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Villanova Basketball’s Phil Booth wins Big 5 Player of the Year

The Baltimore native will always be a son of Philadelphia.

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Happy Friday Nova Nation! There were a ton of Villanova players that received awards from the Big 5 for the 2019 basketball season. On the women’s side, Kelly Jekot and Mary Gedaka were both First-Team selections. Adrianna Hahn and Jannah Tucker were also selected to the Second-Team. For the men, freshman Saddiq Bey was named Rookie of the Year. Senior duo Phil Booth and Eric Paschall were named to the First-Team, while sophomore Collin Gillespie was named to the Second-Team.

But the big prize of the night went to Villanova’s leader on and off the court, Phil Booth. He was named the Big 5 Player of the Year, making him the third consecutive winner of the award from Villanova. It’s the 23rd time a Villanova player has won the award, by far the most of any Big 5 school. He joins a list of former Wildcats to win the award that includes Hubie White, Wali Jones (2), Jim Washington, Bill Melchionni, Johnny Jones, Howard Porter, Chris Ford, Tom Ingelsby, John Pinone (3), Ed Pinckney, Harold Pressley, Kerry Kittles (2), Randy Foye, Scottie Reynolds, James Bell, Darrun Hilliard, Josh Hart, and Jalen Brunson.

Booth finishes one of the most successful careers in Villanova history with a record of 128-20, an insane Win% of 86.4%. To win more than 86% of your games while at the same time playing in more games than anyone else in school history is simply remarkable. This native of Baltimore will always be a son of Philadelphia, and forever a Wildcat. Thank you for everything Phil, and best of luck wherever your career may take you.

In other “news”, Presley Hudson is the greatest shooter on the planet and my new personal hero, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl gives us the inside scoop on Jay Wright’s suit game, and Chris Beard is named the AP Coach of the Year. Enjoy!

Villanova Basketball

Phil Booth named Big 5 player of the year; Fran Dunphy, coach of the year | The Inquirer
In women's basketball, Penn sophomore Eleah Parker and the Quakers' Mike McLaughlin took player and coach honors, respectively.

KU, Nova game is part of Big 12/Big East alliance | The Kansas City Star
Kansas’ two marquee nonconference road games next season will be at Villanova and at Stanford.

Local College Highlights: Cumberland Valley's Kelly Jekot makes All-Big 5 First Team for Villanova WBB | College | cumberlink.com
Cumberland Valley grad Kelly Jekot was named to her first All-Big 5 First Team on Thursday. The Villanova women's basketball junior guard averaged 13.8 points and 4.6 rebounds for the

Class of 2019

IMG Academy: THE AVENGERS of High School Hoops | SLAM
With a stacked starting 5 of top prospects, IMG Academy has become one of the premier basketball programs in the country.

Villanova Basketball Adjacent

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After Lange’s six years with the Sixers, his mission is clear: marry the traditional and innovative at SJU.

Rauch Tearing Up Big East Pitchers | Press Connects
For the fourth time this season, Villanova softball standout Paige Rauch was named to the Big East’s Weekly honor roll.

March Madness and College Basketball

Central Michigan Life - Presley Hudson wins NCAA women's 3-point contest
In four rounds, she made 77-of-100 3-pointers.

Texas Tech's Chris Beard named AP men's basketball Coach of the Year | NCAA.com
Texas Tech coach Chris Beard has been named the AP men's college basketball coach of the year. The Red Raiders won a share of their first Big 12 title. They're also in the Final Four.

Men’s Final Four: Experience trumps one-and-done teams | Portland Press Herald
Teams like Duke and Kentucky grab the highest-rated players out of high school, but this season teams with players who have been to the postseason have found more success.

Texas Tech's Beard named AP men's college coach of the year | AP
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Chris Beard of Texas Tech had a cheering, boisterous audience as he took stage Thursday to accept the trophy as The Associated Press men's college basketball coach of the year —...