W. Hoops seeks Ivy contention

There comes a time for every up-and-coming team when it gets the opportunity to find out just how far it has come, and just how far it has to go. For the Penn women's basketball team that time is now. The importance of tomorrow's game against Princeton goes beyond the fierce rivalry that marks all Quaker-Tiger games. Both teams have dreams of being contenders in the race for the Ivy League championship, and this contest could go a long way toward determining if either squad can meet that goal. "Everybody knows that Penn and Princeton are really competitive teams this year," Penn senior co-captain Katarina Poulsen said. "If we win, it really sets a tone and sends a message to the rest of the Ivy League. It would give the team a lot of confidence if we win." Winning will be easier said than done, however, as the Tigers (8-6, 1-1 Ivy League) have been on a huge roll of late. After starting the season 0-4, Princeton has roared back with an 8-2 record over its last ten games. The Tigers' one Ivy League victory was a 69-56 rout of Harvard, a team Penn also defeated handily. This past Monday, Princeton showed no signs of rust from a 16-day layoff for exams as it trounced a good Rider team. The biggest reason for the Tigers' turnaround has been the return of senior guard and captain Laura Leacy. Leacy, who went down with an ankle injury in the first game of the season, did not fully recover until the fourth game. Since returning from her injury, she has been named Ivy player of the week twice. The reasons why are apparent. She leads the team with 13.3 points per game and also contributes 3.2 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.8 steals per contest. Leacy is also the team's top defender. "She has a huge impact, especially because we are such a young team," Princeton assistant coach Sue Johnson said. "She is a truly complete player. As she goes, we go." While Penn (4-9, 1-1) knows it won't be able to completely contain Leacy, it is confident no one player can win a game. From the Quakers' point of view, the best way to render Leacy ineffective is to take her teammates out of the game. "She's going to make good decisions with the basketball, that's a given," Penn coach Julie Soriero said. "It's when she gives it up, what are we going to do to prevent the ball from getting back in her hands or challenge the person she gave it to?" Penn's problem is the younger Princeton players -- 10 Tigers are freshmen or sophomoresE-- have developed to the point that Leacy is by no means the only Tiger capable of making contributions. Princeton's inside game features four solid post players, all with different strengths. Senior Tina Smith averages 10 points and six rebounds per game at center. Sophomores Deb Smith and Kim Curry alternate at power forward, and together average 12 points and nine rebounds. Not only does Princeton's depth down low give it a strong inside-outside game, but it will put heavy pressure on Poulsen and Penn junior forward Shelly Dieterle. With the Quakers' corps of reserve power players seriously depleted as a result of the season-ending knee injury to backup center Deana Lewis, Poulsen and Dieterle must be careful to stay out of foul trouble. The height advantage, however, goes to 6-3 Poulsen, who is taller than any Princeton player. "We have to make adjustments during the course of the game," Soriero said. "They might have numbers, but I think we have more experience." The Tigers' biggest strength does not lie in Leacy's ability to control the game on the offensive end or in their strength inside. Instead, it is a defense that ranks 18th in the nation and has topped the Ivy League for four years running. Princeton's defense is predicated on a player-to-player system. It excels in getting into the passing lanes and tangling teams up in a slower pace that prevents them from having quick, easy shots on the perimeter. The Tigers' defense would therefore seem ideally suited to limit Penn's production offensively, as the Quakers rely on long-range shots from senior captain Julie Gabriel and junior guards Katina Banks and Shelly Bowers for much of their offensive firepower. But Penn does not plan to change its style of play regardless. "It is something we're aware of, but we're not going to totally adjust our game for their defense," Gabriel said. "We'll just try to step it up on defense and score more than them." That, after all, is the way to win any game. Princeton thinks it is much improved over the team that beat Penn twice last year, but the Quakers know they are nowhere near the same team they were then. They point to their eight-point win over Temple earlier in the season as evidence. In contrast, last year the Owls won by 29. "Last year's history," Gabriel said. "We're smarter and more mature. It doesn't feel the same as it did when we played them last year. It feels better." Just how much better Penn has become will be answered over the rest of the season. But tomorrow's game should provide a pretty good clue.