Mike Wisniewski | The 'D' is the key for Penn

ITHACA, N.Y. — While watching Penn dominate Cornell from start to finish on Saturday night, one thought came to my mind: It’s about time.

Too many times this year, the Quakers have been on the brink of victory but have fallen just short — whether it was a slow start against Villanova or soft defense against Wagner or a miss at the buzzer against Temple.

But against the Big Red — finally — Penn was firing on all cylinders.

There was no deficit to overcome, as the Red and Blue came out of the gates blazing and never trailed.

The offense was clicking, creating open shots for Zack Rosen, Tyler Bernardini and Miles Cartwright — each of whom made multiple threes on the night. When the open looks weren’t there, they drove to the basket. The duo of Rosen and Bernardini collected seven buckets in the paint.

“I’m definitely not just a three-point shooter,” Bernardini said. “I have both aspects to my game.”

But most importantly, Penn’s man-to-man defense was suffocating. Holding Cornell to 37-percent shooting from the field, the Quakers limited Drew Ferry and Chris Wroblewski — the Red’s top two scorers — to eight and four points, respectively.

Coach Jerome Allen admitted that in order for his team to compete consistently, the defense will have to be the backbone.

And he’s right.

The offense will have its hot nights and its cold nights, but the one thing Penn can always control is their defensive play.

“The challenge is, night in and night out, committing to that,” Allen said.

At postgame press conferences this season, Allen has sounded like a broken record. Whenever a question is posed about his team’s offensive ability, he always reminds those in attendance that ‘D’ is the key.

“That’s what he hangs his hat on,” Bernardini said. “The only way for us to tell him, ‘Okay, we got it,’ is for us to actually go out and do it.”

Not only did Penn force Cornell to take tough shots and miss, they also finished possessions by rebounding the ball — something they have struggled with all year.

The old saying that offense wins games but defense wins championships may be cliché, but it is based in truth.

Against the Big Red, Penn had both.

After the game, I asked Allen if this was the most complete game his team had played so far this year.

“It’s fair you could say that,” he responded. “But hopefully it wasn’t our best game of the year — especially with all the games left in front of us.”

Apparently, the only result that will satisfy the Quakers’ coach is an Ivy League title.

If they play every game like they did on Saturday, that goal seems well within reach.

MIKE WISNIEWSKI is a junior classical studies major from Philadelphia and is Sports Editor-Elect of The Daily Pennsylvanian. He can be reached at wisniewski@theDP.com

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