Three Up, Three Down: Delaware Edition

 

Penn begins its winter break schedule with a chance to avenge its first loss of the season against Delaware. Here's our first Three Up, Three Down of the hoops season:
                                                                                                     Three Up-                                                                                              
Fran Dougherty: Dougherty struggled mightily with foul trouble and in Penn’s last game against Villanova a week and a half ago, prompting coach Allen to give him just 19 minutes on the floor. He's got nowhere to go but up after his two-point, four- foul outing and Delaware appears to be the perfect opponent for such a bounceback. In the first meeting with UD on November 12, he scored more than 20 points for the first time this season while also leading the team in rebounds.
                                                                                                                                                         Patrick Lucas-Perry: Lucas-Perry has been a constant source of energy for the Quakers this season, while also leading the Red and Blue in three-point percentage. Against Villanova, he provided a spark with a three off the bench in just eight minutes of playing time. Expect Lucas-Perry to play a larger role against the Blue Hens, who are in the bottom three of the CAA in three-point defense.
                                                                                                                                                Penn’s foul woes: At this point, it simply cannot get much worse. After committing 30 fouls against Villanova, Penn is dead last in the Ivy League with 23.8 fouls per game. Despite having 31 fouls in the first match up with Delaware, the Quakers figure to cut down on that total based off of their higher familiarity with the Blue Hens and greater preparation time. (Penn had over a week of rest to prepare for Friday night.)
                                                                                                                                                   Three Down-                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                       Attendance: Delaware’s winter break begins on the day of the game, which doesn't bode well for a high intensity crowd in Newark. The Bob Carpenter Center, or “The Bob”, seats just 5,000 fans and has attracted an average attendance of just 2,126 spectators per contest in two games this season, officially less than half of Penn's 4,584 spectators per home game in the Quakers' four showings at the Palestra so far. So the game is likely to attract fewer fans than the Quakers normally see during the season.
                                                                                                                                                  Penn’s rebounding margin: While the Red and Blue struggled to grab boards against a bigger and taller Villanova team last game, they appear to be in for an even tougher opponent in the front court on Friday. The Blue Hens almost doubled up on the Quakers in rebounds, 47-24, in November, so they have the manpower to dominate the boards again. Senior forward Jamelle Hagins is fourth in the country in rebounds per game, so expect a big performance from him against Penn, which ranks last in the Ivy League in rebounding margin.
                                                                                                                                                   Greg Louis’s minutes: If Fran’s playing time indeed goes back up, someone’s playing time has to come down. That someone will most likely be sophomore forward Greg Louis, who played 22 minutes in a strong eight-point performance against Villanova. That game boosted his average time on the court to 10 minutes a game on the season. But Doc needs his minutes, so expect Louis’s extra playing time to be curtailed more Friday night.
Comments powered by Disqus

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.