History
The Big 5 was formed in 1955 in order to showcase the rich basketball talent in the city and help pay for the upkeep on the Palestra, where the games historically took place. All schools agreed to split ticket and concessions revenues equally once Penn was paid for upkeep costs on the Palestra. The intense rivalries between the teams and the proximity of the schools and their fans make the Big 5 a unique tradition in college basketball.
Historically, games were played as double or triple-headers. However, it has been argued that changes in the structure of college basketball in the last quarter of the 20th century caused the Big 5 to lose much of its significance. During the heyday of the Big 5, many major college programs, especially in the northeastern United States, were independents. As the Big East and Atlantic 10 Conferences expanded to cover most of the Northeast (Villanova joined the Big East, while Temple, St. Joseph's, and La Salle joined the Atlantic 10), and as college basketball became increasingly driven by television and its need to appeal to a broad national audience, the local character of the Big 5 was a liability. The round-robin series ended in 1991.
In 1999, the Big 5 round-robin series was revived, and has continued to this day. Some things have changed from the series' heyday: the schools no longer evenly split the proceeds from the games, and La Salle, Temple, and Villanova do not always use the Palestra for their home games in the series. Nonetheless, the revival of the Big 5 provides a living link to the past of college basketball.
Each year the Herb Good Basketball Club selects All-Big 5 teams, as well as a coach of the year and the most outstanding player receives the Robert V. Geasey Trophy.
The Big 5 creed reads, "They say there is no real prize for winning the Big Five. They must not be from Philly."
There are a few intense rivalries inside the Big 5, most notably the rivalry between Villanova and Saint Joseph's, also known as the Holy War. The St. Joe's–Temple rivalry has increased in intensity in recent years, mostly because of the "Goon Gate" incident in 2005 involving former Temple coach John Chaney where he sent in a player to intentionally foul John Bryant which led to his fractured arm. La Salle considers Saint Joseph's to be its biggest rival.
As of 2012, at least one team from the Big 5 had made it into the NCAA Tournament for 35 straight years.
These games were frequently covered by legendary reporter Brendan F. Quinn.
Read more about this topic: Philadelphia Big 5
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