Penn-Lafayette Box Score (PDF)
PHILADELPHIA – Behind 22 points from freshman AJ Brodeur, the University of
Pennsylvania men's basketball team rolled to an 81-52 win over Lafayette on
Wednesday night at The Palestra. The Quakers improve to 3-4 this season, while
Lafayette falls to 3-5.
Numbers of Note
*Freshman AJ Brodeur finished one
point shy of a season-high on 10-of-13 shooting. He also added seven rebounds
and a season-best five assists.
*Sophomore Jackson Donahue poured
in a season-high 17 points, which included 4-of-6 shooting from three-point
land. Jake Silpe added six points.
*Senior Matt Howard scored 12 of
the Quakers' first 15 points of the game, and finished the night with 14.
*The Red and Blue had 21 assists
(season high) on 33 made baskets. They also shot over 55 percent from the field
(33-of-59) which was also a season-best.
*With the win, the Quakers snap a
four-game losing streak to the Leopards, dating back to 2012. In fact, it is the largest
triumph for Penn over Lafayette since a 105-73 win on Jan. 16, 2006.
*The 29-point final margin is the highest for the Quakers this season.
*Lafayette's Matt Klinewski came in leading the Leopards in scoring (19.3 ppg)
How
it Happened
It was the Matt Howard show early
on for the Quakers, as the senior scored 12 of Penn's first 15 points,
including a thunderous one-handed fast-break jam to give Penn a 15-6 lead at
the 12:31 mark. Fueled by Howard's red-hot start, the rest of the Quakers
quickly followed suit. Donahue knocked in a three-pointer to put Penn up 20-11,
while a Brodeur put-back produced a 22-13 edge.
Although Penn's defense contained
Lafayette for much of the first half -- the Leopards made just six of their first 19
shots -- the visitors were able to claw back. An 8-0 run cut Penn's lead to just
22-21 with 3:49 remaining in the opening 20 minutes. From there, however, it
was all Red and Blue. A hook shot from Brodeur followed by back three-pointers
from Donahue produced an 11-point lead with less than a minute left in the
half. A Hunter Janecek lay-up with five seconds on the clock made the final
margin 34-25 at the break.
Penn's sharp offense continued
into the second half. The Quakers made their first three shots from the field
as their lead ballooned up to 43-29. Brodeur had a pair of baskets in the run
while Wood knocked in a three-pointer. Long-range shooting continued to be a
factor for the Quakers, with back-to-back long balls from Donahue and Silpe
lifting Penn up 52-36 with 12:16 remaining.
Donahue and Silpe's three-balls
were the catalyst of a 16-0 run, which blew the game wide open for the Red and
Blue. Brodeur went on a personal 6-0 run, and eventually capped off the stretch
with a lay-in to give the Quakers a 62-36 lead with 9:13 remaining in the
second half.
The Quakers coasted to the finish
line, with the lead eventually stretching to a game-high 33 points. Youngsters
Ray Jerome, Devon Goodman and Collin McManus all contributed buckets for the
Quakers in the final moments of the second half, as the final tally finished up
at 81-52.
Up
Next
The Quakers continue their
non-conference schedule on Saturday with a matchup against George Mason at The
Palestra. Tip-off with the Patriots is set for 2 p.m.
#FightOnPenn
