By Sean Kennedy
Today’s Action
7:00 PM: Drexel (4-2, 0-0 CAA) vs. Cleveland State (4-3, 0-0 Horizon)
On Monday, the Dragons received the crow from the Citadel telling them that Damion Lee will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. The worst case scenario, Drexel will now have to move on without their leading scorer from a season ago and one of the triumvirate of guards running the offense this year. In addition to even more of a scoring burden on Chris Fouch and Frantz Massenat, the Dragons will now have to look toward Tavon Allen and Kazembe Abif for added contributions within the offensive system.
The first opponent for the Dragons in this brave new world will be the Cleveland State Vikings. Bryn Forbes leads Cleveland State at 19.3 ppg; the 6’3″ sophomore guard is a terrific shooter, going 48.8% from behind the arc this season following a still very good 38.6% in his freshman campaign. The Vikings have alternated wins and losses all season so if you believe in arbitrarily random patterns, this would be a win for the Dragons. Even without Lee, Drexel proved they can hang with some top teams against Arizona and their wild win over Alabama. They should handle the Vikings on Wednesday night.
7:00 PM: La Salle (3-4, 0-0 A-10) vs. Hartford (2-6, 0-0 American East)
Following a disappointing performance in the Paradise Jam tournament, the Explorers return home to take on a Hartford Hawks team that has gotten off to a poor start this season, including a loss to a Quinnipiac squad that La Salle beat earlier in the year. Hartford rates as one of the worst offensive teams in college basketball, with their lone bright spot being junior forward Mark Nwakamma. The 6’6″ Nwakamma is the lone Hawk averaging in double figures at 16.0 ppg, while also leading the team in rebounds at 6.4 per game. Although the Explorers have been on a recent slide, Hartford represents a step down in competition and they should have no problem prevailing here.
8:00 PM: Villanova (7-0, 0-0 Big East) vs. Pennsylvania (2-4, 0-0 Ivy) – Fox Sports 1
In the first of two City 6 battles on the night, the Wildcats play host to the Quakers following their Battle 4 Atlantis tournament championship that’s seen them skyrocket to 14th in the polls. The one area that Penn might find themselves at an advantage is on the boards with Darien Nelson-Henry and Fran Dougherty doing a good job controlling the glass. However, the Villanova wings actually do an exceptional job helping Daniel Ochefu in that regard, and the Wildcats currently rank 10th in the country in rebounds per game. Villanova hardly ever loses and I expect that trapping defense of the Wildcats to give Penn fits. Having just defeated an Iowa team that blew out the Quakers a few weeks ago, Villanova should have no trouble against Penn in this city series match-up.
8:00 PM: Temple (3-3, 0-0 AAC) vs. Saint Joseph’s (4-2, 0-0 A-10) – ESPN News
The Owls and Hawks round out the rest of our loaded Wednesday City 6 slate. Both teams won the final two games of their respective holiday tournaments following opening round losses. St. Joe’s has the pair of upperclassmen carrying the scoring load in Ronald Roberts, Jr. and Langston Galloway, while the Owls have seen Dalton Pepper and Quenton DeCosey come on of late to supplement the production of Will Cummings and Anthony Lee. Still, the Hawks have been a much more efficient team offensively this season and have by and large been the more consistent team this season. I expect St. Joe’s to win this bird fight.
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