Five days after allowing 14 three-pointers to Villanova, the Ivy League's sixth-ranked three-point defense is in for another tough night.
When the Quakers (4-3) travel to Annapolis, Md. to face Navy (7-2) tonight, they know exactly what they'll be in for.
The Midshipmen have attempted 223 three-pointers this year, compared to 227 deuces, and they're connecting from beyond the arc at a 40 percent clip.
Not only that, but Navy's opponents are making just over a quarter of their attempts from deep over the last four games.
With their only losses coming at the hands of the Big East's Villanova (by nine) and St. John's, the Middies boast a much-improved team from the one that left that foul stench in the Palestra last year.
In the Quakers' 86-73 win, Navy committed 35 fouls and watched Penn knock down 39 of 55 free throws. Senior guard Ibrahim Jaaber burned the Navy defense for a career-high 31 points.
"The guys are a year older, a year more experienced with the system and they have a few new additions," Quakers coach Glen Miller said. "So I think they're a considerably better team than they were last year.
Leading the experienced Navy squad is Greg Sprink, with whom Miller is plenty familiar. Sprink scored 34 points in Navy's win over Miller's Brown team last year and is now leading the Midshipmen with 17.2 points per game.
"He shoots the ball from the next county," Miller said. "He's also good off the dribble, so he's not just a three-point shooter.
And, Miller said, "It doesn't stop with him. They have five guys in their starting lineup who can shoot the three."
Among them is 6-foot-10 freshman Trey Stanton, who will be a load for the Quakers to handle, although not in the typical way. Stanton is shooting 15-for-33 from three-point range.
Who could handle a player like that? Maybe someone who has the same dual threat.
"He can shoot the ball pretty well," said Mark Zoller, who is himself shooting 45 percent from three-point range. "And being 6-10, I think that creates a problem both inside and out."
The Midshipment have problems of their own, of which rebounding may be the most pressing.
But Navy comes into the game hot, having won three straight games, albeit not in impressive fashion.
The Midshipmen took two overtimes to beat Howard 79-75 last time out. Before that, Navy notched a two-point overtime victory against Longwood and a healthier 79-63 win over William & Mary.
This one will be a much tougher test for Navy coach and admitted Penn fan Billy Lange and his Midshipmen. Navy has not beaten Penn since 1988 and is now riding a five-game losing streak against the Quakers.
"We know going into the game that this is going to be a senior-laden team that has great toughness and great pride in playing at Penn," said Lange, who grew up in South Jersey and was a Jay Wright assistant at Villanova.
For his counterpart, it didn't take long to find the irony in scheduling this game.
And Miller isn't necessarily happy about having to play an inspired military academy on the anniversary of one of the armed services' darkest days.
"On top of it all, we're playing them on Pearl Harbor Day," Miller said, "so we're walking into the lions' den."
