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Penn’s matchup with Fran Dunphy-helmed Big 5 foe La Salle on Saturday was a disturbing replay of its Wednesday loss to Saint Joseph’s.
Again, the Quakers let a second half lead slip away against an opponent they were outplaying.
Again, they needed heroics from the incomparable Jordan Dingle to force a tie and reach overtime.
And again, they squandered a late opportunity to tie the game in overtime. This time, freshman Cam Thrower, playing extended minutes for the first time all season, missed a decent three-point look with seven seconds to go in the extra frame which would have tied the contest.
For much of Tuesday night’s game at the Palestra, neither team deserved to win, as Penn and La Salle traded turnovers and sloppy play. But after a successful third quarter, the Quakers put on a clinic in futility and watched the Explorers run away with a 63-49 victory.
How bad was it? Let’s say you were watching online, less than a minute into the fourth quarter, when a Penn miss bounced to Mandy McGurk to the left of the lane and she scored on the putback. Then, let’s say, your power went out, or the toilet overflowed, or your narcolepsy kicked in — and when you saw the game on the screen again, Penn freshman Lizzy Groetsch was driving the lane for another basket.
That happened with 50 seconds left on the clock, and in the intervening eight-plus minutes of game time, Penn had not sunk a single bucket.