Saturday night was senior night at the Palestra, but it was a sophomore and a freshman that stole the show in the Quakers' home finale. Forward Mark Zoller had 19 points, 13 in the second half to lead Penn, while freshman guard David Whitehurst, making his fourth consecutive start, had 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. The Quakers jumped out to a big early lead, but Harvard battled back on multiple occasions to cut the deficit to as few as seven with with 8:30 left in the game, but the Quakers allowed only seven points after that and cruised to victory. Zoller started Penn's second-half push with seven points to open the half. Senior guard Tim Begley had 11 points in his final home game of his career. Begley and fellow seniors Eric Heil, Nameir Majette and Jan Fikiel were honored before the game and Heil and Majette made their first collegiate starts. Majette had four points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting including a thunderous dunk in his five minutes of action. After the game the Quakers cut down the nets in celebration of their 23rd Ivy League title and 21st trip to the NCAA Tournament. They also received the Ivy League championship trophy before the game.
Up next: Princeton, who swept Harvard and Dartmouth for their first and only Ivy sweep of the year, will host the Quakers on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. The Tigers are looking to avoid finishing with a sub-.500 league record for the first time in the history of the Ancient Eight.
Notes: Fikiel's father Cristoph was in attendance this weekend -- the first time he has seen his son play in college. Harvard head coach Frank Sullivan was too sick to attend the game. He was replaced on the bench by assistant Bill Holden. Former Quakers star Andy Toole (2003) led the blue team to an 81-75 victory over Matt Langel's red team earlier Saturday in the annual alumni game at the Palestra. Toole set an unofficial alumni-game record by knocking down five consecutive three-pointers.
Elsewhere: At Jadwin Gym: Princeton 65, Dartmouth 54 At John J. Lee Amphitheater: Yale 81, Columbia 68 At The Pizzitola Center: Cornell 71, Brown 61
Tuesday: Yale at Brown, 7 p.m. PENN at Princeton, 7:30 p.m.
