Total turnaround for Quakers on Saturday night

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- It was a total turnaround for the Penn men's basketball team on Saturday night.

Regardless of the reason for the better play from the Quakers, Penn improved statistically from the Yale game in almost every category against Brown.

Leading the charge was junior point guard Andrew Toole, who -- a night after missing all eight of his shots from the field and fouling out, scoring only six points -- hit for 13 points and did not pick up a single foul in the contest.

"In [Friday's] game my confidence was shaken a little bit," Toole said. "To not hit any shots in a big game like that really hurt."

On Saturday, "I just came out and did whatever I had to do... I'm just glad I played a solid game."

Two of the Red and Blue's younger players picked up their games as well against the Bears.

Freshman Tim Begley had one of the best first halves of any Penn player this season. He hit for 17 points in the first frame alone, hitting 5 for 7 of his shots overall, and 4 for 4 from beyond the arc. The six-foot-five guard also led all rebounders with four in the first 20 minutes, and also notched three assists.

All in all, Begley was involved -- either scoring or assisting -- in half of the Quakers' first half tally.

"I got a couple of open looks. Other guys were creating, I was kind of spotting up and they lost me a couple of times," Begley said. "I was supposed to make open shots -- that's why I was in there."

And although Begley did not score again after halftime, the Bears adjusted and had junior guard Earl Hunt defend against Begley after halftime, which slowed his offensive production. Instead, fellow guards Jeff Schiffner and Toole had the open shots and poured in 13 and five second-half points, respectively.

Begley, however, did eventually record his first career double-double when he hauled down 11 rebounds.

Penn sophomore, Adam Chubb, also had a huge game for the Red and Blue.

Chubb, who scored only two points and missed all four of his shots the night before, came off the bench and scored 13 points in the game on 5 of 9 shooting. He also grabbed three offensive rebounds.

"I think my size advantage helped tonight," the six-foot-nine center said. "Just psychologically, if you see their lineup, and one of their tallest guys is six-foot-seven, it really helps."

In fact, the Bears' starting center Alai Nuualiitia stands at that height and was held to six points -- well below his average of 11.5 per game.

The contributions of the three -- Toole, Begley and Chubb -- sparked a dramatic reversal from the night before. Penn shot 14 percent better than on Friday night and hit on 20 percent more of its three-point attempts.

One of the most notable plays was early in the second half. Brown pressed, but the Quakers broke the full-court trap with ease, as all five men on the court touched the ball, ending in a thunderous dunk by Chubb.

"Our backs were to the wall, and we knew we needed to win the rest of our games to have a shot at it," Chubb said. "With the win, we've got back our confidence, and I think that's where we need to be."

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