City of Basketball Love

By Gavin Riley (@ByGavinRiley)
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UNIVERSITY CITY — Penn men’s basketball may have found its next star.

Entering the season, the expectation for Penn was that the Quakers may be in a re-building stage. They lost six players from last season, including Jordan Dingle, who transferred to St. John’s after averaging 23.4 ppg for the Quakers last season. 

While the Quakers will miss that added scoring, Wednesday night’s 80-61 victory over Bucknell provided one takeaway: freshman Tyler Perkins is already a top option for Penn.

There had been hype surrounding Penn’s incoming talented freshman class ahead of the season, headlined by Perkins. After just two games, in which he had 15 points against John Jay and a game-high 24 points versus Bucknell, he’s continuing to play well.

He showcased his three-level scoring ability particularly in the first half, in which he scored 19 points on 5-9 shooting, including 3-6 from deep. He’s seemingly had no problem transitioning his smooth left-handed jump shot and his near-25 ppg from the Landon School in Lorton, Va. to the collegiate level.

“It was pretty apparent late in his high school year and getting to know him better over the summer that he was going to transition really well,” Penn head coach Steve Donahue said.

On multiple occasions, Perkins sunk contested shots. He showed no reluctance to find his spot on the left wing and attempt some tough shots. But when his spot wasn’t there, he had no problem driving to the lane for tough contest finishes. 

Throughout the game, the Quakers constantly relied on Perkins’ scoring ability. For him to be in that position as a freshman, it’s not something he takes lightly.

“My teammates are great,” Perkins said. “They set me up and trust me and put me in positions to score, to assist and whatever it may be.”

Perkins also added a game-high 14 rebounds for his first collegiate double-double as Penn won the rebounding battle 52-22, the Quakers grabbing 20 offensive boards. He was aggressive against the glass throughout the entirety of the game, continuously high-pointing missed shots and bodying big men down low. 

That ability is something Donahue, who noted Perkins’ versatility multiple times in the preseason, particularly likes about Perkins’ game.

“The rebounding that he does is as good as any level guard I’ve ever coached,” said Donahue, who coached four years at the high school level in the 1980s but has spent the last 35 in the college ranks, including 23 as a head Division I coach. “He’s a very mature competitor, he competes in every aspect of the game.”

Perkins’ offense, as well as the Quakers in general, cooled off in the second half after leading 55-33 at halftime. 

After notching two points in the first two minutes of play, they went roughly six minutes without hitting another shot. Perkins said that he needs to be reminded to keep his head up when things like that happen — that’s where the Quaker veterans come into play.

“It’s probably the biggest piece, honestly,” Perkins said. “Guys like [senior guard] Reese (McMullen), when I come out of the game with a bad stretch, he’s the first one to, you know, tap me on the back and say ‘keep your head up,’ ‘stay in control’ and all that. I’m a freshman, I’m emotional, so they [older guys] help me calm down and look at it from a bigger view.”

After six minutes of missed field goal attempts, in which Bucknell had pulled within 57-45, Perkins and the Quakers began to find their rhythm again.

Senior Clark Slajchert and sophomore Cam Thrower, both natives of Los Angeles, Ca., combined for 19 points and each made some crucial buckets in the second half, though the two were just 2-of-9 from 3-point range as the Quakers were 6-of-20 (30%) from deep. Slajchert scored the first points following the 6-minute stretch, scoring on a fastbreak floater outside the paint.

Thrower, who shot 1-5 in the first half, hit two jumpshots within two minutes of each other, with the second one extending the Quakers’ lead to 20 with four minutes left. Perkins scored five second-half points and had a few second-half assists as well.

Off the bench, sophomore forward Johnnie Walters and senior wing Andrew Laczkowski each scored eight points. 

That kind of scoring depth will be useful as the Quakers continue their season and face off against Saint Joseph’s on Thursday, Nov. 9 at Hagan Arena in their Big 5 opener.

“It just goes to show how deep and how talented we are,” Perkins said. “A lot of guys can score. We don’t care whose night it is, we’re just trying to win at the end of the day.”