Penn-Fordham Game Notes in PDF Format
PHILADELPHIA -- The University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team has covered some serious territory and bridged two years during its most recent road trip, which concludes with Monday's game at Fordham. The first two contests took place in Hawaii, followed by last week's game at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C.
GAME 11 - Penn (6-4) at Fordham (5-9)
Monday, Jan. 9, 2006 * 7:30 p.m. EST
Bronx, N.Y.* Rose Hill Gym (capacity 3,200)
Television: None
Radio/Internet: WXPN (88.5 FM) and www.pennathletics.com
Brian Seltzer, PBP; Vince Curran, analyst
Tonight, the Quakers head into a meeting with the Rams looking to continue its run of road wins. Penn gained two well-earned wins in Hawaii, holding off a game University of Hawaii squad Dec. 29, then coming back nicely after blowing a lead to down Division II BYU-Hawaii two days later. Last week, the Quakers got a bit of a breather against an undermanned Citadel squad, as everyone on the roster saw time.
Penn's current three-game winning streak stopped a three-game losing streak that the Quakers suffered heading into finals, but those three losses could be excused -- they came to Atlantic 10 (and Big 5) foe Temple, 50-46; at No. 1 Duke, 72-59; and at home against No. 3 Villanova, 62-55. Both Duke and Villanova entered the weekend undefeated, and in factno team had come closer to the Wildcats than Penn until Sunday, when West Virginia knocked 'Nova off.
One pleasant tidbit for the Quakers? The balance it has shown in its three road games to date -- several players have shown glimpses that they are ready to break out as the Ivy League season dawns this weekend. As an example, five Penn players hit double-digits at The Citadel, and one who didn't -- Brian Grandieri -- had a double-double with 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
The Series With Fordham
? Penn and Fordham are meeting for the seventh time in men's basketball; the Rams hold a 4-2 lead in the series.
? Penn is 0-1 vs. Fordham under Fran Dunphy, an 81-78 loss on Nov. 18, 2000 at the CoSIDA Classic in Raleigh, N.C.
? Penn's last win in the series came on Dec. 27, 1973, a 97-66 decision in the Quaker City Tournament at The Palestra.
? This is the fourth-straight road game for the Quakers and the fifh in the last six outings; following tonight's contest, however, the Quakers are home for seven in a row.
? Penn is 100-115 all-time against teams from the Atlantic 10, including a 50-46 loss to Temple earlier this season.
Dayton0-1 (Dunphy 0-1)
Duquesne4-1
Fordham2-4 (0-1)
G. Washington0-1 (0-1)
La Salle36-22 (12-4)
Massachusetts1-3 (0-2)
Rhode Island1-1 (0-1)
Richmond3-2
St. Bonaventure2-1
Saint Joseph's33-41 (5-11)
Saint Louis0-1 (0-1)
Temple18-37 (3-13)
Other Notes of...Note
? Penn is looking to win four games in a row for the first time this season, with all of those wins coming on the road; the Quakers are 11-2 in their last 13 games on opposing team's courts, including a 3-1 mark this season with the loss coming by 13 points at No. 1 Duke.
? Penn needs two wins to reach 1,600 as a program, and when the Quakers reach that mark they will be the eighth NCAA Division I program in history to do so.
? Penn has a +6.25 turnover margin in its last four games, committing just 43 (10.7 per game) and forcing 68 (17.0).
? Eric Osmundson has scored 36 points in the last three games (12.0 ppg) after scoring 15 in the four games before that (3.8).
? Junior guard Ibrahim Jaaber is the only Penn player to have scored in double figures in all of the first 10 games this season; in fact, he has an 12-game streak dating back to the end of last season.
? Jaaber also has 28 steals this season; he is third on the school's all-time list, needing three to catch Michael Jordan for second place and 22 to surpass Jerome Allen as the program's leader (did we mention he's only a junior?). Last year, Jaaber set Penn and Ivy League records for thefts in a season with 85 (2.93 per game).
? Jaaber has been the Ivy League Player of the Week twice this season (Jan. 4, Dec. 3) and leads the conference in scoring (18.8 ppg) and steals per game (2.80).
Download: MBK Notes 11 (Fordham).pdf
