Last month during Penn Previews, I was asked by the Admissions Office to speak at a reception for Long Island's admitted students.
As I walked into the banquet room full of over-achievers with AP exams and senior proms on the horizon, I had one of those jolting out-of-body experiences -- you know, the one in which you sense that you are actually witnessing time recklessly barrel onwards.
After an hour of speaking to students about whether that optional essay can help get them a Quad residence and to their parents about the rap on West Philadelphia, I was bailed out of that time-trap by a question from the far corner of the room. The pre-frosh stood up and asked, "What is your favorite moment from Penn?"
I needed a second to search for the answer. I did take that freshman seminar with a Nobel Laureate. Then again, I was fortunate enough to represent Penn on a formerly popular TV game-show. Of course, there was also that one night that I rang up the largest bar tab at Smoke's.
But when I realized what it was, it seemed so obvious what my response should be:
February 8, 2005
Penn 70, Princeton 62
Never have I felt more exhilarated and connected with our class than on that night. Trailing by 18 points with less than eight minutes remaining against Princeton -- a deficit magnified by the deliberately sluggish pace of the Princeton offense -- our squad rallied to an unbelievable 70-62 overtime victory.
The crowd's frenzy grew as each incredible shot fell. The charge began with an improbable four-point play by Eric Osmundson and was sealed with a deep three-point shot banked in by Tim Begley in the extra period.
The miracle turnaround was so hurried that, at the end, I had to send two rollouts into the stands at once to mark the occasion.
Charging the court that night, it didn't matter to us that Princeton was suffering through their worst start in the history of Ivy League play. Everyone in the Palestra that night will remember that deafening chorus of cheers and the rumbling sea of red and blue shirts long into the future.
So, from a fan's perspective, I started thinking about what other moments from the last four years would fill out a John Cusack-like, High Fidelity "Top Five."
So, with my number one-spot anticlimactically revealed, here's my own version. A top four -- one from every year.
Freshman year
December 5, 2001
Penn 75, Villanova 74
After this game, there was no turning back. I was going to be a loud, raucous and disruptive Penn fan forever more.
Down 10 points at the half, Junior guard Andy Toole -- playing with a stress fracture -- led the Penn comeback with 21 points in front of a near capacity Palestra crowd. In overtime, Toole calmly sank two free throws with 18 seconds left to give Penn a 75-74 lead. After junior forward Ugonna Onyekwe deflected Villanova's last desperate attempt to reclaim the lead, it finally happened.
I stepped onto the hallowed Palestra floor and stormed the court for the first time in celebration of a win that would ultimately contribute to a Big 5 Championship that year.
Sophomore year
March 23, 2003
Oklahoma St. 77, Penn 63
True, Penn did not fit into Cinderella's slipper in the 2003 NCAA Tournament.
But, for 37 minutes, it appeared that we would. Down 67-63 with under three minutes remaining, Penn fans that made the road trip up to the Fleet Center in Boston were quietly mulling about a potential second round matchup with would-be national champion, Syracuse. Onyekwe scored a phenomenal 30 points in his final game for Penn -- including a ridiculous up-and-under reverse rim-rattling slam that sent the Penn friendly crowd into orbit.
Though this game left all of us in attendance wondering, "What if?," it was our closest moment to that long awaited return to weekend play in March Madness.
Junior Year
February 6, 2004
Penn 104, Harvard 69
This game was over from the very beginning. Mocking chants of "We want cheesesteaks!" echoed throughout the Palestra within the first five minutes of the game.
Jeff Schiffner led the Quakers that night with 24 points, and Penn's seven reserves combined for an additional 36 -- including junior guard Pat Lang's picture-perfect three-pointer that put us over the century mark.
Rarely in college basketball do fans storm the court for a 35-point victory over a mediocre opponent, but there are few better paths to a fan's heart than through his or her stomach. And waiting in line with my row of hecklers for an hour at Abner's for a hastily assembled cholesterol bomb was actually enjoyable.
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The Palestra has provided me with some of my favorite and most memorable experiences at Penn. But, what made these moments special for me is that these incredible athletic accomplishments were amplified by the presence of a fan base with which to get fanatical and act senseless. So, thanks for the memories.
The torch (or, rather, the paint brush for next year's rollouts) has been passed.
Jon Lubin is a 2005 College graduate from Setauket, N.Y. and is the former president of Penn's Red and Blue Crew.
