17-for-32

That's how Penn did from the free throw line yesterday in an 87-79 loss at home to Yale.

Unacceptable. When the offense is designed to get inside looks and is running reasonably well, you are going to go to the foul line a lot. The Quakers did just that last night, as they have quite a bit lately, but they just can't finish. Penn has had its struggles from the line in the past -- even in its better, championship seasons. But this team simply does not have the talent to afford that many misses at the free-throw line, especially when working the ball inside is the focal point of the offense.

This is the second straight game in which the number of free throws Cam Lewis alone has missed has equaled the number of points by which Penn lost. I'm not putting the loss on one guy, especially a senior that's working as hard as he can and getting good position and touches inside and hustling on defense. But when you only convert 6 of your last 20 free throw attempts, as Lewis has done going back to last week's game against Harvard, even Shaq can call that unacceptable. Harrison Gaines played well last night -- but 2-of-5 doesn't cut it either. Penn cannot win a game if it barely goes 50 percent from the line.

Obviously this season is lost and really has been since the very first home Ivy weekend. I still maintain that in a year or two, this team could be a very good one. But in order to be truly successful down the road, Glen Miller absolutely must bring in quality big men to this program that can play defense inside and finish around the basket or make free throws if need be. So far, Penn has locked down Brian Fitzpatrick, a 6-foot-7 forward who can hopefully come in and make an impact right away, but there's certainly no guarantee of that. And since no recruit is a sure thing, as Penn fans know all too well from the past several years, the forward/center position should be at the top of priority list. Penn needs at least one or two more in this coming recruiting class.

I have faith in Zack Rosen and Rob Belcore and Harrison Gaines and Tyler Bernardini, and they're all still young. Jack Eggleston needs help down low; he's been shaky during the Ivy stretch, in part because I think the pressure of having been the only steady inside option for a while finally caught up to him. Conor Turley can give you energy, but I don't think he's true starter material -- just not skilled enough. The jury is still out on Mike Howlett, and Garvin Hunt is definitely a project. Who knows how he'll turn out.

Certainly this team could have used Andreas Schreiber and will have him back at least for next season, so (barring further injury) he should help to stabilize Penn next season as the younger players develop. And if Justin Reilly returns healthy, he could give Penn a boost as well. That's the one advantage the Quakers have not had this year -- reliable seniors to stabilize the growing process for the freshmen and sophomores, who are erratic and prone to bad games every now and then.

But if Miller plans to stick around for the long haul and continue to run the offense that he's running -- which really is getting very good inside looks night in and night out -- he needs the right horses for the system. Steve Danley has referred to Miller as an "offensive genius," while Phil Martelli has said two years in a row that he "wishes" he could "coach offense like Glen Miller." Those statements may be true and are all well and good, but now the onus is on Miller to bring in and develop the right players to fit into that offense and make it work. He can get a pass on Lewis and Votel and even Schreiber and Reilly, but everyone from Eggleston's class and on is Miller's responsibility.

The truth is that Penn's offense has run so much more smoothly in recent weeks than it did earlier in the season, but based on the end results, it's hard to acknowledge that fact. And if the offense can't finish, then who cares how many good looks it can produce. If Miller gets the right guys in there and the coaching staff develops them correctly, the Quakers should be the team to beat in a season or two. If not, then Miller will punch his own ticket out of town.

One final, unrelated note: Tonight is Penn's last home game of the season for students that won't be around during spring break. Not that there have been many students at the games at all this season, but this will be the last chance for most students to see Kevin Egee, Cam Lewis, and Brennan Votel on the floor at the Palestra. I'll be the first to tell you that Penn suffered this season because it lacked consistent and reliable seniors, but those three players are not at fault. They were brought into this program to play basketball as best as they could -- to give it their all -- and they've done just that. So if you're around and not going to Girl Talk, or even if you are, at least show up for a while to support them. They've earned it.