Penn tries to salvage season with Tigers

Although mathematically eliminated from the Ivy League race, the Penn women's basketball team can still inject some drama into the battle for the championship with a win over Princeton at the Palestra tonight. Of course, no one has ever accused a Penn-Princeton matchup of lacking drama. The 7 p.m. game, though, has extra importance as the Tigers (14-9, 7-4 Ivy League) are two games behind league-leading Brown with three to play. Add on top of that Princeton's January 28 victory over Penn, and there's quite a matchup -- one the Quakers are confident they can win. "We played hard this weekend and I think we match up well against Princeton," Penn senior co-captain Julie Gabriel said. "They've gotten the best of us the past two years and it's our last chance to get Princeton this year. And for Kat [Poulsen] and me, it's our last chance period." For its part, Penn definitely has the Tigers worried. "Penn's record in the Ivies doesn't show what a dangerous team they are," Princeton coach Joan Kowalik said. "They play the top teams in the Ivies very well and they'll be ready to play us." Penn did not play Princeton very well in the first meeting, a game the Tigers won 68-55. The Quakers shot only 34 percent and are well aware of what they must do differently. "We have to make Princeton work harder on defense," Penn coach Julie Soriero said. "I think we took quick shots and didn't really try to wear them down. Last time we played Princeton, they forced us into being very impatient. We played into their hands with our shot selection." Defensively, Penn needs to stop Princeton's very effective high-low game. A big part of that game is the team of guard Laura Leacy and forward Tina Smith. Smith is second in scoring for Princeton at 11.3 points per game and the Tigers' leading rebounder, pulling down 6.3 boards. Generally, though, any Princeton player is capable of putting up big numbers. Six different Princeton players have been the high Tiger scorer this year. "Offensively, we need to be patient," Kowalik said. "Our attack needs to be balanced and our guards need to contribute. The key for us is just to play hard and be aggressive." Soriero sees stopping the occasionally-explosive Leacy as the key for the Quakers. Leacy, who averages 12.8 points per game, has scored as many as 23 (against Lehigh) and has been in double figures16 out of 23 games. "It's her senior year and she loves to play at the Palestra," Soriero said. "She's had big games here in the past and we have to be prepared for that. Our plan is just to play aggressively and get in the passing lanes to keep her from getting the ball." Princeton also has an offensive threat to stop. Although the rest of the Penn team did not shoot well in Jadwin, senior center Poulsen had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Poulsen is averaging 15 points to lead the Quakers, who have four players scoring more than nine points per game. "We really have to stop Poulsen," Kowalik said. "We're going to mix up our defenses to try to frustrate her. We also need to keep their guards from penetrating. They're very dangerous that way." One advantage that Princeton has over Penn defensively is a deeper bench. The Quakers use only six players extensively, with a seventh playing sparingly. The Tigers have nine players playing more than nine minutes per game. And while only Leacy plays 30 minutes a game for Princeton, four of Penn's starters play that much or more. Soriero identified this depth as a possible problem for the shallow Quakers, especially in terms of defensive aggressiveness. "After a long away weekend, they go eight and nine [deep], and we're struggling to find consistency with our top six," she said. "I've said it before and I've said it again: We need more contributions off the bench." With three games left now, this game is crucial for Penn, looking to salvage a disappointing Ivy season. "Obviously we have one week left -- three games -- and we want to do the best we can to get through it," Gabriel said. "You don't want to look at your whole season as 'shoulda-coulda-woulda-didn't,' so I think it is imperative that we play well this week for ourselves and for the program."