Last year's game against Delaware is one that the Penn women's basketball team would rather forget.
In its worst loss of the season, Penn was stifled by the Blue Hen defense, putting up only 34 points and losing by a 44 point margin.
But even though it's a new year, the Quakers (2-1, 0-0 Ivy) can still expect many features of the Blue Hens to remain the same.
Delaware (4-1) returns four starters, as well as its stout zone defense.
"Delaware's defense is just really strong, so it's going to be tough no matter what," senior guard Joey Rhoads said.
And the Quakers feel that they have a good idea of what needs to be done.
We need to "keep working the ball around and passing quicker." Rhoads said. "We're pretty unselfish and have been doing a good job getting a lot of assists and rebounding well in the past games."
Penn has tallied 46 assists so far this season, with Lauren Pears leading the team at 16 and Rhoads next with 11.
The Quakers' three-point shooting has been less than impressive so far.
Rhoads, who accounted for a quarter of the team's points last year, has hit only 4 of 17. The bright spot is sophomore Kelly Scott, who has made three of four so far.
Penn coach Pat Knapp described the Blue Hens as one of the top two or three teams his squad will face.
And Delaware looks even hotter this season. The Blue Hens won the University of San Francisco Odwalla Tournament last weekend and pulled an 86-70 upset over then-No. 20 Kentucky in the process.
The Blue Hens also received nine votes in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, their first in school history.
Tyresa Smith is coming off a career-high 28 points during the win over Kentucky.
"Basically, she can do everything, so we have to keep an eye out for her," Rhoads said of Smith.
Named the Colonial Athletic Association co-Player of the Week, Smith is averaging 6.8 rebounds per game and is also shooting 55 percent from the field. She is netting 19 points per game -- the same as Penn's leading scorer, Monica Naltner.
If Smith does have a weakness, it is on the free-throw line. She has hit barely half of her 30 attempts. If a close end-of-game situation presents itself, Smith might be the most enticing target to foul.
Comparatively, teammates Courtney Irving and Kyle DeHaven have also taken over 15 free throws and shot .722 and .688, respectively.
For the home team, Knapp will be looking for Naltner and Rhoads to be on top of their games, as well as for bigger contributions from Pears and forward Carrie Biemer.
"We need another post player, and maybe Carrie can get that done," Knapp said.
Both Rhoads and Knapp also talked about Delaware's height as an issue.
At 5-foot-8, senior guard Alena Koshansky is the shortest player on the Blue Hen's roster. Penn has six on its roster who are at or below that height.
However, Knapp wasn't too quick to point to height as a distinct advantage.
"Remember this: There is good height and there is bad height," he said.
But, to stop a Delaware team with a lot of momentum, the Quakers will need everyone to be playing like they are six feet tall.
