W. Hoops looks to take care of Yale and Brown

Penn brings a two-game winning streak on the road to Yale and Brown, after edging Columbia and Cornell at home last weekend. But if the Quakers (9-9, 3-2 Ivy) are to contend for the Ivy League championship, they will likely need to garner another weekend sweep. "It could be the biggest weekend of the season," Penn coach Kelly Greenberg said. "If we get two W's, we'll be in a position to get control of first place." Junior forward Jewel Clark mirrored Greenberg's thoughts. "Two more wins means a lot for us," she said. "We want to finish the season with a good record, and it would give us a chance at making the tournament." While the Elis (4-15, 1-5 Ivy) are winless since Jan. 31 and the Bears (10-9, 4-2 Ivy) lost twice last weekend to Harvard and Dartmouth, both pose a major challenge to the Red and Blue. "In the last three years, Yale has been our toughest road opponent," Greenberg said. "They kind of have our number at their place." Both teams present matchup problems in the paint, as they outsize the Quakers' frontcourt. But Greenberg has devised a gameplan that will exploit the teams' size using full-court defense, effectively weakening Yale and Brown's inside game. "We're going to play our style of game," Greenberg said. "We will stay out of halfcourt defense as much as possible, and keep the ball out of the paint." "Our defense has been good in the last few games," Penn center Katie Kilker said. "We will take them out of their game." Still, their current losing streaks won't mean much this weekend. Yale's lone Ancient Eight win came against Columbia, defeating them by three points, 61-58. The Quakers sneaked by Columbia, 57-56, on Feb. 8. Brown had not lost an Ivy game before last weekend, as it began the Ivy season with a 4-0 record. But Penn's streak -- unlike that of Yale and Brown -- is not a meaningless statistic. The Quakers are finally living up to expectations, as they were picked to finish second in the Ivy League in the preseason. While the Red and Blue's recent surge can be attributed to a potent inside-outside game -- in addition to 105 three-pointers, Penn has the most free-throw attempts in the Ivy League with 414 -- Clark is undoubtedly the spark that has ignited the Quakers. "Jewel's been awesome ever since the Princeton game," Greenberg said. "She said 'I'm taking over' and as a coach it's been great. "She wills her team to win." Clark ranks second in the Ivy League with 19.9 points per game. As well, the junior forward recently scored her 1,000th point in a Penn uniform. But what is making Clark's game so special is that while dominating her opponents, the Waldorf, Md. native is having a good time. "If our team is winning, and I'm doing my part, then I'm having fun," Clark said. "I know that whoever is on me can't guard me, and if you can't stop me, then I'm having a ball. "That's the mentality I have." And that is the mentality that will propel Penn to extend its winning streak to four this weekend.

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