Palestra featured on ESPN's Home Court online series

The national media coverage continues for Penn basketball and the Palestra, and it isn't going to end anytime soon.

Two days after knocking off Ancient Eight rival Princeton in a game featured on NBC Sports Network, the Quakers are back in the national public eye, this time on ESPN.

In an online series discussing the best home courts and arenas in college basketball, several ESPN writers wrote articles about their favorite venues.

While Eamonn Brennan chose Hinkle Fieldhouse and Andy Katz selected Phog Allen Fieldhouse as their top arenas, among other writers, Dana O'Neil concluded the piece with an homage to Penn's very own Palestra.

The "Cathedral of College Basketball", as it is commonly referred to, has hosted more college basketball games than any other arena in the country. Since 1927, the Palestra has not only featured Penn men's and women's basketball games, but has also played host to most of the matchups in Big 5 history.

O'Neil, a graduate of Penn State, discusses the Palestra in a romantic sense, noting the "dusty glory" and "musty and dusty" nature of the Quakers home court.

O'Neil also details a personal experience at the Palestra: the (in)famous Penn-Princeton game from February 1999. She recounts how the Quakers raced out to a 33-9 halftime lead, and even pushed the score to 40-13 before allowing a Princeton comeback.

Despite the fact that Penn lost, 50-49, O'Neil uses the example to paint a wonderful picture of the Palestra.

Thrown in is information about the history of the Big 5 at the Palestra, as well as some "inside information" about touring the building and grabbing a meal at New Deck before tip-off.

And with ESPN's College Gameday coming to the Palestra on Saturday for a pair of Big 5 matchups, the fanfare around Penn basketball and its historic arena will continue for at least a few more days.