City of Basketball Love

Jeff Griffith (@Jeff_Griffith21)
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Earning its first Ivy League win of the season, Penn overcame a flat start to take down Dartmouth at the Palestra Friday night, by a final score of 71-64.

At First…
When Penn came out they looked as flat as could be, giving up eight quick points, turning the ball over twice, and missing three shots all in the first two minutes. It took them until the 17:19 mark to score a point, but once they were able to find their rhythm the Quakers began to catch fire.

Penn--who had eight different first-half scorers--would end up going on a 19-4 run to take a 22-14 with about nine minutes left in the half,but Dartmouth would claw back to go into the break up 31-27.

Turning Point…
It looked like Dartmouth was set to pull away when it opened up a 45-36 lead about five minutes into the second half, but again Penn had an answer. By the seven minute mark, the lead was once again Penn’s, up 54-53.

After Jake Silpe made a three-point play to put Penn up 62-59, they would not relinquish the lead, as key Darnell Foreman free throws down the stretch kept the Big Green at arms’ length.

Shining Stars…
Silpe was huge for Penn, dropping 11 points and dishing eight assists. The Quakers’ leading scorer, however, was big man Darien Nelson-Henry, who finished with 19.

Dartmouth’s Evan Boudreaux, a freshman forward, had an outstanding game, leading all scorers with 27 in the Big Green’s losing effort. Boudreaux also snagged eight boards.

Noteworthy Numbers…
41: Penn and Dartmouth combined for a relatively high number of turnovers, 41 in total, in a game that was characterized by changes of possession. Penn had 22 of those 41 giveaways.

11: The Quakers outscored Dartmouth by eleven in the second half as part of their overcoming their early-game woes.

Up Next…
Penn (7-11, 1-3 Ivy League) vs. Harvard (2/6, 7:00 p.m.)
Dartmouth (7-12, 1-4 Ivy League) @ Princeton (2/6, 6:00 p.m.)