Tonight Penn hosts a very different Saint Joseph's team from the one it faced last season.
When the two teams squared off at the Palestra last year, it was a battle between the Quakers' Jeff Schiffner -- who nailed a career-high seven three-pointers -- and the Hawks' reigning National Player of the Year Jameer Nelson, who scored 23 points and nabbed eight steals en route to a 67-59 victory.
After an undefeated regular season and an Elite Eight appearance, St. Joe's (8-7, 1-0 Big 5) has since lost its much-heralded backcourt of Nelson and Delonte West, both of whom now play in the NBA.
But Penn (6-7, 1-2 Big 5) insists that it cannot afford to underestimate the new-look Hawks, regardless of their seemingly depleted roster.
"We want to win every game we play," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "St. Joe's is a very formidable group, and I think they are playing their best basketball of the season right now."
The Hawks boast an impressive inside-outside game. On the outside, senior Pat Carroll and junior Chet Stachitas provide strong three-point shooting. They lead the team in scoring with 14.6 and 13.8 points per content, respectively.
"They have good balance between offense and defense -- between the perimeter shooting and Dwayne Jones, who is a dominant force defensively with rebounding and blocking and changing shots," Dunphy said.
Indeed, Jones averages nearly 11 ppg, while also leading St. Joe's with 10.9 rebounds per game.
For Penn senior Tim Begley, tonight's game provides an opportunity to compete one final time against Carroll, his four-year Big 5 rival.
"Pat and I came in the same year, so I've played against him for the last couple years," Begley said. "I'd like to get this last one, to go out on a winning note against him."
Defending Carroll may not be easy for the Quakers, but it will also not be an entirely new thing for the Red and Blue.
Begley admits that he and Carroll are "pretty similar players, in that we both like to shoot."
Sophomore guard Ibby Jaaber, used to guarding Begley in practice, is not afraid of facing the Hawks' senior sharpshooter, whom Penn senior forward Eric Heil likened to legendary Indiana great -- and current Iowa men's basketball coach -- Steve Alford.
"Defending [Carroll] will be pretty similar to guarding Begley, and also Eric Osmundson, who has shown he can shoot the three too," Jaaber said.
The Quakers' sophomore starting guard was recently named the Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Week, after scoring a career-high 24 points in Penn's win over Lafayette. While Jaaber entered the game shooting 17 percent from beyond the arc, he drained four of five three-pointers.
"Ibby's a great player," Begley said. "As his confidence keeps on growing, the sky's the limit for him."
Dunphy mirrored Begley's sentiments.
"It would be great if that were a sign of things to come," he said. "Without [Jaaber] being a scoring threat, we're not nearly as good a basketball team."
St. Joe's had a rough start to the season, but it has bounced back recently, winning five of its last six games -- including a victory over Big 5 rival La Salle.
"They compete harder than any other team we play all year," Begley said. "Defensively they do some tricky things."
St. Joe's may not have Nelson or West, but it nonetheless poses a major test for the Quakers before the Ivy League season begins this weekend.
"It is definitely a very important game," Jaaber said. "Some of us even approach it like a conference game, because it is Big 5 and it is important to be one of the best teams in the city.
"It would be a big win, and it would just add to our momentum heading into the Ivy League season."
