As college basketball fans across the country fill out their NCAA brackets, Penn students are unable to pick their Quakers.
In 1979, Penn was far from excluded from the tournament. The Quakers reached the Final Four in the Division I basketball championships, and The Daily Pennsylvanian noted the students’ resulting enthusiasm.
Over 150 students flew out to see their fellow classmates play in the NCAA championship in Salt Lake City in a pair of airplanes chartered by the University, the DP reported.
This year, Penn’s initially immaculate inception to its Ivy League play ended in an exciting but unfortunate February double-overtime loss to Harvard. The Quakers continued on to finish fourth place in the Ivy League and earn their best Ivy League record in three years, at 7-7.
Even without further trips to the NCAA championships, Penn basketball fans continue to line up at the Palestra in the traditional start-of-season battle for the best seats, while those unable to make it to the games follow on their smart phones.
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