M. Hoops | Philadelphia finally friendly to Crimson

The Penn basketball team sure kept the statisticians busy this weekend.

After confirming that Dartmouth swept Penn for the first time since 1959 Friday, they revealed that Harvard's 66-60 win over the Quakers Saturday was its first at the Palestra since 1991.

"It doesn't make sense," said senior Cam Lewis of Penn's 0-4 mark in conference play in Philadelphia this season. "We beat teams on the road and then play worse at home."

The contest against Harvard (11-13, 3-7) came down to the final minute of play, when the Crimson's leading scorer Jeremy Lin finally made his presence felt. Ineffective for much of the game after injuring his ankle in a loss to Princeton Friday night, Lin sunk a three-pointer off a feed from senior Drew Housman to put Harvard up 61-58 with 37 seconds left in the game.

"We were basically just running a high pick and roll and coach [Tommy Amaker] put the ball in my hands and he allowed me just the freedom to just try and make a play," Housman said.

After Penn guard Zack Rosen's layup wouldn't fall on the other side of the court, Penn sent Lin to the line two more times where he sealed the Harvard victory.

This was also the first time that Penn (8-15, 4-5 Ivy) was swept at home by Harvard and Dartmouth since 1956-57.

For Penn coach Glen Miller, it was a few missed boxouts and a few missed free throws that hurt Penn in a game where, according to him, there wasn't "that much separation."

The Quakers finished a dismal 14-for-25 from the charity stripe, including a 2-for-8 mark from Lewis.

"This is not a session to criticize Cam because he does some good things, but that's the price you pay with him at times," Miller said.

Penn was no match for the Crimson in the paint to begin the game - forward Keith Wright tallied 11 points in the first half. Although Harvard only led by as many as six in the first stanza, it felt like the game was getting away.

But with foul trouble keeping Wright and fellow big man Evan Harris on the bench, Penn was able to mount a comeback.

"We were trying basically to massage [our lead] as much as we could and hold on," said Amaker, who is in his second year after coaching at Michigan for six seasons.

Penn senior Kevin Egee got hot from long distance, adding three baskets from beyond the arc in the second half as the Palestra came alive. A dunk by Lewis tied the game at 46 with 7:09 remaining in the contest as the Quakers tried to hold on.

Though Lin received the late-game accolades, it was Housman who carried the Crimson throughout the night. With strong drives to the basket and smart passes, he led all scorers with 22 points and chipped in five assists.

The Quakers had little offensive momentum in the first half, shooting just 31 percent from the field.

"We didn't have a good start," said Penn forward Jack Eggleston, who led all Penn scorers with 14 points. "We came out lazy and it showed."

Miller seemed to be stumped for a solution to the Quakers' continuing problems.

"I don't know what else you can do as a coach and I think quite frankly, I don't know what else you can do as a player."

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