Quakeaways from Penn men’s basketball’s 60-47 loss to Drexel

PHILADELPHIA — The tradition at the Big 5 Classic tripleheader at the Wells Fargo Center is that fans throw streamers onto the court after their team’s first made basket.

When Penn scored first against Drexel on Saturday afternoon, about a half-dozen or so red and blue streamers limped out of a half-empty student section behind the basket. When the Dragons responded, navy blue and yellow paper coated the baseline.

It was that kind of afternoon for the Red and Blue, who took a 60-47 loss thanks to another extended offensive outage.

After getting early buckets from senior big Nick Spinoso and junior wing Ethan Roberts to open up a 34-30 lead a minute into the second half, Penn (3-6, 0-3 Big 5) scored just two points for the next nine minutes and 21 seconds of game time. Drexel (6-4, 1-2) used that stagnant period to go on a 14-2 run.

Unless and until Penn fixes its persistent scoring issues, nothing will change. That’s a shame, because …

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Takeaways from Princeton men’s basketball moving to 9-0 with 81-70 win over Drexel

Ivy Hoops Online contributor George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps and reflects on Princeton men’s basketball improving to 9-0 with an 81-70 win over Drexel at Jadwin Gym Tuesday night:

Rookie production, Mitchell dominance key in successful weekend for Princeton squads

In his latest report, Ivy Hoops Online writer George “Toothless Tiger” Clark highlights key rookie contributions in the Princeton men’s 83-63 win at Drexel Saturday and Ellie Mitchell’s stat sheet-stuffing dominance in the Princeton women’s 65-51 victory at Maine:

Takeaways after Penn men notch first win of season at Drexel

Senior swingman Lucas Monroe snared 11 rebounds at Drexel Tuesday night, 10 of them on the defensive end. Defensive boards and turnovers sprang a strong transition game for Penn in a 64-59 win over their 33rd Street neighbors. (Photo by Erica Denhoff)

After an 0-3 start, Penn is off the schneid.

The Quakers used a solid defensive performance to build a 15-point lead over Drexel early in the second half, and after wobbling a bit, made enough plays down the stretch to seal a 64-59 win over their next-door neighbors Tuesday night.

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Yale women fade late and fall at Drexel, 59-52

The pattern was largely the same, but unfortunately for Yale, the result was different from some recent comeback wins in the Bulldogs’ 59-52 loss at Drexel Tuesday.

The Bulldogs fell behind Drexel, 31-12, and were down 33-24 at the half.

The third quarter was a different story. Yale won the stanza, 18-8, with Camilla Emsbo scoring 12 of her 21 points. The visitors took a 42-41 lead.

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Ivy hoops roundup – New opportunities

As Ivy League basketball emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, new opportunities abound for new and returning Ivy players, coaches and even windows:

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Ivy hoops roundup – Aug. 1, 2020

Back on the Jazz 

Miye Oni returned to the Utah Jazz official 17-man roster for the Jazz’s NBA season reopening win over the New Orleans Pelicans in Orlando on TNT Thursday evening, the NBA’s first action since March 11 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Oni did not play but did join the other players in kneeling for the national anthem. Oni wore Power to the People on the back of his jersey, as all of his teammates opted to replace their last names on their jerseys with a message of social justice.

Oni briefly got playing time toward the end of the Jazz’s second game Saturday, a 110-94 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Orlando. In his sixth NBA game, Oni pitched in three points, two rebounds, a steal and a block in just under six minutes of action.

Dartmouth men announce Class of 2024

Dartmouth men’s basketball recently announced its Class of 2024 on Twitter:

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Penn grinds out win over Drexel in defensive Battle of 33rd Street

On a day when the ball seemed too slick to handle, the Penn women managed not to let a victory slip away, beating a persistent Drexel team 53-49 at the Palestra.
Credit some key threes by guards Kayla Padilla and Phoebe Sterba, a resurgence for center Eleah Parker, clutch steals by Kendall Grasela and sterling play on both ends by Tori Crawford.

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Penn proves it’s not all about the three-point line in loss at No. 23 Villanova

Penn may have lost 80-69 to Villanova at Finneran Pavilion Wednesday night, but the final score doesn’t reflect the fairly even play between the Big 5 rivals, notwithstanding the strong finishes the Wildcats ended both halves on to clinch the win.

How reigning Big 5 champion Penn (5-4) hung with the Wildcats (6-2) is important.

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Princeton men’s basketball searching for consistency, identity and leadership

One month into the 2019-20 season, the Princeton men’s basketball team is off to its worst seven-game start against Division I competition since the 1984-85 season, in which it started 0-6 and then 1-6 against Division I teams. The Tigers opened their 2019-20 campaign with five straight losses before finally shooting their way to a win at Bucknell last Saturday. Princeton fell flat in the second half against the Drexel Dragons Wednesday night and lost again on the road.  The Tigers’ 1-6 start echoes the frustrations of the 1979-80 team, which also struggled out of the gate at 0-5 and finished the nonconference schedule with a 4-11 record.

However, that Tigers squad of 40 years ago scratched its way to a tie for the Ivy League title before falling in a playoff game by a single point to Penn.  Can this year’s team come together in similar fashion once Ivy League play begins?  Here is my assessment of what ails the Tigers at the halfway mark of the nonconference season.

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