After back-to-back victories over Yale and Brown this weekend, the Penn men's basketball team now sits in the driver's seat in the race for the Ivy League title. While 12 more games remain on their schedule, here are three reasons why the Quakers should win the Ivy championship this year:
A strong start
The Red and Blue began the Ivy season with a weekend sweep -- their fifth opening sweep in the last seven years -- to stand alone on top of the Ivy standings.
While there is much more of the season to be played, the Quakers knew the significance of starting the season 2-0.
They only had to look to last season for inspiration. Opening the Ivy season with losses at Yale and Brown, the 2003-04 Quakers had their backs to the wall for the rest of the season. They were faced with the arduous task of winning out in order to have a legitimate shot at the league title.
This year, all the returning players made sure they did not have to face the same situation again.
"Every sophomore on the team talked to me about it at least once," Penn forward Steve Danley said about last year's road losses.
But what Danley didn't know was that the Quakers now have history on their side.
In the last 15 years, only two Ivy champions have not swept the opening weekend in conference play -- Penn in 2001-02 and Princeton in 1989-90.
While the Quakers still have to face all of their Ivy opponents on the road -- including preseason Ivy favorite Princeton -- they can travel knowing that one loss will not eliminate them from Ivy title contention. Interior presence
The Quakers received monster games from their frontcourt players, especially starting forwards Steve Danley and Mark Zoller.
While Zoller led the team in rebounds both nights, Danley tallied a career-high 16 points against Yale, only to put forth a 22-point performance the following night.
But Danley and Zoller aren't the only players who contribute to the inside play.
With 6-foot-9 Ryan Pettinella, who is very physical around the rim, and 6-10 Jan Fikiel, who can drain 20-foot jumpers, the Quakers can take advantage of a deep rotation of frontcourt players.
And in the Ivy League, having one or two strong interior players, let alone four, can make a huge difference. Last year, Brown center Jaime Kilburn was able to dominate Penn inside the paint, tallying 26 points and 12 rebounds in a 92-88 overtime win against the Quakers.
This year, the Bears had no answer, as Penn scored more than half of their points in the paint (42) and played with intensity under the boards.
Penn guard Eric Osmundson talked about the advantages of having the inside game relieve the pressure of making the outside shot -- the Quakers only attempted 13 threes against Brown.
"That was our main focus for this game ... I think pounding the ball opens up shots for the outside," Osmundson said. "As long as they're scoring, we're gonna keep pounding it into them." Stingy Defense
One look at the scores of this weekend's contests would indicate that the Penn defense was at its best all season.
The Red and Blue held an Elis team that was averaging 66 points per game to 41 points -- its lowest output of the season.
Yes, Yale did shoot a pathetic 29 percent from the floor for the game, including a 7-for-29 second-half performance.
But the Quakers also forced 20 Yale turnovers and held its athletic duo of guards Edwin Draughan and Alex Gamboa to a combined 13 points.
The next night against Brown, the Red and Blue was able to hold former Ivy Player of the Year Jason Forte to zero points in the first half.
This is the same guard who scored 52 in two Brown wins over Penn last season.
While Forte finished with 15 points on Saturday, he was rendered ineffective for the entire game.
So how were the Quakers able to control two of the Ivy League's stronger offensive teams?
"I think our defense has become pretty solid," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said after the Brown game. "These guys do a good job of communicating out there, they're helping one another. We're not giving up an inordinate amount of offensive rebounds."
If the Quakers continue their unselfish play for the next five weeks, they should find themselves cutting the nets down in early March.
Michael Gertner is a junior biological basis of behavior major from Bellmore, N.Y. His e-mail address ismgertner@sas.upenn.edu.
