New-look St. Joseph’s out to defend Big 5 Classic title
The Hawks are out to repeat its Big 5 Classic champions. But it'll have to contend with a surprisingly good La Salle team featuring a seasoned coach who knows St. Joe's well
For the second year in a row, St. Joseph’s finds itself playing to be crowned the men’s champions of the Big 5 Classic.
The venue will be the same when the Hawks face La Salle at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday (8 p.m., NBCSP). But a lot has changed for St. Joseph’s since last year’s win in the inaugural game, and head coach Billy Lange is done speaking on comparisons between this team and last year’s.
» READ MORE: Was St. Joe’s losing to Princeton at home bad? Yes, but it might not be in March.
“That team that was here last year had everybody back from the year before. Everybody. And these guys had shared experiences,” Lange said. “They cried in the locker room when we lost to Dayton in the quarterfinals. The winks and blinks, we already had that done. This group is still forming.”
With six first-year players and four sophomores, St. Joe’s (5-3) is the youngest team in the Atlantic 10, Lange said. The Hawks have two juniors; one senior, Erik Reynolds II; and a fifth-year player. Of those four upperclassmen, two transferred into the program this year and have entered the starting five alongside Reynolds, sophomore Xzayvier Brown, and junior Rasheer Flemming. Junior guard Derek Simpson came from Rutgers, while fifth-year center Justice Ajogbor transferred from Harvard.
“You got two new guys that are in the starting five, and then we’ve got, however many freshmen and sophomores that are coming off the bench,” Lange said. “I’m just going to enjoy these guys trying to get better.”
The ongoing revamping doesn’t mean the Hawks aren’t primed to repeat their city success. It just means they’ll be relying on new means to do so.
» READ MORE: Follow the Inquirer's full coverage of St. Joseph's athletics right here!
The Hawks and Explorers (6-3) are split,16-16, in their previous matchups with St. Joe’s taking both games in last season’s conference slate. And just as St. Joe’s isn’t the same team it was last year, La Salle isn’t either.
Three transfers — Corey McKeithan, Jahlil White, and Demetrius Lilley — are three of the team’s four leading scorers, giving a noticeable boost to the Explorers offense. McKeithan is averaging nearly 20 points per game and is coming off his third consecutive game with 20-plus points, after a road loss to Northeastern.
The Hawks are also coming off a defeat. But their 77-69 loss to Princeton wasn’t all bad for St. Joe’s, as Lange saw some positives in how his team played. One of the main ones: Fleming put up a season-high 25 points.
The forward from Camden has been the Hawk’s most consistent player. While Brown is pacing the Hawks in scoring and Reynolds has been the Hawks’ star, Fleming has come up big across St. Joe’s first eight games.
Fleming is averaging 14.9 points while leading the team in steals (14), blocks (14), and rebounds (8.9 average).
» READ MORE: With Corey McKeithan leading the way, La Salle is worthy of the Big 5 Classic main stage
“Rasheer works,” Lange said. “He’s consistent in terms of his attitude and his work ethic, and he can continue to improve. There’s still decision-making things that he can do better. There’s defensive things that he can do better, and that’s the encouraging part.”
Fleming also played a large role in getting the Hawks back into the Big 5 championship game, leading the Hawks with 19 points in their 83-76 win over Villanova.
“To me, when I think about Rasheer Fleming, I see the spirit,” Lange said after the Villanova game. “To be in that type of disruption with foul trouble, and then to be 7 for 9, running a timeout play for him, and executed it perfectly. Those are the growth things that I see.”
But is Fleming’s “spirit” enough to put the Hawks on a banner in the Wells Fargo Center rafters for a second consecutive year? That’s to be determined.
La Salle has proven it should not be underestimated, while St. Joe’s has lived up to its expectations as a top team in the Big 5.
The Hawks have more at stake as the reigning champions. And they are looking to repeat and use this experience as another cornerstone in the construction of this new group.
“The team will form,” Lange said. “We’ll be what will be by the end of the year. We’ll take it a day at a time.”
Today’s challenge: defending their Big 5 title.
» READ MORE: Follow the Inquirer's full coverage of La Salle athletics right here!