Duking it out for Ivy basketball supremacy

It's a case of star-versus-star Friday night. After last weekend's 25-point performance against Dartmouth, Ugonna Onyekwe moved into second place on Penn's all-time scoring list. Earlier this year, Brown's Earl Hunt became the program's all-time leading scorer. Onyekwe is second in the Ivy League in scoring, averaging 16.0 points per game. Hunt leads the league with 19.1 ppg. Each was a unanimous First Team All-Ivy selection last season. Onyekwe was Ivy League Player of the Year. Hunt led the league in scoring last year -- for the second straight season. With the Ivy League title on the line, Penn (17-5, 9-0 Ivy League) travels to Providence, R.I., to take on second-place Brown (14-10, 9-1) in a rematch after Penn's 73-66 win on Feb. 15. However, given that Hunt is a guard and Onyekwe a forward, the two will not be matched up with each other during the game. And given each player's point totals and dominance so far in the Ivy League season, it is likely that the other positions on the floor will be where the game is decided. At point guard, Brown sophomore point guard Jason Forte will look to recover from a 1-for-12 shooting performance the last time he faced the Quakers. He will be guarded for the most part by Penn senior point guard Andrew Toole, who also was disappointing in his previous matchup with the Bears. Toole, who was sick during the game, went 1-for-7 and scored only two points, more than nine below his season average. While each player's scoring average has hovered around 11 points this year, Toole has done so with a .440 shooting percentage while Forte has shot a less-than-respectable .359. Toole was a first team All-Ivy selection last year. Point Guard Advantage: Penn Junior guard Jeff Schiffner will again have the difficult task of guarding Hunt. The last time they faced off, Schiffner did a decent job on Hunt, holding him to only 13 points on 5-for-15 shooting from the floor. Schiffner's offense was limited by the effort expended by defense, as he scored seven points, four beneath his average. Despite Schiffner's great shooting on the year -- .449 from three-point range, Hunt has been amongst the best players in the Ivy League for four years and has been the catalyst for Brown's surprising status as an Ivy League title contender. Off-guard Advantage: Brown Brown junior guard Mike Martin will contribute solid perimeter defense to Brown's effort, as he has averaged more than 1.6 steals per game. However, offensively, Martin's production has been limited, averaging 6.7 points per game on .441 shooting. Penn sophomore guard Tim Begley has been an effective contributor throughout the Ivy League season, especially with timely shooting and rebounding. Despite his early season struggles, Begley's .459 shooting percentage from behind the arc ensures that Penn's big men have a reliable outlet besides Schiffner when double-teamed. Off-guard Advantage: Penn Penn senior forward Koko Archibong was a major factor in Penn's earlier win over Brown, scoring 18 points on 4-for-7 shooting and 9-for-10 from the free-throw line. He used his size advantage over Brown forward Jamie Kilburn -- Archibong is 6'9" while Kilburn is 6'5" -- to get good post position. Archibong's strong play forced Kilburn to commit four fouls in 13 minutes of ineffective play. Kilburn is an efficient, if underutilized, offensive option, scoring 3.1 points per game on .657 shooting from the field. Archibong was yet another first team All-Ivy a season ago for the Quakers. Forward Advantage: Penn

The marquee post matchup of the game features Brown's Alai Nuualiitia against Onyekwe. Each player had great offensive games in the previous battle, with Nuualiitia netting 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting. That was on the heels of an 8-for-8 shooting game against Princeton. The 6'7" forward has averaged 13.0 points per game on an absurd .620 shooting from the field. Despite Nuualiitia's outing, Onyekwe was the star, scoring 19 points in the first half and finishing with 21 on the night. Brown was forced to double-team him frequently in the second half, leaving the Quakers open on the perimeter. Penn guard David Klatsky and Schiffner hit key threes down the stretch, with Brown having to change its defense to contain Onyekwe. Despite Nuualiitia's great game, Penn was not forced to alter its defense to contain him and its focus remained on stopping Brown's backcourt. Forward Advantage: Penn Regardless of the star power in both teams' starting lineups, it could be another unexpected factor that determines the outcome of the game. Klatsky's clutch shooting -- hitting two three-pointers in Penn's game- ending 12-0 run -- guaranteed that Penn would enter its biggest game of the season in first place.

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