Penn tops Saint Joseph's 78-70 to win Big 5 championship

Jan 27, 2019, 02:39 am

PHILADELPHIA -- Freshman Bryce Washington had career highs of 23 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double and AJ Brodeur added 20 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots to help Pennsylvania win the Big 5 championship with a 78-70 victory over Saint Joseph's on Saturday night.

Pennsylvania finished 4-0 against the Philadelphia schools, previously beating Villanova, La Salle and Drexel, to claim its first Big 5 title since 1993-94. The win also gives the Quakers (12-6) a 12-4 nonconference record, their best effort since going 13-3 in 2001-02. Jake Silpe came off the bench to score 13.

Brodeur and Washington had nine points apiece in the first half to guide Penn to a 35-31 lead at intermission. The Hawks (9-11) missed all 10 of their 3-point tries and finished 3 of 24 for the game (12.5 percent).

Charlie Brown Jr. hit a jumper to pull Saint Joseph's within 67-64 with 2:44 remaining, but Washington answered with a 3-pointer and Silpe hit a 3-pointer and added three free throws to help the Quakers prevail.

Brown paced the Hawks with 27 points and 12 rebounds, but he sank just 1 of 8 from beyond the arc.