Since Penn stepped off the court against Princeton at the end of last season, everyone -- from his coach to his teammates to the casual fan -- knew that this would be Tim Begley's team.
The Penn senior guard showed again on Saturday afternoon why people were so quick to name him heir to the throne previously held by former Penn guard Jeff Schiffner, as Begley went off for a career-high 29 points against La Salle.
His game was sloppy early on, though.
Begley missed an open jumper after La Salle's Steven Smith went up too strong for a contested layup. On La Salle's ensuing possession, the Quakers allowed the Explorers to corral two offensive rebounds. But as was the case all afternoon, La Salle failed to convert on either opportunity.
Begley's next shot missed everything. The Penn captain had a decent look from behind the arc and simply failed to convert. Quickly, it appeared as though the Quakers were in for a long afternoon.
But with his shooting off early, Begley found a way to help his team. He grabbed a rebound off a missed layup by La Salle's Mike St. John and then fed teammate Jan Fikiel for an easy bucket.
Begley had two more assists before scoring his first points of the night. The Freehold, N.J., native drained a three-pointer to cap an eight-point Penn run, giving the Quakers the lead, 15-6. He did not score again until less than a minute remained in the first half, but it came when the Explorers had whittled Penn's lead to just four points.
Hitting two free throws and then a three with a hand in his face and the clock running down in the first half, it was evident that in the blink of an eye, the Quakers' leader had taken control of the game.
Begley ran back to the bench, bumping chests with teammates, slapping high-fives and screaming at the Quakers student section as he raced into the locker room.
La Salle coach John Giannini could only think of one word to describe Begley's shot -- "Huge."
Penn's captain was not only beginning to score, but he also scored when it mattered.
Nothing seemed to change when the teams came out for the second half. The Explorers opened with a trey by Smith, again cutting the Quakers' lead to four. But Begley answered with a driving layup and drew a foul. He hit the free-throw to complete the three-point play.
The pattern continued all night -- every time La Salle inched close, Begley was there to slam the door.
By the end of the night, the senior had amassed 29 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, leading both teams in all three categories. He also hit an incredible 8-of-11 three-pointers, the second most ever by a Penn player in a single game.
"I've had many better nights," Begley said smiling. "I don't know if I have had a better night on the basketball court making shots. It was fun tonight."
Penn's captain has not only been a force on the court, but also has been strong off of it, mentoring a very young team. The Quakers have a regular eight-man rotation that includes four sophomores and one freshman. But he realizes that he cannot do it all on his own.
"I think a lot of the younger guys kind of look to me to make some plays, and I think when I do they kind of build off that," he said. "We build off each other."
When Begley was on the bench, Penn was simply not the same. During the 87 seconds Begley sat, the Explorers went on a 7-0 run.
"You just got to give a lot of credit to the guy," Giannini said. "He made eight out of 11 threes. You put most players in a gym alone and they won't make eight out of 11 threes."
Begley doing more than just scoring
Penn's senior guard Tim Begley had the best game of his career, leading the Quakers to a 78-67 victory over La Salle. From downtown: The Freehold, N.J., native hit 8-of-11 thee-pointers, the second most by a Penn player in a single game. Inside out: Despite his outstanding three-point shooting, Begley only went 2-for-6 from two-point range. Team leader: The senior led all players with 29 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. If not for the Quakers' Ibby Jabber who had four steals Begley also would have led both teams with two. He also was tied for a game-high in blocks -- no one had any.
