To any athlete, a season-ending injury is devastating, and the work toward returning to action is grueling. But how does it feel to finally play again?
According to senior Tyler Bernardini, “it’s unbelievable.”
Last season, Bernardini, a former Big 5 and Ivy League Rookie of the Year, suffered a season-ending foot injury in the Quakers’ second game. Consequently, the one-time Quakers scoring leader was forced to sit and watch helplessly as the team he once carried limped to a 6-22 record and a next-to-last Ivy League finish.
“It was very tough because I think there were certain instances when I think I could have been effective and helped some of the guys,” Bernardini said.
However, after a long recovery period, the senior is now officially back, ready to play and looking to make an immediate impact on this team.
And after what the Red and Blue went through last year, they will take anything they can get.
The 2009-10 season was a tumultuous one for Penn. It opened with 10 straight losses, saw the firing of coach Glen Miller after seven games and watched several players fall to season-ending injuries.
However, despite last season’s many woes, the team now has a new coach in former Penn star Jerome Allen, a slew of talented freshmen and the return of two red-shirting seniors. All of these factors add up to a motivated team that is prepared to turn around the program.
“It’s exciting,” junior co-captain Zack Rosen said. “We feel good about where we are as a team and where we’re going as a team.”
Rosen, a unanimous All-Ivy pick a year ago, may actually be the player most excited about Bernardini’s return to action. Last season, Penn averaged a subpar 62.5 points per game — their opponents averaged 72.5 — and only two players, Rosen and senior co-captain Jack Eggleston, averaged more than 10.
While Rosen’s 17.7 points per game led the conference last season — a first for a Red and Blue player since Ernie Beck did so during the 1952-53 season — it was clear that the point guard's significant increase in scoring was more out of a necessity than a desire to do so.
Thus, Bernardini’s comeback turns all the more crucial, as it will hopefully relieve the pressure from Rosen by bringing another potent scorer to the court.
“He’s an experienced player, an established offensive threat and someone who’s going to come in and be effective for us right away,” Eggleston said.
Averaging 13 points per game and a nearly 40-percent shooting percentage from outside the arc, Bernardini should bring aspects to the Quakers that will allow for a more balanced and powerful offensive attack.
“He’s somebody other teams are going to have to focus on, and they know that and we know that,” Rosen said.
While it is difficult to tell just how well he will fit back into the system this season, it is clear that the self-described “very grateful” Bernardini has been working hard, something that has caught the attention of Allen.
“Tyler’s been great so far,” Allen said. “He’s assumed some leadership so when he’s healthy and focused he can be, and I think he’s going to be, a good player for us.”
When asked if he has any personal goals for his return, Bernardini was concise in his response.
“We just need to win," he said.
"It’s Ivy League championship or bust. That’s it.”
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