The Penn women's basketball team's new motivation for winning was recently summed up by sophomore guard Jewel Clark.
"We're tired of losing."
The Quakers proved that last Saturday night when they outlasted Columbia, 84-80, in overtime, at Levien Gymnasium.
The Red and Blue are hoping to prove that again this weekend, as they go after back-to-back wins for just the second time this season.
Penn (6-12, 2-3 Ivy League) will host Yale (10-9, 3-3) tonight at 7 p.m. at the Palestra, and entertain Brown (4-15, 1-5) tomorrow night at the same time and place.
In addition to the momentum from the win last weekend, the Quakers also have a few other things going for them.
Most notably, Penn has shot at least 46 percent from the floor -- eight percent above its season average -- in three of its last four games.
"A lot of the improvement in shooting comes with confidence," Penn coach Kelly Greenberg said. "With this young team, I was preaching defense a lot. Now it's like, 'We can't score, so let's talk about offense.'"
The talk clearly paid off, as Penn's 84 points against Columbia was the second-highest total by an Ivy team in conference play this season.
"People are starting to take better shots," Penn junior point guard Tara Twomey said. "We have a lot of good shooters, but our shot selection maybe hadn't been the best.
"We've gone over what kind of shots we're looking for from each player, and I think that's probably contributed to our better shooting percentage."
The Quakers will need to continue this recent trend tonight if they want to have any chance at a win. Penn is 0-8 when shooting below 39 percent from the field.
But the task won't be easy against the Elis, which are allowing just 62.3 points per game and are holding their opponents to a measly 37 percent from the floor and 26 percent from three-point range -- all Ancient Eight bests.
Greenberg, however, isn't concerned with the statistics.
"I don't get caught up too much in numbers," Greenberg said. "I look more at their personnel and what we can do well against what they have. Hopefully, we just continue to have the confidence and make the shots."
At the other end of the court, the Elis are a significant three-point threat, with three starters hitting at least 35 percent from beyond the arc.
This high mark can be attributed to Yale's ability to penetrate well and kick the ball out for the open jumper.
"Yale really likes to drive to the basket," Twomey said. "We're working on our defense, staying in front of our players and just taking pride in our own one-on-one defense."
A hard-fought match with Yale should make things easier for the Quakers tomorrow night against Brown, the current cellar dweller in the league standings.
Statistically, the Bears are at or near the bottom of the Ancient Eight in every major offensive category. Defensively, however, Brown is No. 1 in blocks, averaging 5.16 per game.
The Bears' height advantage will present a significant challenge to the Quakers, which have been the smaller team in basically every game they have played this season.
However, Penn's focus will be on its own game.
"It never matters who you play," Clark said. "What matters is that we focus on winning, staying together and playing well."
