Revenge is a two-way street for W. Hoops

Revenge is both a hope and a fear of the Penn women's basketball team as it battles Dartmouth and Harvard this weekend at the Palestra. The Quakers (6-13, 2-5 Ivy League) will try to exact revenge tonight at 7 p.m. on the Big Green (11-8, 6-1) after losing 68-63 in the final minutes earlier this season at Leede Arena. Tomorrow at 7 p.m., the Crimson (5-14, 2-5) attempts to avenge a 93-71 drubbing at the hands of Penn in Cambridge, Mass., last month. Since Dartmouth's come-from-behind victory in Hanover, N.H., the Big Green has won four of its five Ivy games and soared to the top of the Ancient Eight. In order for the Quakers to knock Dartmouth off that pedestal, Penn will have to execute offensively against a tough matchup zone defense. This defense is designed to neutralize Penn's inside scoring and rebounding advantage, forcing the guards to knock down open shots. This is something they failed to do in the first matchup. "It's really hard for Katarina [Poulsen] to get good position," senior forward Julie Gabriel said. "So, the key is to be patient and make good passes. We know we'll get open shots against the zone and we just have to make them." Offensively, the Big Green's strength is its balance and team concept. One major improvement since the last meeting has been freshman guard Sally Annis. Annis has greatly improved her play, winning two consecutive Ivy Rookie of the Week awards. Nevertheless, since the Quakers do not feel they can focus on one or two players, they will probably utilize their tough man-to-man defense in order to pressure the ball and create some turnovers. Penn feels this would be the best way to create some easy transition scores and ignite the offense. Even though the Quakers were disappointed with their effort at Dartmouth, where Penn blew a three-point lead in the final minute, it is confident of its chances to defeat the league-leading Big Green -- especially at the Palestra. "This time we should certainly have the advantage if the game goes down the wire again," Gabriel said. Just as Penn is looking to make amends for an early-season disappointment, so is the Crimson. Harvard was embarrassed on its home court, and will certainly be looking to return the favor in the "world's most historic gymnasium." Leading the Crimson charge will be the reigning Ivy Player of the Week, junior forward Tammy Butler. Butler, the first player in Harvard history to reach the 1,000-point milestone by her junior season, scored 49 points and pulled down 35 rebounds in last weekend's two games. "She's definitely the key," Poulsen said. "As she goes, so goes their team." The Quakers obviously recognize the challenge they face, but stopping Butler will be a difficult task. "We're going to put Poulsen on her and try to be physical with her," Penn coach Julie Soriero said, "She's more of a finesse player, and I think we can get her to alter her shots." Besides Butler, Penn's largest concern is overconfidence. The Quakers feel they played a near-perfect ballgame in the first encounter, and although they will not have to be flawless this time, Penn is aware that it can't treat Harvard lightly. This means the Quakers will have to remain intense on the defensive end, especially since mental and physical fatigue are often prevalent during the second game of Ivy weekends. The key to the first victory for Penn was rebounding. The Quakers doubled Harvard's rebounding total, and they are looking to duplicate that domination on the boards. The Crimson will be looking to even out that statistic this time, possibly by playing more zones against the Quakers. "We really didn't show up in our first meeting," Harvard coach Kathy Smith said. "We were having problems with youth and injuries, but we are a much more solid, smarter team now. We are making better decisions and executing better on both ends of the floor. I'm expecting a much better ballgame." The Quakers better not be expecting another blowout. Although Penn is focused on getting revenge against the league-leading Big Green, Harvard has an agenda of its own.