their credit, Phil Martelli’s Hawks have shown a real dedication to keeping the Big 5 alive and will call the Palestra home next season. They will also use the Palestra to host this year’s “holy war,” which has drawn an average of 8,689 fans the last three times it’s been played there. However, Villanova insists on hosting the annual rivalry at the Pavilion, which seats only 6,500. And forget about the Wildcats coming to Penn, unless they’re the visitors.

Every year, there are 10 Big 5 games. This year, only half of them will be played in the building that was made for Big 5 basketball. That’s just a shame. Hopefully, by playing its home games at the Palestra next season, St. Joe’s can help to revitalize the building and finally bring the Big 5 back home in the years to come.