PHILADELPHIA - Junior Sam Jones scored a season-high 17 points to lift the University of Pennsylvania
men's basketball team to a 70-62 win over Columbia on Friday night at The Palestra. With the win, the Quakers improved to 8-12 overall and
1-6 in the Ivy League, while the Lions fell to 10-10 overall, 4-3 in conference.
Inside the Numbers
*Penn improved to 13-1 when leading at the half in the Steve Donahue coaching era (7-1 this season)
*Penn took a season-high 34 three-point shots and made 12, the most since the Quakers made 14 treys at Central Connecticut on November 22
*Penn had 48 rebounds, a season high, and the Quakers' +17 margin on the boards was also a season best; the Red and Blue had 19 offensive boards
*Penn shot 76.9 percent from the foul line (10-13), its third-best performance at the line this season
*Freshman AJ Brodeur recorded his third double-double of the season, and his
first in Ivy League play, with 14 points and 10 rebounds; he also had four assists, two blocked shots, and two steals
*Senior Matt Howard had 13 points and eight rebounds, after going for just four points the last two games when he played through illness
*Sophomore Max Rothschild had eight rebounds, a new season-high
*Freshman Devon Goodman scored nine points, a season/career high; they came on a trio of three-point baskets
*Jones has now scored in double figures in three-straight games, averaging 13.0 ppg in that span; prior to this run, he had scored eight points total across Penn's previous eight games
How it Happened
In a game that featured seven ties and four lead changes, the Quakers
were able to hold the Lions scoreless for the game's final 3:02 due
in large part to two huge blocked shots from senior Matt Howard. Although Penn led for more than 30 minutes in the contest –- including a nine-point first half lead –- the Quakers
constantly found themselves in a back-and-forth battle to collect a hard-earned
first Ivy win on the season.
Junior Sam Jones was busy beyond the arc from the outset, knocking
down two of his four three-pointers in the first seven minutes of the contest. The second gave the Quakers their first lead of the game since the opening possession.
Jones' hot hand sparked a 7-0 run that extended the lead to a game-high
11 points, including a four-minute span where the offense shot a perfect
7-for-7 from the field. Penn led, 37-28, at the break.
Coming out of halftime, the Lions threatened with an 8-0 run of their
own, holding the Quakers scoreless for the first four-plus minutes of the half
while shrinking the margin to one. Jones' fourth three of the game ended the drought momentarily, but Columbia's Luke Petrasek answered right back with
five quick points of his own to give the Lions their first lead since the 13:39
mark of the first half.
Despite Columbia's efforts to extend Penn's winless streak in Ivy
play, Howard and Devon Goodman hit treys on back-to-back possessions to regain the
lead for Penn. Although Columbia would knot the contest at 56 with five minutes to play, AJ Brodeur answered on the other end with a three-point play of his own and the Quakers held on the rest of the way.
Up Next
The Red and Blue have an off day Saturday before taking on Cornell to round out the weekend. Tip-off between the Quakers and Big Red Sunday is scheduled for 1 p.m. from the Palestra.
