City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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(Ed. Note: This article is part of our 2023-24 season coverage, which will run for the six weeks preceding the first official games of the year on Nov. 6. To access all of our high school and college preview content for this season click here.)

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Big 5 Preseason Primers
MBB: Drexel | La Salle | Penn | Saint Joseph’s | Temple | Villanova
WBB: Drexel | La Salle | Penn | Saint Joseph’s | Temple | Villanova

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2023-24 Penn Quakers WBB Primer
Coach: Mike McLaughlin, 14th season (228-149, .605)
Last Year: 17-12 overall (9-5 Ivy League), lost in Ivy League semifinal (Princeton, 60-47), lost in WNIT First Round (Richmond, 75-52)

McLaughlin led the Penn women to seven consecutive 20-win seasons from 2013-14 to 2019-20, an impressive run of success at any level. But the COVID pandemic put a stop to that, the Quakers just 29-26 over the last two seasons combined (16-12 Ivy League), the rise of former league afterthought Columbia (53-13 the last two years) factoring into the equation, archrival Princeton not going anywhere. Now with one of the greatest guards in program history moving on along with several other graduated seniors, McLaughlin has to start developing some depth in his freshman and sophomore classes to get Penn back to the level of success expected in University City, with one young guard in particular looking like she could be the next major piece for the program.

Key Departures: G Kayla Padilla (17.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg), G Mandy McGurk (8.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg), G Sydnei Caldwell (4.0 ppg)

There are five seniors who graduated from last year’s team, all of whom saw at least a couple minutes of action here or there, but the above three were the only steady parts of the rotation. There’s no doubt that the biggest loss is Padilla: in just three years in a Quaker uniform, the 5-9 guard from California poured in 1,355 points, putting herself seventh on the program’s all-time list; one more season like her last and she would have been second, behind only the great Diana Caramanico; she’s also Penn’s all-time leader in 3-pointers (210). Because of the COVID year and Ivy League graduate student eligibility limits, she’s playing her final year of college ball at Southern Cal; McGurk, a 5-6 guard from the Academy of Notre Dame and the only other departing starter, is finishing hers up at Fordham after the best of her three undergraduate seasons. 

New Faces: F Tobi Ademuwagun (Jordan HS, Tex.), G Mataya Gayle (Fr. | River Ridge, Ga.), C Tina Njike (Fr. | Skyline HS, Utah), G Ese Ogbevire (Fr. | Fulshear, Tex.), G Abby Sharpe (Fr. | Plymouth Whitemarsh, Pa.)

McLaughlin and his staff brought in a group of five freshmen, a fairly typical Ivy League class size, but he’ll only likely have three available this season as both Ademuwagun and Njike are recovering from knee injuries suffered earlier this year. Of the three who remain, the one who’s most ready to step right in his Gayle; the 5-7 point guard and Georgia co-Player of the Year as a senior is coming off a 6A state championship at River Ridge, and might already be the team’s best on-ball option. She impressed at last weekend’s Red & Blue Scrimmage, scoring from inside and out and playing great on-ball defense. Ogbevire, a long 5-8 guard from Texas, and Sharpe, a 6-0 guard who was one of the starters on Plymouth Whitemarsh’s unbeaten state champs in 2022, will be in the mix on the wings, though there are a number of returners ahead of them. 

Projected Lineup: PG Mataya Gayle, G Stina Almqvist (3.4 ppg), G Simone Sawyer (6.8 ppg) F Jordan Obi (12.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg), C Floor Toonders (6.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg)

This lineup won’t quite be what Penn rolls out on opening night (Nov. 11 vs. Marist), as Toonders is almost certainly not going to be ready for the season as she recovers from a preseason foot injury. But she’s expected back before too long, and the 6-4 forward gives them an imposing post presence and rebounder who can score around the bucket with both hands. In her absence, they’ll likely go small-ball with Obi at the ‘5,’ though the 6-1 combo forward can play with the ball in her hands and has been working on her handle and shot, going from 28.8% from deep as a sophomore (21-of-73) to 35.5% (33-of-93) as a junior.

At the point guard spot, don’t be surprised to see McLaughlin give the ball to Gayle right out of the gate, the former high school standout looking ready to run the Penn offense. She can get her own shot and create for others, which puts her in rare territory in this backcourt. Sawyer (5-11) and Almqvist (6-1) both have great size in the backcourt, with Sawyer flashing some real potential as a freshman, going for 24 points at La Salle; there was a seven-game stretch in the non-conference where she averaged 14.4 ppg and 3.4 rpg. 

Key Reserves: G Lizzy Groetsch (0.5 ppg), PG Saniah Caldwell (1.0 ppg), G Michaela Stanfield, F Iyanna Rogers

The college experience plummets once you move to the Quakers’ bench, with a few players who’ve seen spot minutes here and there but otherwise a lot of green in the reserves. Groetsch, a 5-10 guard former PA Player of the Year when she was at North Allegheny, looks like she’s in for a major uptick in time and production after playing sparingly in 44 games over the last couple seasons. Stanfield, a 5-11 guard, has 36 games of experience and even started one as a junior, just before a knee injury cost her the rest of the season; she’ll be back at some point this winter. Caldwell played in 17 games as a freshman last year, and Rogers in 11, but she’ll be needed much more this year, especially before Toonders’ return. 

Biggest Strength: Frontcourt

This might not be the case while Toonders is sidelined, but when healthy, there’s no doubt that the duo of her and Obi in the frontcourt is the Quakers’ best asset. It might not be the duo of program greats Sydney Stipanovich and Michelle Nowkedi, but it’s a pair that can give opponents fits on both ends, in addition to the two of them being seniors on a team that will have to rely on some youth. Without Toonders, their biggest stretch is likely on the wings, but once she’s back on the floor, that’s a problem pairing up front. 

Area for Improvement: Shot creation

In Padilla, the Quakers had a point guard who could get her shot off from just about anywhere but also could break down a defense and create for her teammates. This year’s squad has a few potential scorers like Groetsch and Sawyer, but they’re not really dribble-drive types who could average 3-4 assists per game; Gayle certainly seems to be in that mold, but she can’t be the only one besides Obi, the team’s only returning proven scorer. McLaughlin needs to develop a few different options who Penn can go to for a shot in late-shot-clock situations, whether that’s in the post or on the perimeter .