The Penn basketball team played arguably its best game of the season last weekend against Indiana State, shooting 61.1 percent from the field in an 86-48 victory.
The Quakers (2-2) will have to play even better to defeat No. 12 Saint Joseph's on Saturday in the Big 5 Classic.
"We have to play extremely well, I don't think there's any secret to that," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "They are one of the best teams in the country."
The Hawks (4-0) boast one of the best -- if not the best -- backcourts in the country, with senior preseason first-team All-American Jameer Nelson and junior Delonte West -- both of whom average over 18 points a game.
Penn senior co-captain Charlie Copp scored a career-high 18 points against the Sycamores on Saturday. He will have the daunting task of guarding Nelson, last season's Big 5 Most Outstanding Player, for most of the game.
Dunphy noted that senior co-captain Jeff Schiffner, junior Tim Begley and freshman Ibby Jaaber will also defend Nelson.
"We'll do a lot of switching," Dunphy said. "Charlie will start on [Nelson] but other guys will guard him too."
Last season, Penn limited Nelson to 4-for-15 shooting. But the Wooden Award candidate still managed to score 18 points en route to a St. Joe's 66-48 victory.
The Quakers' backcourt will have their hands full, guarding not only Nelson and West but also senior guard Tyrone Barley and junior marksman Pat Carroll.
"They've got a lot of weapons," Dunphy said.
Barley averages 10 points per game while Carroll averages nearly eight. Both scored 12 in St. Joe's season-opening victory over then-No. 10 Gonzaga.
"They are a veteran team," Dunphy said. "Barley's been shooting it well and Delonte West is developing into one of the best guards in the country."
In addition to the Hawks' potent offensive attack -- four players are shooting .400 or higher from three-point land -- the Hawks also have a strong defense, limiting their four opponents to an average of 61.5 points.
"Offensively, we really have to work hard," Schiffner said. "They really get after you defensively and they put a lot of pressure on you."
"We'll have to really knock some shots in, there's no question about it."
Schiffner led Division I in three-point shooting last year at 49.3 percent. Thus far this season, the Chester, N.J., native is shooting 40 percent from behind the arc.
While 150 of Schiffner's 196 field goal attempts last season were three-pointers, his shooting is more balanced this year, with 21 two-point attempts and 20 three-point shots.
Defenses have tried to deny Schiffner the ball on the wing and limit his effectiveness on the outside. But, in the process, opponents have created opportunities for Penn's other players to step up.
Copp is a prime example. On Saturday, after his 18-point performance, Indiana State coach Royce Waltman said, "we knew [Penn] had a lot of good shooters, but we weren't expecting [Copp] to shoot the ball that well."
Schiffner noted that Penn's depth will be pivotal to its success this season.
"I think we've gotten great contributions from everybody that's come in and I think that's a key for the team and it's going to be a key for the team," he said. "We're going to need that up and down the lineup."
St. Joe's is the third nationally ranked team that the Quakers will face this season. While the first two games resulted in losses to then-No. 15 Wisconsin and then-No. 3 Michigan State, they provided invaluable experience for Penn's team -- particularly its underclassmen.
"You hope that every time out is a learning experience and we're learning more and more about the team, about our strengths and our weaknesses," Dunphy said.
Dunphy noted that Jaaber -- who notched 11 points in 14 minutes against the Sycamores -- has earned playing time in the rotation and "the better he plays the more minutes he'll get."
"And you can say that basically about everybody," he added. "We played 11 guys over the first four games so everybody has their moment."
Win or lose, Penn will gain from playing a team such as St. Joe's.
"It's tremendous preparation for the rest of the season," Schiffner said. "These teams are the cream of the crop in college basketball."
