Home Game: College Hoops Edition

The Drexel women (15-11, 10-5) were looking like contenders after three straight wins, including a spanking of William & Mary. But then reality set in, in the form of #10 Old Dominion. The men (11-18, 4-12) didn't have to worry about being exposed as mediocre–everyone knew they stunk. But apparently they still felt compelled to show everyone, in the form of losses to William & Mary and Fairfield. Their regular season will sputter to a merciful end at home against James Madison tonight, and then at Hofstra on Saturday. The women host Towson tomorrow night, and George Mason comes to town Sunday afternoon. (Tickets for all home games are available through the Drexel Ticket Office: 1-866-4-DREXEL.)

The La Salle men (13-13, 7-5) got themselves to .500 with wins over Dayton and Duquesne this week. And on another positive note, Explorers senior guard Darnell Harris was named A-10 and Big 5 Player of the Week. The women (12-15, 4-8) posted a win over Rhode Island thanks to a career night from Carlene Hightower, who earned her third straight A-10 Player of the Week recognition, and was also named Big 5 Player of the Week to boot. Unfortunately, Hightower and the rest of the Explorers couldn't quite keep up with Xavier. Tonight, the men travel to Fordham, and then they'll host Rhode Island on Saturday. The women's regular season ends this week with a home game against St. Joe's tonight and a road trip to Duquesne on Saturday. (Tickets for all home games are available through the La Salle Ticket Office: 215-951-1999.)

The highlight of the week for Penn basketball was the men's (10-16, 5-4) blowout win over Dartmouth. That loss to Harvard was pretty forgettable. On the women's (4-20, 1-8) side, the highlight was freshman guard Kim Adams, who earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors for two solid all-around games. Unfortunately, both games ended in blowout losses for the Quakers, as they got pretty much owned by Dartmouth and Harvard. Hopefully, things will go better for the women this weekend, as they host Yale on Friday night, then Brown on Saturday night. The men will be traveling to Yale and Brown on those same nights. (Tickets for all home games are available online.)

Think Penn State Lady Lions (13-15, 4-12) are looking forward to the offseason much? They should be, because they've now lost nine straight after looking absolutely brutal in losses to Illinois and Northwestern. Fortunately, the offseason is right around the corner, as the women wrap up their regular season this week with games at home against #18 Ohio State (tickets) and on the road against Indiana. The men (12-14, 4-10) looked pretty dreadful themselves this week, losing to #19 Michigan State by a staggering 37 points and then coughing up a 13-point lead to Minnesota. The men have a couple of home match-ups this week, hosting Iowa tonight (tickets) and Michigan on Saturday (tickets).

We don't expect that the St. Joe's men (17-8, 8-4) will be making the NCAA tournament. But after a solid win over Rhode Island, the Hawks could give the tournament committee something to think about if they win out. But we'll emphasize the word "if" there. They'll have to start by beating St. Louis tomorrow night (sold out). Then they'll face a tough match-up with Temple on Sunday (tickets). For the women (14-13, 6-6), it was a tough week. St. Joe's lost to Temple and #17 George Washington. They'll end their season this week at La Salle tonight and home against Rhode Island on Saturday afternoon (tickets).

Things continue to look good for the Temple women (17-11, 10-2), who remain tied atop the A-10 with George Washington and Xavier after this past week's wins over St. Joe's and Fordham. They'll end their regular season with five straight wins if they can top St. Louis on the road tonight and UMass at home on Saturday afternoon (tickets). The men (14-12, 7-5) are sort of stuck in mediocrity. They beat St. Bonaventure, but then fell short against Fordham. At this point, the Owls are jockeying for position in the A-10 tournament, where it looks like they'll have to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament the hard way. They've got to take care of business at home against Charlotte tonight (tickets), and then they'll face St. Joe's on Sunday.

The Villanova men (17-10, 7-8) learned firsthand about bubble burstin'. Last week, we told you that the Wildcats' tournament chances were on a very sharp ledge. We opined that they'd have to win out, and they sure had us thinking they might. They absolutely smoked West Virginia, then stopped one of the hottest teams in the NCAA with their big upset over #13 UConn. But then the Cats blew a seven-point halftime lead in what can only be characterized as a second-half meltdown in an ugly loss to #21 Marquette. For the women (15-12, 5-9), not much to report. Just a routine loss to #13 West Virginia. Next up for the men is a tough road game at #13 Louisville. The women will wind up their regular season hosting Marquette on Saturday afternoon (tickets), then head to Louisville for their season finale on Monday.

Image via Flickr user Jeff Kubina.