Some coaches use an embarrassing loss as a motivator for a downtrodden squad. Other coaches scrutinize every last detail of the debacle on videotape to help discourage a repeat performance. Then there's selective amnesia. Following a thumping 66-26 defeat at Villanova on Saturday, Penn women's basketball seems to be leaning toward the latter option: removing the blowout from its mental filing system altogether.

Seniors Brian Grandieri and Michael Kach turn free-throw shooting into a friendly competition. In their spare time, the two roommates use the hoop behind their house; at practice, whoever plays worse buys the other dinner. If game performance is any indication, Kach has been enjoying a lot of free meals this year.

No NBA team has ever graced the Palestra floor. But tonight, the ancient arena might be seeing the next best thing. No. 1 North Carolina has three likely NBA first-rounders in its starting lineup and one of the most legendary figures in college basketball history at the helm.

The Penn wrestling team had hoped for success in the desert, but it came home with a valuable lesson instead of hardware. The No. 22 Quakers placed two wrestlers at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational en route to a 14th-place finish after taking third at the event last year.

VILLANOVA, Pa., Dec. 1 - Well, it's been worse. Against Villanova on Saturday, the Penn women's basketball team scored 26 points, the third-lowest output in team history. In a game that will take a place in the record books, the Quakers were handed a 66-26 loss by the sharp-shooting Wildcats (6-1).

The women's squash team was nothing short of dominant this weekend against two of its Ivy League foes. But according to Penn, there is still room for improvement and much more work is needed. On Saturday, the Quakers took on Yale, winning 7-2. And in the encore, they came back yesterday to face the Bears and were a perfect 9-0 for the day.

Squash is thought of as a gentleman's game, associated with while polo shirts and Northeastern prep schools. But there was very little gentlemanly behavior on display when Penn split a weekend doubleheader at Ringe Courts yesterday. Ed Cerullo, playing as Brown's No.

First place in the triple jump just wasn't enough at the Bucknell Invite on Saturday. Penn athletes swept the event, taking 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places. Junior Camille Richard won the event with a jump of 11.71 meters. Although the effort was not a personal best, Richard was pleased with the result.

The men's swim team is supposed to peak twice in the season, according to coach Mike Schnur. The first of those two peaks came this weekend at the Nike Invitational, where the Quakers took second place behind host Kenyon, the favorite. The 400 free relay team of Devon Carr, Pat Gallagher, Chris Buckand Kyle Loughran took first and set both a Penn and Kenyon pool record.

VILLANOVA, Pa., Dec. 1 - The Big 5 season opener is always a highly anticipated event and is almost always a hard-fought battle. This year's edition was pretty much over from the minute the opening tip was tossed. In front of a packed Pavilion crowd, Villanova was in control from the start en route to an 87-61 dismantling of Penn.

VILLANOVA, Pa. There are many different things that can explain the Quakers' early-season struggles - perimeter defense, rebounding and turnovers to name a few. But it's what happens before tipoff that's the real killer. "We came out, and we had some jitters in the first half," freshman starting point guard Harrison Gaines said.

It was a miracle comeback that not even a Big 5 game could produce. Villanova's defensive intensity and fullcourt pressure in the opening minutes rattled the Quakers. By the time Penn finally settled down to outscore Villanova in the second half, the Wildcats had already removed their full-court press.

After a disappointing loss this week to Lafayette, the men's basketball team won't have to wait for a chance to atone thanks to a quick turnaround. Unfortunately for the Quakers (2-5), atonement will not be easy to come by as they travel to the Main Line to take on Villanova in this season's Big 5 opener tomorrow night.

This weekend the Penn women's squash team will compete against some familiar faces as it battles Yale, Brown, and Columbia over a two-day span. Some of Penn's competitors are former teammates. Coach Jack Wyant and freshman Annie Madeira became familiar with some of Yale's competitors over the summer working on the Junior National team.

Look through the Villanova men's basketball roster and you'll find every player is from the Northeast or mid-Atlantic. Every player except Frank Tchuisi. Tchuisi [TWEE-see] hails from another continent altogether: Africa. "I was born in Douala, Cameroon," said the 6-foot-8 forward, who still bears a heavy accent.

How badly do they want it? When the men's squash team plays host to Yale and Brown this weekend, its desire will be put to the test. The Quakers (0-2, 0-1 Ivy), who remain winless this year after two early-season losses to Cornell and Western Ontario, will look to rebound when they face off against the Bulldogs (0-0) and the Bears (0-1, 0-1) at friendly Ringe Courts this weekend.

Coach Pat Knapp and his team might want to look for a fallout shelter, because when they face Villanova (4-1) tomorrow, it'll be bombs away. Tomorrow, Penn will have to deal with a squad that has already developed a reputation of being a huge three-point threat.