The Quakers spent the time off from academics on a three-team, nine-game tour of the South, making stops at Williamsburg, Va. to take on William & Mary, Durham, N.C. to play Duke and Rock Hill, S.C. to square off with Winthrop.

After losing their first three games, the Quakers are now tied atop the Ivy League standings.

Penn (16-11, 9-4 Ivy) fell to Yale (13-15, 8-6), 70-65, as the Bulldogs swept the season series.

Next season will decide once and for all whether this team full of underclassmen has what it takes for long-term Ivy success. But the glimpses of brilliance Penn has shown from time to time in 2012-13 have been too few and far between to suggest that this team isn’t still a youthful bunch with everything to prove.

Yale’s suffocating defense in the second half gave the Quakers fits, and the Bulldogs took advantage, turning a one point deficit at half time into a 14-point victory, defeating the Quakers, 79-65.

As flashy and important to the Quakers’ success as Hicks and Nelson-Henry have proven to be over the last two weekends, until junior Miles Cartwright graduates, he is the leader of this team. Without question.

Penn bested Brown, 66-64, on the strength of another stellar showing from Cartwright, who notched 25 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field.

See what Penn coach Jerome Allen and top scorers Tony Hicks and Darien Nelson-Henry had to say after the victory over Harvard.

One thing Saturday’s win against Harvard doesn’t change is the fact that there are still more questions about this young Penn team than there are answers.

The Quakers (8-20, 5-6 Ivy) entered their matchup against the Crimson (17-9, 9-3) having suffered two bad losses in a row against traditional Ivy bottom-dwellers Columbia and Dartmouth. But their effort against first-place Harvard would be a different story.

The Quakers fell to Harvard (17-8, 8-3 Ivy) Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion, 67-54. The Crimson recorded two feats this weekend, breaking Princeton’s 33-game Ivy winning streak and Penn’s six-game streak.

It’s pretty clear Penn’s level of irritation has reached the boiling point. In fact, it’s not just boiling, it’s overflowing. And it’s pretty clear why.

The Quakers notched their sixth straight victory, beating Dartmouth, 55-45. Penn’s defense kept them alive in the first half against the Big Green (6-18, 4-6 Ivy). The Quakers offense was extremely cold, shooting 8-for-31, including 1-for-16 from behind the arc.

At the Palestra Friday night, the Big Green overtook the Quakers, 69-64, in a game that went down to the wire.

Find out where Penn’s athletic teams will be competing over spring break.

While the Quakers struggled toward the end of their regular season conference schedule, the squad is both motivated and relaxed heading into the tournament.

With the Red and Blue traveling to third-place Harvard (15-8, 6-3) and fifth-place Dartmouth (6-17, 4-5) this weekend, the Quakers have the opportunity to gain separation in the standings.