Would you look at that? The Penn women's basketball team continues to find ways to score key Ivy League victories. Don't look now, but after this weekend, the Quakers are five games over .500 and 7-2 in the Ancient Eight. But the Lady Quakers weren't the only Penn team to find success this weekend. With coverage of the men's lacrosse team's season opener, a dominant wrestling performance and the men's fencing team's matchups, here is this week's edition of Weekend Wrap.
Men's Lacrosse:
Entering their matchup with the No. 14 Duke Blue Devils, the Quakers had yet to face an opponent this season, and looked to kick off the 2013 campaign with an upset victory. The team did just that, storming by the Blue Devils in the second-half to capture a 14-9 win at Franklin Field on Saturday. Penn trailed 7-6 at the half, but followed Duke's early second-half goal with four consecutive scores to clinch the lead for good. Senior attacker Tim Schwalje led the Red and Blue, notching three goals and four assists for the Quakers.
The Penn men's wrestling team captured two important wins over the weekend against Ivy League foe Princeton and local rival Drexel. The team victories, led by senior captain Troy Hernandez, pushed the No. 23 Quakers' record to 10-3 overall this season. After dominating the Tigers, 31-8, on Saturday, Penn followed up its performance with a shutout of Drexel on Sunday. The Quakers secured all ten bouts against the Dragons, and won the match, 37-0.
Competing in the Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Championships this weekend, the men's and women's track and field teams struggled, ultimately finishing seventh and sixth, respectively, out of eight teams. Both teams placed an emphasis on personal records and events this weekend, as the Quakers' collective youth and inexperience limited their ability to compete for the title. After disappointing finishes for both squads, the Red and Blue look forward to the upcoming outdoor meets in which they will compete.
http://www.thedp.com/article/2013/02/track-recap
Gymnastics:
The Penn gymnastics team turned in a strong performance at the Ivy League championships this weekend, but ultimately came up short of retaining its crown. The two-time defending conference champions finished with a 191.600 team score, good enough for third at the meet.
It was an eventful weekend for Penn's fencing teams, as both the men and women had spectacular performances against some very tough competition. On Saturday, the No. 8 men's team defeated No.1 Penn State and No. 5 St. John's at the Temple Invitational. After an eight-hour bus ride to Columbus, Ohio, both the men and women competed at the U.S. Collegiate Weapon Squad Championships at Ohio State on Sunday. At the championships, the men secured a gold medal in sabre, while the women took gold in foil.
Tony Hicks’ Empire State success has not gone unnoticed.
After scoring 48 points combined against Cornell and Columbia last weekend, Hicks was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Monday.
Hicks came out of the gates on fire against Cornell on Friday, scoring 15 of Penn’s first 17 points before finishing with a career-high 29 points. On Saturday, he led the Quakers with 19 points at Columbia as he went 8-for-15 from the field.
The freshman has been consistent for Penn in Ivy League play, leading the team with 13.8 points per game during the course of the Red and Blue’s nine-game Ivy slate.
Hicks is the third Quaker freshman to receive the Ancient Eight’s rookie of the week, following the lead of Jamal Lewis and Darien Nelson-Henry.
In this week’s Recruit Roundup, we have updates on the end of the season for Penn’s men’s basketball recruits Tony Bagtas, Dave Winfield Jr., Matt Howard and Dylan Jones. All four players’ high school careers came to a close this past week.
6’0 Guard Tony Bagtas: Westlake High School (Ga.) began its state tournament on Feb. 20 with an 81-76 victory over Rockdale County. With the Lions down 60-59 heading into the final quarter, Bagtas scored seven of his 18 points to lead Westlake’s comeback. But the Lions’ run in states came to a sudden end on Feb. 23, as Westlake lost to Tift County, 100-83. The Lions gave up an early 15-3 run and couldn’t recover from the early hole. Bagtas had 34 points to lead all scorers, which included Mr. Georgia Basketball and Tift County shooting guard Brannen Greene.
6’9 Center Dave Winfield Jr.: Harvard-Westlake High School’s season came to a close in the third round of the California Southern Section Division 4AA playoffs as the team lost 78-58 on Feb. 19 to Bishop Montgomery High School. Winfield finished the year with a solid showing, putting up six points on 3-for-5 shooting while grabbing six rebounds. The senior ended the season having averaged 5.9 points and 4.3 boards per game.
6’4 Guard Matt Howard: A.C Flora High School’s run in the South Carolina Class AAA upper-state basketball playoffs ended in the semifinals, as the Falcons lost 54-50 to Daniel High School on Feb. 19. Flora was winning after three quarters, but Daniel’s free throw shooting helped it pull away in the end. Howard led Flora with 16 points in the final game of his high school career.
6’7 Forward Dylan Jones: Jones and the Village School (Texas) finished the season with another blowout victory over a familiar foe. The squad faced off against Christian Home School Sports Ministries, a team the Vikings defeated by 36 on Feb. 6. In this meeting, Jones led all scorers with 24 points as the Vikings won handily, 101-57. The game was over early on, as the Village School led 31-9 after only one quarte
When you put up a big performance against a nationally ranked team, you are bound to receive some recognition.
After putting up a career-high seven points to lead the Quakers in a 14-9 upset victory over No.13/14 Duke, senior attackman Tim Schwalje was named Ivy League Co-Player of the Week.
Schwalje had three goals to go with a career-high four assists, while also having a hand in five of Penn’s final eight goals in their comeback victory. This was the senior's first time receiving the Ivy League Player of the Week award.
Goalkeeper Brian Feeney also received recognition from the Ancient Eight, as he was named to the Ivy League Honor Roll for his performance against Duke.
The junior had 15 saves against the Blue Devils, including six saves in the second period alone to keep the Quakers in the game.
The win against Duke moved men's lacrosse into the rankings this week, as the team placed No. 14 in the USILA national coaches poll and No. 15 in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll.
Riding momentum from a 79-71 victory over Cornell the night before, Penn entered its matchup at Columbia with a head of steam, as the squad was looking to log its first Ivy weekend sweep of the year. But the Quakers' offense stalled against the Lions, and Penn walked away with its most disappointing loss of the season, a 58-41 defeat that ended not with a bang but a sad, lonely whimper. The Quakers, however, were not alone in their offensive struggles. Though Columbia picked up a win, the Lions had an abysmal performance from the field in the second half in a game in which each Ivy squad seemed determined to match the other's horrific shooting. With bad play all around, this edition of "The Good, the Bad & the Ugly" will in actuality be "The Ugly, the Ugly & the Marginally Less Ugly."
THE UGLY: Six field goals from both teams combined in the second half.
In the second frame, Penn and Columbia scored a total of six field goals — four on the Quakers' side and two for the Lions, while shooting 16.7 percent and 10 percent from the field, respectively. While one would like to attribute the low scoring to excellent defense, it was largely a result of poor shooting performances by virtually everyone on the floor. Neither team finished above 33.3 percent shooting overall, though Columbia did convert 22-26 free throws in the game, which led the Lions to victory.
THE UGLY: Three technical fouls on Penn's side.
Freshman Tony Hicks followed up his 29-point performance against Cornell with 19 points against the Lions. However, his play was tarnished by receiving two technical fouls and ultimately fouling out of the game with 3:33 left in the game. Hicks logged his first 'T' at the 7:42 mark in the second half. It was unclear just what the call resulted from, but it seems like Hicks said something to the refs they didn't like after calling a foul against the rookie. His second technical came a few minutes later with 3:33 remaining. Again, the reasons for the infraction were unclear, but it sent Hicks to the showers early as he also tallied his fifth personal foul. His ejection killed Penn’s momentum and extinguished any chance of the Quakers crawling back into the game. If that weren't enough, just a moment later, coach Jerome Allen was whistled for a technical after reacting to a missed travel call.
MARGINALLY LESS UGLY: Hicks dazzles again with 19 points.
Despite the technical fouls, Hicks was certainly the closest thing to a bright spot for Penn. After Columbia defenders swatted away a couple of his first drives to the rim, Hicks adjusted and began to effectively utilize a jump shot that has improved greatly over the course of the season. The rookie shot 8-for-15 from the field, accounting for more than half of Penn's 14 field goals. Clearly, however, it was far from enough to keep the Quakers in the game, even with the Lions converting just 2-20 from the field in the second half.
Penn beat Columbia, 66-48, to complete its second consecutive Ivy weekend sweep.
THE GOOD: Penn's offensive depth
This team bears almost no resemblance to that of three years ago when Alyssa Baron was the only producer. Four players posted double digits against Columbia. Baron notched 21 points of the night, Kara Bonenberger produced 13 and Keiera Ray had another big weekend with 12. Kathleen Roche continued to shoot important shots where she needed to, notching four threes of her own.
THE BAD: Columbia's second half defense.
For a second time this season, Columbia showed aggressive defense at the beginning of the first half but couldn’t adjust when Penn's offense did. The Lions let the game get away from them in the second half for a second time this season, allowing Penn to go on a 32-9 run.
THE UGLY: Princeton
Princeton continues to decimate the Ivy League competition, making first place a lofty goal for the Quakers. After a 98-36 drubbing of Columbia on Friday, the Tigers again notched a 20+-point victory against Cornell, beating the Big Red 59-34.
Follow along as we bring you all of the action from Morningside Heights, as Penn (7-18, 4-4 Ivy) looks to defeat Columbia (10-13, 2-7) and log its first Ivy weekend sweep of the season.
Facing Cornell on the road at the Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y., the Quakers avenged a close loss from earlier this month behind freshman guard Tony Hicks’ 29-point eruption, getting the 79-71 win. Penn started out hot, jumping to a 25-13 lead, but the Big Red answered with a 30-14 run of their own to close out the first frame. Down 43-39 at the half, the Red and Blue dominated the second half, taking back the lead early on and never surrendering it again.
THE GOOD: Miles Cartwright’s well-rounded performance
The junior captain played like the leader everyone expects him to be, and he really did everything against Cornell. Cartwright racked up 15 points, nine assists, six boards and two steals. He also led the Quakers in playing time, with 34 minutes on the court. The only downside? Try 4-for-11 shooting and three turnovers. But that’s fine, because trying too hard is better than not trying at all.
THE BETTER: Tony Hicks’ season-high 29 points
Oh wait. Rather career-high, since he’s only a freshman. Hicks showed off what he’s capable of, hitting 11-for-18 from the field, which included making five of his six attempts from beyond the arc. The rookie secured Penn’s second best point total of the year — only behind Fran Dougherty’s 31-point show in a 62-53 loss against Fairfield on Nov. 12.
THE BAD: Henry Brooks fouls out … again
12 minutes. That’s exactly how much playing time Brooks got tonight, despite being in the starting lineup. The sophomore forward was subbed out after racking up two fouls in the first five minutes. He came back at the start of the second half, only to get subbed out yet again after two fouls in five minutes. When Allen finally decided to let him back in, Brooks made the most of it by turning the ball over and immediately reaching his fifth infraction of the night. Too bad for him, as his stat line of four points, three rebounds and two assists doesn’t look too bad for the short amount of time he actually spent on the court.
THE UGLY: Penn’s abysmal performance at the end of the first half
After Cartwright made two free throws that put the game 25-13 in favor of the Quakers, it looked like it would be an easy ride for Allen and co. That was before Cornell terrorized Penn for the last ten minutes of the first frame, scoring 30 points in that time period, which included 12 by guard Nolan Cressler. The Red and Blue surrendered five treys and also committed six turnovers during those ten minutes, and for a moment it looked as if it was going to turn into a blowout for the home team. That never materialized, as the Quakers kept it close and then reversed the situation in the second half, but this won’t happen against Princeton or Harvard.
This is a big weekend in the Ivies, as Cornell must sweep to stay a float and Princeton vies to hold their positioning directly behind Harvard going into the home stretch.
Friday, February 22
Penn (6-18, 3-4 Ivy) at Cornell (13-12, 5-3 Ivy)
Were it not for a 5-seconds violation late in the game at the Palestra, it could be Penn, not Cornell who would have entered into the weekend still in the Ivy race. Cornell has a big match-up against Princeton on Saturday, and could very easily dismiss the Quakers, who hang around and take this one, 66-64, in a game they had no business winning.
Harvard (15-7, 7-1 Ivy) at Brown (9-13, 3-5 Ivy)
This smells like a blowout to me. A sweep would do huge things for Harvard, especially if Princeton falls to Cornell, and this one won't take two overtimes to determine an outcome. Harvard wins big, 75-57.
Princeton (12-9, 5-2 Ivy) at Columbia (10-12, 2-6 Ivy)
Columbia hung around last time, losing by just six, but the Tigers' sense of urgency will be fired up on all cylinders following last week's lost to Harvard. Princeton heats up early, and leaves Columbia in the dust, 68-58.
Dartmouth (6-16, 2-6 Ivy) at Yale(10-15, 4-4 Ivy)
Forget about the fact that Dartmouth won last time these teams faced off. Over the course of the year, we've seen that Yale's not terrible and Dartmouth is. The Elis win, 65-60.
Penn at Columbia
Penn beat Columbia at the Palestra, and while Miles Cartwright won't heat up like he did last time he faced the Lions, the Quakers' defense will come through and limit Columbia's Brian Barbour, just as they did a few weeks ago. It really depends on the outcome of Penn-Cornell, since the Quakers didn't bounce back well from their blowout loss to Harvard, but they take a close one, 60-57.
Princeton at Cornell
The biggest game of the weekend. The Big Red come in playing well, but after facing Yale, Brown and Penn in their last three contests, they haven't seen a team of Princeton's quality in a while. Cornell pushes a little too hard, fails to make its shots, and Princeton wins it, 68-60.
Harvard at Yale
Last time out, the Crimson had a tough time with the Bulldogs, but Harvard has surred up its defense since then, while its youthful offensive prowess only continues to develop. Harvard wins it, 70-60.
Dartmouth at Brown
In what may be the ugliest played basketball game in the Ivy this year, Brown takes it, if only because they're at home. The Bears win, 68-66.
In the first matchup between the Quakers and Big Red this season, Cornell squeaked out a 71-69 victory at the Palestra. Overall this season, both teams are giving up less than 69 points per game on the defensive side of the ball. While Penn's defense played well on Feb. 1, it is tough to imagine the Red and Blue holding Cornell under 69 points. Fran Dougherty was key in the defensive effort against the Big Red earlier this month, and his absence in the paint will make it easier for Cornell forwards Errick Peck and Eitan Chemerinski to score. Peck dropped 20 on the Quakers earlier this month, and it will be difficult for Penn to keep the same from happening tonight. The Big Red also feature two outstanding guards in their backcourt, as both Shonn Miller and Johnathan Gray combine for over 20 points per contest.
13 points for Miles Cartwright -- OVER
Against the Big Red on February 1, the Quakers leading scorer was Patrick Lucas-Perry, who came off the bench to score 14 points on 5-10 shooting from the field. In that game, Cartwright was limited to 8 points, and shot an abysmal 3-12 from the field, including 2-7 from beyond-the-arc. Nevertheless, Penn was able to rely on Fran Dougherty in that first matchup with Cornell. Although only played 8 minutes, Dougherty still provided the Quakers with an inside threat. Because of Dougherty's most recent injury, Cartwright has been forced to carry the offensive load for the Red and Blue. Cartwright's season average currently sits at 13.7 points per game, and the junior guard has dropped 13 points or more in four of the Quakers' last eight games. If Cartwright can score 13 tonight in Ithaca, he will surpass the 1,000 point mark for his career, and become the first Quaker since Tyler Bernardini in 2011 to do so.
10 points for Jamal Lewis -- UNDER
Lewis finally busted out of a season-long slump against Dartmouth on Saturday, scoring 14 points in 26 minutes. After two consecutive games without recording a single point, Lewis needed a solid offensive outing to help solidify his place in Jerome Allen's starting lineup. While Lewis did play well against the Big Green, it's tough to imagine him matching that performance against Cornell. Miles Cartwright has played well of late, and Patrick Lucas-Perry and Darien Nelson-Henry both scored in double figures against Cornell on February 1. In a backcourt that features three guards with a history of success against the Big Red, shots may come at a premium for Lewis tonight in New York. The Quakers backcourt, combined with Lewis' inconsistency this season, does not indicate a strong performance from Lewis against Cornell.
After its third straight split Ivy weekend, the Penn basketball team will be back on the road again against Cornell and Columbia this Friday and Saturday. When the two New York schools visited the Palestra earlier this season, the Quakers topped the Lions on Friday before blowing a lead and falling to the Big Red on Saturday. Senior Sports Editor Mike Tony and Associate Sports Editor John Phillips preview the action:
Thirteen years ago today, the Penn men's fencing team entered its match against Columbia with an opportunity to win the Ivy League championship for the first time since 1983.
Entering the matchup with the Lions, the Quakers had waited 16 years since their last Ivy League title. Facing off in Ithaca, N.Y., Penn had already secured a share of the conference championship but needed to a victory over Columbia in order to clinch the title outright.
The Red and Blue fell behind early, and trailed 5-2 midway through the match. Nevertheless, the Quakers were fully aware of the opportunity in front of them, and they eventually shook out of their funk.
"We had to get everybody to wake up," senior captain John Wright said after the match.
It didn't take long for the Quakers to rebound. After falling behind by three, Penn responded quickly, and leveled the match at six at the end of the sabre.
Eventually, the Red and Blue were able to pull ahead. Leading 13-12 with two bouts remaining, the Quakers needed to secure one final point in order to capture the match and the Ancient Eight title.
Sophomore Yoran Roth supplied the 14th point, clinching the match and the championship with a 5-4 victory over Columbia's William Dupree.
The Penn men's fencing team won eight consecutive outright Ivy League titles between 1976 and 1983. Until 1999, however, the Quakers experienced a 16-year drought.
That drought finally came to an end against Columbia. The Quakers culminated their Ivy League season with a 14-13 victory over the Lions, and finished the conference season with an undefeated record.
The 1999 Penn squad finished with three NCAA All-Americans and two first team All-Ivy League selections, as well as a 10-6 overall record.
While recruits for the Class of 2017 begin the process of formally announcing their college decisions, one Florida high school senior will no longer be able to do so.
According to an article in the Tampa Bay Times, a few days before Plant High School quarterback Aaron Banks was going to orally commit to Penn, his offer was taken away.
Though at the moment Penn football coach Al Bagnoli and the athletics department have declined to comment on the issue, Plant coach Robert Weiner said he will never have his players go to Penn during Bagnoli's tenure.
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound senior played for a Plant team that went 10-2 on the season and is ranked No. 325 nationally and No. 21 in the state of Florida. The quarterback completed 57 percent of his passes in a season that included 1,442 passing yards and 12 touchdown passes.
In the postseason, he was named most valuable offensive player in the Hillsborough County All-Star Game.
However, there is still much information missing about the reasoning behind such a situation, though Ivy League regulations and qualifications may be behind it.
However, Weiner — who said that nothing like this has ever happened to one of his players — believes the removal of the offer was made due to a decision to go with another quarterback for this recruiting class.
As has become typical of the Penn football team, three seniors will participate in pro days to showcase their skills to NFL scouts this spring. No Quakers were invited to this weekend's Combine, but DL Brandon Copeland, OL Joe Bonadies and P Scott Lopano are working toward playing at the next level.
For the first time in several years, Penn will not host its own pro day. Rather, the players are opting to attend Villanova's pro day on Mar. 18, hoping to gain some attention from scouts visiting Wildcats wide receiver Norman White.
In addition, Copleand and Bonadies will separately participate in NFL Regional Combines. Bonadies, a Leonia, N.J., native, will attend the N.Y. Jets' Regional Combine on Mar. 2, while Copeland will go to the Baltimore Ravens' Regional Combine on Mar. 22. Copeland is a Baltimore native himself, and his grandfather was drafted by and won a Super Bowl with the Baltimore Colts.
UPDATE: Lopano is also participating in two additional specialist combines. The first is Mar. 1-3 in Phoenix with specialist kicking coach Gary Zauner and the second is Mar. 9-14 at Florida Atlantic University with coach Mike Husted.
Copeland finished as a three-time first team All-Ivy player with 90 tackles (84 in three years) and 10 sacks (5 in 2012). Bonadies finished his Penn career as 2012 first-team All-Ivy selection and 2011 honorable mention and received the Bednarik Award in 2012 for the best offensive lineman on the team. Finally, Lopano was also named 2012 first-team Ally Ivy and had a career average of 38.8 yards per punt, pinning his opponent inside the 20 yard-line 65 times.
The trio looks to follow in the footsteps of 2012 Penn grad and OL Greg Van Roten, who went undrafted and was signed by the Green Bay Packers on the eve of training camp. After starting on the practice squad, he was activated to the team's 53-man roster in Week 5. Van Roten went on to play special teams for the Packers, who were 2012 NFC North champions.
In this week’s Mano-a-Mano, Associate Sports Editor John Phillips and Senior Sports Editor Mike Tony debate whether we can expect Penn to sweep this upcoming Ivy weekend against Columbia and Cornell.
John Phillips: I think the odds are in Penn’s favor, with Cornell being the bigger question mark of the two games.
This is a young squad, and the mistakes down the stretch that they made against Cornell the first time around — like not even being able to inbound the ball with the game on the line — won’t happen again Friday night. Penn knows that it can hang tough with the Big Red, and that confidence goes a long way in determining which version of the Quakers appear on a nightly basis.
Cornell is playing well right now, but there is the revenge factor that can’t be overlooked. Penn let one slip out of their grasps at the Palestra a few weeks ago, and now the Quakers have a chance to make up for it.
Mike Tony: The odds can’t be in favor of a team with this lack of experience in Ivy roadtripping. The Quakers never got things going against Harvard and needed 20 minutes to wake up at Dartmouth, scoring just 18 points in the first half at Leede Arena.
The Big Red gave Harvard everything it could handle a couple of weeks back with an efficient frontcourt. Will Cam Gunter and Henry Brooks be as efficient against Errick Peck and Shonn Miller?
If Penn couldn’t handle Cornell at home with the momentum of upsetting Columbia at the Palestra on its side, why should we believe it can pull off a sweep of both teams now?
JP: Experience, Mike. Last weekend, the Quakers learned how not to do an Ivy roadtrip. They came out flat against Harvard for sure. But the Crimson are also, arguably, the best team in the Ivy League.
So while the loss to Harvard did throw the Quakers into a stupor against Dartmouth last weekend, it will help in a big way against Cornell on Friday.
Penn now knows the energy that has to be brought to start off an Ivy roadtrip the right way. And so the Red and Blue will break out all the punches, understanding that winning on the road in the Ivy is difficult.
With that knowledge, plus the ever-present thirst to overcome past failures, Penn can handle Cornell.
MT: Well, let’s assume the Quakers are now suddenly Ivy roadtrip veterans then. That still doesn’t change the fact that Columbia and Cornell rank first and second respectively among the Ivies in turnover margin. Penn ranks dead last.
Besides, the Big Red know how to win close, having already done so on the road at Columbia, Penn and Brown.
So can we really trust Penn to execute in and out of the clutch yet at both Cornell and Columbia? I say no.
JP: Just as important as the Quakers knowing how to handle roadtrips better is the fact that this will be Penn’s second time playing these squads.
They’ll know better how to handle Peck, who went 8-for-8 from the field at the Palestra earlier this month. And once Penn handles Cornell, momentum alone will allow them to massacre a stumbling Columbia squad.
MT: Massacre, you say? I wouldn’t consider Columbia a given either. While the Lions’ losses to Dartmouth and Yale were embarrassing for them, at least they got significant bench production in both games.
Columbia will have a fuller rotation, more crowd support and quite frankly, more desperation than Penn on its side after last weekend’s post-Harvard hangover.
Verdict:This one goes to Mike. The only thing consistent about the Quakers is their inconsistency.
Exactly 10 years ago today, the Penn men’s basketball team was riding high, entering their road matchup against Harvard with an undefeated Ivy record.
After beating the Crimson 75-59 earlier in 2003, the Quakers made history by tying a school record with 16 three-pointers en route to a 82-66 victory. The feat had previously been achieved against Drexel on Jan. 28, 2001.
Leading the way for Penn was junior guard Jeff Schiffner, who scored a team-high 21 points thanks to seven three-pointers.
The barrage of treys masked a poor performance inside the paint for the Red and Blue, who only converted eight of 19 field goal attempts.
But Harvard couldn’t make up for the loss of senior guard Patrick Harvey — a first-team All-Ivy selection the previous season — who lost his academic eligibility earlier that year.
The Crimson kept the Quakers close for most of the game though, thanks to point guard Elliot Prasse-Freeman’s 13-point, 10-assist effort.
Penn quickly jumped out to an 18-7 lead but allowed Harvard to come back within one when Prasse-Freeman’s three made the score 23-22.
The Red and Blue then answered with a 7-0 run, and the Crimson would never get back within six.
Despite entering the second half with a 44-36 lead, the Quakers did not pull Harvard away until a 10-2 run put them up, 71-56, with less than eight minutes remaining.
Senior forward Koko Archibong — who later played in the Olympic Games on the Nigerian basketball team — then essentially decided the game when he sank in one of Penn’s 16 treys with less than five minutes remaining.
Archibong led the team with seven rebounds and was second with 14 points.
The Quakers finished the season atop the Ancient Eight with an unblemished 14-0 record. They went on to lose to Oklahoma State, 77-63, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Mar. 21 in Boston.
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