Rocky road

With a team as young as Penn -- starting five freshmen at one point or another -- playing in any building other than the Palestra will be tough.

The Red and Blue started their away schedule off on a sour note, getting blown out by Loyola in Baltimore. The Quakers then fell to Lafayette earlier this week, in a game they probably should have won, but one that it is hardly a surprise that they didn't.

After edging the Quakers in overtime at the Palestra in the season opener, Drexel coach Bruiser Flint knew the Red and Blue would be two different teams on the home and road this season.

"[If I was coaching Penn, I'd know] my team is going to be really good at home, I just have to get them to play pretty good on the road, because they're young," Flint said after the win. As a young team they can sneak some home wins, but they just have to be able to play well on the road. "As a young team, [they] have to be able to play with some poise on the road."

Penn's game against No. 22 Villanova will no doubt be a tough one. But even if the Quakers lose (and they likely will) this is an instance where a moral victory does, indeed count. Penn has always had trouble playing on the road, for whatever reason, and staying with a borderline top-25 team would be a big step in being able to win games down the road away from the comforts of 33rd street.