Last night, North Carolina and Duke started a new chapter in their age-old rivalry, with the visiting Tar Heels edging the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium 79-73.
And while the Penn basketball team has gotten a taste of this level of competition - losing last year to Duke and this year to North Carolina - one Penn player used to be right in the thick of it.
Fifth-year senior swingman Adam Franklin, having excelled at Tatnall High School both on and off the court, was heavily recruited by then-UNC coach Matt Doherty to play for the Tar Heels.
Given his achievements academically and his leadership qualities, Franklin was named a Jackie Robinson Scholar by the Jackie Robinson Foundation, which awarded him a scholarship to attend UNC.
However, the opportunity to gain an education at the Wharton Business School and potentially get more playing time led Franklin to transfer to Penn after his sophomore year.
Although Franklin has never had the chance to make much of an impact in the box scores, one of his most defining moments came a few weeks ago at the ESPN Zone in New York City.
As the featured Jackie Robinson Scholar at an event celebrating Robinson's birthday, Franklin introduced ESPN baseball analysts Karl Ravech and Hall of Famer Joe Morgan, and he later engaged in a dialogue with them in front of the hundreds in attendance about his times at Penn and at UNC.
"It was a really neat event," he said. "I got to interact with a lot of sponsors, and I got to meet [Mets manager] Willie Randolph," among others.
Getting his start in Chapel Hill, Franklin competed on both the Tar Heels' varsity and junior varsity basketball squads before moving to Philadelphia.
"I had always loved Penn, and coach Dunphy was very welcoming," he said.
Upon joining the Quakers, Franklin was forced to sit out a year due to transfer rules.
He used that year to get acquainted with his new surroundings and with the intensity of the Wharton School. As a fifth-year senior, he is currently in his final year of NCAA eligibility and last semester as an undergraduate.
While the switch from "a traditional college campus" to a "school within a big city" was difficult, Franklin praised the more experienced players on the 2004-05 squad, specifically Tim Begley, for making the transition easier.
"In my years on the team, I've seen each senior, from Begley to [Eric Osmundson] to Friedrich Ebede, really leave his mark on the team."
One of the initial shocks to Franklin in comparing the Ivy League to the ACC was the difference in the structure of the season. He commented that the necessity to win the regular season in the Ivy League to advance to the tournament made each individual game "much more pressured."
Although not a force on the court, Franklin, in his third season with the Quakers, has had a positive impact on his teammates.
"Being a team player has been one of my main contributions," he said. "I try to set examples for people to follow and be a leader by trying to get kids to go harder [in practice]."
And some of Franklin's most memorable moments on the team have come in practice.
While he wouldn't reveal any specifics, he noted that "it's always great to watch my teammates get dunked on and then see the losing parties buying the dunkers dinner."
Among Franklin's other memories on the team have been trips to the NCAA tournament and the winter trip to Hawaii to face the University of Hawaii and BYU-Hawaii in 2005.
Now in his final year of Penn hoops, Franklin has no regrets about his diverse experience.
"Personally, I've had a very fulfilling experience at Penn and a great one at UNC," he said. "I've been able to get to go to school at two places I love."
