Penn

The Steve Donahue era ends for Penn men’s basketball

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Penn is moving on from coach Steve Donahue after the Quakers went 131-130 and 63-63 in Ivy League play in his 10 years at the helm. (Steve Donahue X page)

After a disappointing 8-19 season and a second consecutive seventh-place Ivy League campaign, Penn men’s basketball coach Steve Donahue was fired by Alanna Wren on Monday morning.

With tenures at Cornell, Boston College and Penn, Donahue’s 23-year overall record is 331-344. Through his nine years at Penn, the coach finished at 131-130 overall and 63-63 mark in league play.  

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily Pennsylvanian, all three of Donahue’s assistants, Nat Graham, Joe Milalich Jr., and Kris Saulny, have also been released by the university.

“Steve has been steadfast in his commitment to the program and the development of our student-athletes. I’ve always had great respect for his commitment to Ivy values, and he has been a strong representative of Penn during his career,” Wren noted in Penn Athletics’ news release. “Unfortunately, the competitive success on the court has not been up to our standards. While difficult, a change in leadership is necessary to provide the championship-caliber experience our student-athletes, alumni and fans expect.”

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2025 Ivy Madness fields are set

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The field is set for Ivy Madness.

Penn finished with a higher NCAA NET ranking (No. 162) than Brown (No. 184), the Ivy League confirmed Sunday morning, making the Quakers the fourth and final team to clinch an Ivy League Tournament berth with the Bears on the outside looking into the tourney to be held on their home floor at the Pizzitola Sports Center.

The full women’s and men’s slate for the Ivy League Tournaments are below, with automatic bids going to the tourney winners:

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The Trifecta at the Palestra: Tiger Takeaways from Princeton women’s basketball’striumph over Penn

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The Princeton women’s basketball team closed out the regular season on Saturday afternoon with a satisfying 67-53 win over Penn at the Palestra. 

Here are three Tiger Takeaways from a triumph that gave Princeton 20 wins for a seventh consecutive season, tying a program record set during the Courtney Banghart era:

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Princeton women’s basketball cruises past Penn, 67-53

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Fadima Tall knocked down a career-high 20 points on 6-for-11 shooting along with 10 rebounds and four steals Saturday as Princeton women’s basketball warmed up for the Ivy League Tournament with a 67-53 win at Penn.
Penn’s loss, combined with Brown’s win, means that we won’t know which team will be the fourth entrant for Ivy Madness at Brown’s Pizzitola Sports Center till the NCAA releases its updated NET rankings to determine the tiebreaker. As the winner of the regular-season conference title, Columbia will play Penn or Brown in the tournament’s first round Friday, and Princeton will face Harvard; the championship game comes Saturday.Penn’s NET ranking was No. 162 as of Saturday night – 22 slots ahead of Brown at No. 184.

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LISTEN: Princeton men’s basketball clinches Ivy League Tournament berth with 13th straight win over Penn

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Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps a 95-71 victory for Princeton (19-10, 8-6 Ivy) over Penn (8-19, 4-10) at Jadwin Gym Saturday that clinched an Ivy League Tournament berth for the Tigers:

Quakeaways from Penn men’s basketball’s 95-71 loss at Princeton

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For the second straight year, one of the worst seasons in Penn basketball history came to an end with a humiliation at the hands of Princeton.

 

The Quakers came out sluggish and were never seriously competitive with the Tigers in a 95-71 drubbing at Jadwin Gymnasium. Penn (8-19, 4-10 Ivy) has now finished seventh in the Ivy League for a second straight season, while Princeton (19-10, 8-6) clinched a trip to the Ivy League Tournament with the easy win.

 

Penn has now lost 13 consecutive games to Princeton. The all-time series is tied at 126-126, the first time the all-time ledger has been even since the Roosevelt administration … the Theodore Roosevelt administration, that is.

 

For one last kick in the behind, the Tigers’ Xaivian Lee racked up a 23-point triple-double.

 

If you’re a masochist, read on.

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LISTEN: Princeton men’s basketball’s presser after 95-71 win over Penn

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Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark brings us the postgame press conference for Princeton after a 95-71 win for the Tigers (19-10, 8-6 Ivy) over Penn (8-19, 4-10) that claimed them an Ivy League Tournament berth:

Quakeaways from Penn men’s basketball’s 92-87 win at Columbia

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NEW YORK CITY — In an otherwise lost season, Sam Brown delivered an evening of pure joy for Penn on Saturday night.

 

The sophomore guard accomplished something no Penn player had since Hassan Duncombe in December 1989: score at least 40 points in a game. Brown’s virtuoso 42-point showing carried the Quakers to a 92-87 win over Columbia.

 

It didn’t mean much in the standings, save for assuring that Penn (8-18, 4-9 Ivy) would avoid finishing last place in the Ivy League. That spot is now reserved for the Lions (12-14, 1-12), whose season has nosedived after a promising nonconference campaign. It seems likely that both teams will have new coaches next season.

 

Penn never trailed on Saturday, but there were more than a few perilous moments. Things got especially dicey when Columbia star Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa intercepted an inbounds pass from Nick Spinoso and drained a three to cut Penn’s lead to 86-85 with 30 seconds to play. 

 

But Brown calmly converted all six of his free throw attempts to assure the Lions would get no closer.

 

Brown was the biggest story of Saturday night. What made his evening so special?

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Solid second half lifts Harvard women’s basketball past Penn

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On Senior Night at Harvard, the seniors came through in a dominant second half Saturday to sail past the Penn women’s basketball team, 62-44.

Of course, it helps when your seniors include league-leading scorer Harmoni Turner and forward Elena Rodriguez. With two points from reserve forward Mona Zaric, the senior class came up just one point short of Penn’s total. Turner let loose for a double-double: 24 points from all over the court and 11 rebounds; Rodriguez had 17 points on 7-for-13 shooting.

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Penn women’s basketball trounces Dartmouth, 66-37

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When the Dartmouth women went to West Philly to play some basketball in January, they were at their best and broke an 18-game losing streak against Penn.
On Friday, it was the Penn women at their best, playing in Hanover to keep their shot at the Ivy League Tournament alive, and they started a new winning streak over Dartmouth emphatically, 66-37.

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