M. Hoops will try to be a blemish

The only thing on the mind of the Penn men's basketball team is to be the lone Ivy team to defeat Princeton this year. It is amazing how much can happen in just one year. Last March, Princeton traveled to West Philadelphia to battle Penn for the Ivy League championship. And no one who saw that game will forget it for a long time to come. A sold-out Palestra witnessed the Quakers kick the Tigers right were it hurt the most en route to a 63-49 victory. The win gave Penn the right to share the Ivy crown with Princeton, but did not guarantee them a birth to the Big Dance. Two weeks later, the Red and the Blue saw their season vanish right before their very eyes, when Penn fell to Princeton, 63-56, in a playoff game held in Lehigh. While tonight's game will not have nearly the same importance as a season ago, Jadwin Gymnasium will still be jumping. After all, the Princeton faithful have not seen their beloved Tigers grab a victory at home over Penn since 1991-92. "Every game against Penn is tough, and this one will not be any different," Princeton coach Bill Carmody said. "This is our best chance to get a win at home, but they are not going to fold for us." This year, the Quakers have not been able to pace themselves with the more experienced and talent-laden Tigers. Owning a 23-3 record, Princeton has yet to lose a conference game. With 13 straight victories over league opponents, including a 74-59 drubbing over Penn back on February 11, the Tigers have even received votes for placement as one of the top 25 teams in the nation. If records are any indication of how good a team is, then Princeton will roll over Penn (12-13, 8-5 Ivy League) this evening. But records and statistics usually get thrown right out the window when these two squads face off. For the first half of the game at the Palestra earlier this season, Penn was nip and tuck with Princeton. The Tigers only owned a one-point lead at the break before shooting the lights out in the second half (downing 76.2 percent of their shots). During the initial 20 minutes, Penn was doing everything an above-.500 team does. Solid defense, rebounding and nailing 60 percent of its three-point attempts allowed the Quakers to establish an early eight-point cushion, and for the first time in a big game, Penn was able to minimize its turnovers -- only committing five to Princeton's nine. The difference in the second half was Princeton's veterans rising to the occasion. All five of its starters outplayed and outclassed Penn, and ultimately, the Quakers had no answer for the Tigers' 19-5 run in the final 20 minutes. Since that Tuesday night back in early February, Penn has compiled a 4-2 record while Princeton has extended its winning streak to 18 games and has clinched its first outright Ivy title since 1991-92. But this past weekend's two blowout victories over Cornell and Columbia have given Quakers fans something to get excited about again. In each decisive win, Penn played tough defense and was able to put together a solid forty minutes of basketball -- something that has eluded them for most of the winter. "I was very proud of the effort put forth by us," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "We had everyone on the floor with a certain sense of what we wanted to do both offensively and defensively." In order for the Quakers to be the lone conference blemish on the Tigers record, consistency on both ends will be key. Certainly Penn will need to find a way to shut down Princeton's easy baskets. The Tigers converted on nine lay-ups in the second half alone of the February contest. "Not only the lay-ups but they also hit a bunch of three-point shots too," Penn junior Garett Kreitz said. "We will need to tighten our defense but we should be up for the challenge." In last years must win game in the Palestra, both Kreitz and sophomore Paul Romanczuk had instrumental roles in the outcome. Kreitz finished with 11 points on four-of-six shooting while Romanczuk hauled down five rebounds to go along with six points. Both Tri-Staters commented on finishing out the 1996-97 season on a positive note. Putting together three victories to cap off the Quakers' 27-game schedule is something Dunphy feels the team will be able to use to build on in the off season and for next winter. Following the home court win over the Tigers last year, Penn co-captain Tim Krug talked about the eminent playoff game and how the Quakers would need to come out and "do what ever it takes to get the job done and put Princeton away." Those words should ring loudly in the ears of the Penn players tonight when they take to the Jadwin Gym hardwood as the Quakers attempt to do what no other Ivy team has been able to do this season, and humble the brash Tigers of Princeton, N.J.