Busting Brackets
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NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early Big 5 power rankings for 2019-20

By Pan Karalis

PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 11: Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats drives to the basket against Michael Wang #23 of the Pennsylvania Quakers in the first half at The Palestra on December 11, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 11: Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats drives to the basket against Michael Wang #23 of the Pennsylvania Quakers in the first half at The Palestra on December 11, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 06: La Salle Explorers fans throw streamers on the court after the Explorers scored their first points of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at The Palestra on December 6, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 06: La Salle Explorers fans throw streamers on the court after the Explorers scored their first points of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at The Palestra on December 6, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

#5 – La Salle

La Salle will be another year wiser heading into Ash Howard’s second season at the helm, but the Explorers also have personnel holes they haven’t yet filled. They’ve also lost a number of players to the transfer market, and leading scorer Pookie Powell just finished his senior season. The massive turnaround they experienced last season after starting to adapt better to Howard’s up-tempo offense, finishing a respectable 8-10 in the Atlantic 10 after starting the year winless through their first ten games, should have La Salle fans excited for the future, but they don’t have the pieces to contend with the city’s best quite yet.

Next year’s team will be led by the guard trio of Isiah Deas, David Beatty, and Saul Phiri, and rising sophomore Ed Croswell will be a major factor in the frontcourt. The Explorers do lose a lot of depth with the players departing, and Ash Howard will likely be looking for immediately-eligible role players to pad the lineup behind a strong enough starting corps this off-season.

While we’re projecting La Salle at fifth right now, they could realistically be the third or fourth best team in the city; they do have plenty of momentum coming out of their surprising Atlantic 10 season, and neither Drexel nor Penn should have anyone seriously convinced that they’re head-and-shoulders ahead of the Explorers going into next season.

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