The Saint Joseph’s Hawks (2-3) and Penn Quakers (5-4) tussle Wednesday at The Palestra in Philadelphia. Tip-off is slated for 8:15 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Saint Joseph’s vs. Penn odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
The SJU-Penn contest makes for the back half of a Big 5 doubleheader at the historic venue. Philly neighbors Temple and La Salle will play the opener.
Saint Joseph’s is playing its first true road game, and it’s a hometown affair in a familiar building. The Hawks are 2-0 at home and 0-3 across a trio of neutral-site games. SJU’s last game was a neutral-site contest against South Florida on Nov. 22. St. Joe’s was a 2-point favorite, but the Hawks shot 31.4% and lost 75-62.
The Quakers also played on Nov. 22, but they have played 3 games since (Nov. 25, 26 and 27): Pennsylvania played in the inaugural Cathedral Classic, which was at The Palestra, going 3-0 straight-up and 3-0 ATS. The Quakers shot a red-hot 47.8% from beyond the arc, making 11.0 treys per game and winning by an average margin of 15.0 points.