Penn blown out by St. Joseph's, 85-64

If there was any doubt that Penn is far removed from the top of the Ivy League, there is no need for further debate; the evidence is clear.

The Quakers were trounced last night, 85-64, by a Saint Joseph’s team that has struggled mightily this year, dropping games to both Cornell and Princeton as part of the non-conference schedule.

While the Hawks (8-11, 1-2 Big 5) are sporting a three-game win streak, the Quakers (1-13, 0-4) are heading in the opposite direction. After committing a season-high 27 turnovers that led to 34 St. Joe’s points, it appears that Jerome Allen’s unit has taken another step backward just days before the start of Ivy play.

But in spite of the skewed numbers, the Quakers played fundamentally sound basketball early and exposed the Hawks’ weakness on the glass in the first 10 minutes of the game.

Penn collapsed on the boards and outrebounded the Hawks 8-4 during an early stretch that allowed the Quakers to overcome an early eight-point deficit to make the game close.

With Penn down 23-20, Jack Eggleston drew a loose ball foul on the Hawks’ Garrett Williamson, leading to the high point of the Penn night.

Darren Smith took a pass off the inbound at the top of the key. With a hand in his face, Smith knocked down a jumper from behind the arc to knot the game with 9:47 left in the first half.

But it was all downhill from there for the Quakers, as Penn was unable to convert another field goal through its half-court set for the rest of the stanza.

Meanwhile, the Hawks’ lead was augmented following the final media time out. On the ensuing possession, St. Joseph’s guard Charoy Bentley drilled a trifecta from the left side after quick ball movement had the Penn 1-3-1 zone scrambling.

“We didn’t move with a sense of urgency after the first 15 minutes on the defensive end. Instead of going after them, we just wanted to reach for things,” Allen said.

“On top of that, St. Joe’s is a well-coached team. Every opportunity they had to take a ball, they did that,” he added.

Nobody demonstrated this better than guard Darrin Govens, who led the Hawks with 17 points.

With just 40 seconds left in the half. Govens pulled down two offensive rebounds before hitting the floor to pursue a loose ball. As Brian Fitzpatrick lunged to get a tie-up, Govens threw the ball into the backcourt from the seat of his pants to secure yet another St. Joe’s possession.

The Hawks finished the half on a 13-0 run. Coach Phil Martelli said the game plan was simple: stop Rosen.

Penn was clearly rattled on the offensive end with Rosen neutralized, as they continued to struggle finding good looks at the basket. Consequently, the Quakers couldn’t keep pace and saw the deficit stretch to 35 with just over seven minutes left in the game.

With the book out on how to stop the Quaker attack, it has now become necessary for other players to step up.

And if they don’t, there’s reason to believe that the next 14 games are going to be just as disappointing as the first.

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