Yale sinks Quakers in final seconds

Hunterton's shot givesHunterton's shot givesPenn 2nd loss, but QuakersHunterton's shot givesPenn 2nd loss, but Quakersstill rebound to blow outHunterton's shot givesPenn 2nd loss, but Quakersstill rebound to blow outBrown PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Friday was not a good night to be on the road, for drivers or for the Penn men's basketball team. A snowstorm brought traffic to halt, while Yale did the same thing, 62-60, to the visiting Quakers, who lost for the second time in the last three Ivy League outings. The next night, however, the roads cleared and Penn rolled to a lopsided 83-53 victory over Brown at the Pizzitola Center. With the loss to Yale, the Quakers (12-8, 7-2 Ivy) crashed out of first place for the first time since the end of the 1991-92 campaign. Elis sophomore guard Gabe Hunterton delivered the game-winning basket with three seconds left, a turnaround jumper in the lane with Penn guard Garett Kreitz draped all over him. After a close first half in which the lead changed hands eight times, Yale emerged to take control of the game. The Elis extended their 29-25 halftime advantage to 12 points with 12 minutes to play. Yale made efficient use of its players, as their shorter lineup waited for open outside shots and open cutters for layups in the lane. Penn continually shot itself in the foot, especially in allowing the less athletic Elis squad to dictate the tempo of the game. Turnovers and 7-of-22 second-half shooting contributed to Yale's spurt in the opening moments of the final period. "I thought we played one of our few unintelligent games," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "We didn't pay attention to detail." When Quakers forward Ira Bowman fouled out at the four-minute mark with seven points, and Yale's Jim Kawahito hit a pair of free throws seconds later to give Yale a 59-51 lead, the situation for Penn looked decidedly bleak. But in the next two minutes, Penn guard Donald Moxley hit a free throw, center Krug converted a layup, and forward Frank Brown knocked down a jumper, while the Elis could muster just a free throw from Daniel Okonkwo. The score stood at 60-56 with two minutes left. On the ensuing possession, Quakers forward Paul Romanczuk drew a foul. He missed the first, but sank the second to bring the Quakers within two, the closest they had been since early in the first half. After a crucial Penn defensive stop, the visitors pushed the ball downcourt needing to make up three points in the game's final minute. Yale tied the ball up with 43 seconds remaining, but the possession arrow pointed to Penn, and the 35-second shot clock was reset. With 29 seconds remaining, Brown launched a potentially game-tying three-pointer that went astray. But Kawahito committed a cardinal sin -- fouling the three-point shooter -- and for the second time in a week, the Quakers were depending on clutch foul shooting to salvage a close Ivy League encounter. The freshman calmly sank all three free tosses to even the score at 60 apiece. That set the stage for Hunterton's heroics. The next day, it was a fine second-half defensive effort that sparked the Quakers' win over Brown. Penn allowed just 17 points after intermission and combined the aggressive defending with a balanced offensive attack. The Bears' record fell to 8-14, 3-7 in the conference. Leading 42-40 early in the second half, the Quakers suddenly clamped down on the Brown offense. Over the next 10 minutes, the Bears turned the ball over five times, while managing just a layup and a free throw. Despite missing Bowman, who had 24 points, including 14 in the first half, for most of that period due to foul trouble, Penn was able to build a commanding 17-point lead, 60-43, with eight minutes to play. Brown's leading scorer, shooting guard Brian Lloyd, was ineffective offensively. The three-point specialist missed all four of his tries from long-range and totaled just two points in 28 minutes -- 10 below his season average. "I thought our defense was what keyed everything in the second half," Dunphy said. "Donald Moxley did a terrific job on Brian Lloyd, who's very difficult to defend. Every time he touched the ball it seemed like Donald was right there." With Lloyd and fellow all-Ivy honoree Eric Blackiston, who had six points before fouling out, struggling from outside, the only weapon Brown could go to was center James Joseph. Krug picked up two early fouls, allowing Joseph to take advantage of mismatches with the smaller Penn forwards to total a team-high 17 points. In spite of limited minutes, Krug did manage to lead everyone with 13 rebounds. In a fast-paced first half, Penn repeatedly nudged its lead, once on a dunk-and-a-foul move by Bowman that stunned the sparse crowd. But the Bears' timely jump-shooting and Joseph's inside play kept the home team close.