Video: Saint Joseph's-Penn postgame reactions

Below, you'll find clips from Jerome Allen, Zack Rosen, Tyler Bernardini and Phil Martelli in their postgame press conferences after Penn's 84-80 win over Saint Joseph's at the Palestra.

But first, a few thoughts from me.

For the record, a total of 17,444 fans attended games at the Palestra on Saturday. Maryland-Temple and St. Joe's-Penn were both complete sellouts. Even though there were a few scattered empty chairbacks, both games looked and sounded the part.

I am well aware of how many places you can go to watch basketball in Philadelphia, and how many different kinds of basketball you can watch. A fair amount of it is good basketball, too, and the 76ers are very much included in that category this season.

But you'll have a hard time convincing me that there's a better place to watch the game in this city than the Palestra. That is especially true when the house is full, and the clock is short, and the score is close, and the fans are on their feet trying to bring down the rafters with noise.

That happened in both games Saturday. Maryland-Temple was terrific entertainment, especially with the many Terrapins fans in the house creating a Big 5-style atmosphere. St. Joe's-Penn wasn't as even a contest, but the second half produced great theater as the Quakers held on for dear life.

Many of us have already worn out the arguments over why there are fewer City Series games at the Palestra this year than usual. So let's just agree that this weekend, college basketball's most historic gym was at its very finest, and that ought to be celebrated.