M. Hoops | Win comes as 'relief' for Red and Blue

ORLANDO, Fla. Dec. 29-30, 2008 - At the UCF Holiday Classic, Penn was on a mission to notch its first win since a Nov. 22 drubbing of Monmouth.

The Quakers didn't succeed on their first try, falling, 81-64, to the tournament's host but were able to bounce back, beating Campbell, 78-67, to take third place in the four-team tournament.

After leading the Quakers in scoring both nights, sophomore Jack Eggleston took home all-tournament team honors.

UCF 81, Penn 64

When Penn took the floor against Central Florida after a record 24-day layoff, it was just more of the same as before the break.

The Quakers notched their seventh loss of the year and found themselves in the consolation game the next day against Campbell.

Penn coach Glen Miller gave freshman Rob Belcore his first start against the Golden Knights, hoping his size and defensive skills would make for a better matchup with UCF's top-scoring threat, guard Jermaine Taylor. But the result was 34 points for Taylor, including 3-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc, tying his career-high.

"He's a tough player," said senior Kevin Egee, who had a turn guarding Taylor when Belcore took a breather. "I think Rob did a pretty good job on him, but anytime a guy goes 34 points, he can't do that well of a job on him."

Penn kept pace with UCF in the first half and went into the break down just 35-32.

But then the game unraveled for the Quakers, as they looked tired to start the second frame.

The Knights shot nearly 61 percent from the field after the break and led by as many as 22 points.

"We did a lot of things wrong as a team in the second half rather than just them playing a little tighter defense on me," said sophomore Tyler Bernardini, who scored just one second-half point off a free throw. "It's just a frustrating second half."

Penn 78, Campbell 67

Desperate for a win, the Quakers soothed their wounds with a victory over a Campbell squad who was 3-7 heading into the game.

"When you go out and work hard everyday in practice and you're trying to compete, it's a relief and you feel good about that," Miller said. "I think we took a step forward."

In front of a sparse crowd at the UCF Arena, Penn had the opportunity to put the game away early. The Quakers were ahead by 13 points midway through the first half after a five-minute Campbell scoring drought.

But just like in the UCF game, the Red and Blue had a slow start to the second half. Campbell went on a 9-2 run and brought the score to within two.

"The wheels were falling off at the end and we would have liked to finish them off through to the end and even made the lead bigger, but you take any win," Belcore said.

Belcore added seven assists and committed no turnovers in 29 minutes of play after earning his second straight start.

Penn senior Cameron Lewis exploded in the second half, adding six points over a two-minute stretch and went a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.

"You look at their stats, they've got pretty even distribution," Camels coach Robbie Laing said. "I wasn't expecting - gosh, can't even remember the kid's name . . . Lewis to come down with 14 [points] and seven [rebounds]."

Five Penn players finished double digits on the night and Eggleston led with 16 points.

In the nightcap, host UCF defeated Chicago State, 89-75, to take the UCF Holiday Classic Title.

But for the Quakers, getting that one 'W' might have been a good enough prize.

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