AT COURTSIDE: W. Hoops offense better, but perimeter defense fails

Fourteen games, fourteen losses. Each time the Penn women's basketball team steps out onto the court, they find a new way to lose a game. Last night's game at Temple was no different, as the Quakers suffered a defeat at the hands of a team that had won only three other games this season. Going into the Owls' game, the Quakers addressed what they thought to be their most glaring problem -- offense. But it was the Quakers' defense that allowed Temple to build a 49-30 lead in the first half. "It was tough to get into the flow of the game," Penn guard Colleen Kelly said. "They were able to take control after the first few possessions." Penn prepared for the game by keying in on Temple's penetration on offense. Quakers coach Julie Soriero feared the quickness of the Owls' guards would lead to a lot of easy baskets underneath. The Owls responded by shooting 64.7 percent from the field in the first half, including four three-pointers and two more shots where their toes nipped the arc. Every Penn run was answered with a Temple bomb from downtown. "We really didn't think that they were a good shooting team," Soriero said. "We thought that we would be better off by leaving the outside shooting alone and concentrating on penetration." But the Owls picked yesterday to be the night they broke out of a season-long shooting slump. Although they cooled off in the second half, the Temple shooters still hit over half their shots for the game, much better than the 36.7 percent they averaged going in. "We couldn't believe they were shooting that well," Penn center Natasha Rezek said. "It's not fair that they were doing so well against us." It might not seem fair for an 0-14 team to face an opponent who is on fire, but Penn did not help its cause when it was beaten on the boards by a Temple team that is normally out-rebounded. Temple used its height advantage to get several key put-backs throughout the game and limit the Quakers to just nine first-half rebounds. "There were a couple of second chance opportunities that really hurt us," Kelly said. The Quakers' defense had been the most consistent part of their game going into the Temple contest. But last night, the one thing they had counted on disappeared. In fact, Penn had concentrated on offense for most of the week in practice and were fairly successful in executing its game plan. Kelly led the way with 22 points and 10 assists. Rezek added 17 points, and Deana Lewis chipped in with 12. "We were able to get higher percentage shots and had good balance," Soriero said. At halftime, Soriero asked the shooting guard and small forward positions to step up, and Amy Tarr and Hope Smith responded with a combined 13 total points, well above their season average of five points per game. "We all felt that the offense ran well," Rezek said. "The two and three positions stepped it up in the second half, but we really needed it in the first half." Penn will once again have to work on putting together a complete game. They were able to claw their way back in the second half, but the first half deficit proved to be too much to overcome. It has been 14 games of frustration for Penn so far. And until the Quakers can put together 40 solid minutes of basketball, the frustration will continue.