Penn men’s basketball started Friday with the announcement that junior captain and leading scorer Tony Hicks was been suspended for the weekend’s games against Harvard and Dartmouth. Matters only became worse from there. The Quakers suffered a 69-46 slaughter at the hands of the four-time defending champion Crimson at Lavietes Pavilion Friday night, as Harvard won its 7th straight contest and Penn coach Jerome Allen recorded his 100th loss at the helm of the program. Wesley Saunders led the way for the Crimson (18-5, 8-1 Ivy) with a game-high 15 points while shooting 77.8 percent from the field, and Steve Moundou-Missi added 14 points to go along with four offensive rebounds. Playing without Hicks, who averages 13.0 points per game, the Quakers (7-15, 2-6) committed just three turnovers in the first half and entered the intermission down, 31-24, in large part due to 14 early second-chance points for the Crimson. The Red and Blue managed to cut the lead down to 31-28 with 17:23 remaining in the second half, but after that point, the tide turned for good.

Well, this is getting pretty familiar. On a snowy Boston night at a sold-out Lavietes Pavillion, the Quakers were handed another humbling loss by Harvard, a 69-46 defeat that emphasized just how far Penn is from the Ancient Eight’s top tier. It was the fourth consecutive loss for the Quakers, with each defeat coming by at least 16 points.

Yale men’s basketball came into the Palestra in first place in the Ivy League. And for 40 minutes, the Elis certainly looked the part. Penn basketball stood little chance against first-place Yale, falling 75-48 in the Friday night affair.

Columbia obliterated Penn basketball, 83-56, at Levien Gymnasium, using 10 first-half three-pointers and a dominant offensive performance to run Penn out of the gym.

It's Tony Hicks' world and the rest of us are just paying rent. Despite falling behind by 12 to begin the game and never leading until under a minute remained, Penn basketball rode the junior guard's 20 second half points and game-winning jumper with four seconds remaining to its sixth consecutive win over Cornell, 71-69. The Red and Blue looked overwhelmed from the onset.

That was ugly... I mean really ugly. There were no redeeming qualities for Penn basketball’s blowout loss at home against Harvard.

Penn President Amy Gutmann helped announce the launch of the Young Quakers Community Athletics Program on Franklin Field Thursday evening.

It means that with the game on the line and Alex Mitola in possession of the ball, it wasn’t Dartmouth celebrating a win: It was Penn and that’s something to hang your hat on, at least for one day.

Before Saturday night, I did not know what a Big 5 win looked, sounded, tasted, smelled or felt like. Nor did the majority of people with whom I associate.

A trip to Ithaca is never pleasant this time of year due to its lack of cellphone service and subarctic conditions.

For a moment, it looked as if Penn basketball had turned a corner when it gave then-No. 5 Villanova a serious scare at home on Saturday. Apparently not. Playing to a mostly-empty Palestra crowd, the Quakers came out sleepwalking against Monmouth and paid dearly.

With Penn basketball approaching the midway point in its season, fans and opposing coaches alike seem to think they know what Penn is made of. But the advanced stats tell the whole story.

There will always be those who are staunch defenders of anti-tournament model for the Ancient Eight, but that’s exactly what it is: ancient.

With Ivy League play looming, the Quakers (4-9, 0-1 Ivy) look to continue their success against MAAC teams - they are 2-1 this season with wins over Marist and Niagara - with Wednesday's game against Monmouth (9-9).

With a trip to Sunshine State for anything but a vacation in the rear view for Penn swimming, will the training be worth it?

It isn’t every night that Penn basketball gets to play in front of a sold-out crowd, but Saturday’s game against No. 5 Villanova isn’t an ordinary night.

The Big Five is always a tough challenge for Penn Basketball and Tuesday was no exception, as La Salle built an early lead and held on for a 84-67 win over the Quakers.