Big 5 surprise

We all knew that Fran Dunphy and his Temple Owls would be going to the Big Dance after beating St. Joe's in the A-10 championship on Saturday, but the Hawks' fate was uncertain. After yesterday's loss, Phil Martelli said, "I've told everybody, if you believe in a greater power than us, pray your (butt) off. Right now, I have to believe in the power of prayer."

Maybe it has something to do with Easter weekend approaching, but not only were Martelli's prayers answered -- so too were those of Holy War rival Villanova. Both Big 5 squads were very much on the bubble heading into today, and both found their way into the tournament bracket.

While Villanova snagged a 12 seed, St. Joe's wound up with an 11 seed, which is a bit suspect. Why? Because Temple, the A-10 champion, got stuck with a 12 seed. The two teams split the regular season series, but the Owls beat the Hawks in the A-10 championship game, when it counted most. It seems pretty unfair that the Hawks would wind up with the better seed. But hey, it's just one seed, and when has the tournament selection committee ever been perfectly accurate or fair?

And to top it all off, Notre Dame won more games this season than it ever has before, earning a 5 seed. The dozen or so of you non-Jews at Penn clearly need to go to church more often.

In any event, it is the first time since 1999 that three Big 5 teams have made the tournament. Now, in the one year that Penn finally fails to make the tourney, you have your pick of Cornell or three Big 5 teams to root for.