Showtime in Dallas

DALLAS -- They're up against one of the top teams in the country. They're going to be in front of a hostile crowd of 19,000 Longhorns fans. And nobody thinks they have a shot at winning.

So how is the Penn men's basketball team feeling about taking on Texas tonight in the first round of the NCAA Tournament? From the looks of things, they couldn't be happier or more relaxed.

When the squad took to the floor yesterday for an open practice at the American Airlines Center, the site of tonight's game, the Quakers seemed loose, even joking with members of the media beforehand.

"I'd probably say that I'm not aggressive going to the basket, poor defender, selfish, can't shoot, can't finish," junior guard Ibrahim Jaaber said when asked to give a scouting report on himself.

It's a marked change from last year, when the squad -- most of whom had never played in the NCAA Tournament before -- appeared uptight and nervous as they took on Boston College.

"I think there's less awe, and I think that comes with the territory," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "They've been in this before. ... I think they understand the magnitude of the moment. Hopefully they will be not in awe but very respectful of this situation" tonight.

This season, all five starters for the No. 15 seed Quakers, as well the team's key reserve, have tournament experience. And they'll need all that experience tonight against the No. 2-seeded Longhorns.

Texas has a starting lineup full of NBA prospects. And they'll be playing just four hours away from their campus in Austin.

"I think that if we don't go play pretty much a perfect game, it's going to be difficult for us to go out there and win that basketball game," senior captain Eric Osmundson said.

If the Quakers are going to have any shot tonight, they'll need an especially strong performance from Jaaber, the Ivy League Player of the Year.

In last season's game against Boston, Jaaber was a wingman for then-Ivy Player of the Year Tim Begley. Now, he's the center of attention come tournament time.

Still, Jaaber says that he feels no added pressure for this year's game.

"I feel like I was the same player last year," he said. "I'm not more of a leader this year."

Regardless, Jaaber won't be able to beat Texas by himself. He'll have to get help on the perimeter from his other guards, Osmundson and sophomore David Whitehurst.

That's certainly not a given because the team has struggled shooting from beyond the three-point arc all season, sinking just 32 percent.

Still, Osmundson said that he is eager to help Penn become just the fifth No. 15 seed to win a game in the tournament, especially after he missed most of last year's NCAA game due to a bout with mononucleosis.

"Any time that you're not out there contributing to the game, it's tough," he said.

Penn will also need big help from its frontcourt tandem of junior forwards Steve Danley and Mark Zoller.

The two will have to try and contain Texas' heralded big-men, forwards Brad Buckman and LaMarcus Aldridge, who is projected by many to be the top overall pick in this summer's NBA draft.

Buckman and Aldridge have led a Texas squad that out-rebounded its opponents by 10 per game this season. The two have also combined for 114 blocks this season.

But one person who thinks that Danley and Zoller can play with the big boys is Texas coach Rick Barnes.

"I think they're stronger than [people] think," he said. "What you really respect, from the tape that I've watched, is that they scrap. They go get it. They do a good job of jamming rebounders at times when the ball's loose."

Senior forward Friedrich Ebede, the team's key reserve, is expected to play tomorrow despite the fact that he missed Penn's last five games with a groin injury and didn't start practicing again until this week.

"I think he has progressed fairly well," Dunphy said. "He will not be at 100 percent. ... You are talking about a guy that hasn't played the past five games and that is going to hurt us a little bit.

But he is going to get out there, and hopefully he will give us a good spark off the bench. In terms of his overall health, he is not quite there, but I think if I went up to Friedrich and told him he was not going to play, then he might say something to me."

As for the possible distraction of all the fans and the national television coverage, Steve Danley said that he is not flustered.

"Any time you go on the road, that helps you focus," he said. "We had a lot of travel; we're staying at a nice hotel; we're together as a team; and we're in little gyms. We have been focusing and have had a lot of practice time."

Now all that's left for the team to do is shock the world.

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