PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team is off to a nice start, and the Quakers will look to keep the momentum going in "paradise" this weekend as they travel to the U.S. Virgin Islands to take part in the Paradise Jam. Penn's first-round opponent will be the University of Northern Iowa out of the Missouri Valley Conference.
 
GAME 4 – PENN (3-0) vs. NORTHERN IOWA (1-1)
Paradise Jam First Round
Friday, Nov. 16, 2018 * 6:30 p.m. (5:30 Eastern)
University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.)
Penn Game Notes | UNI Game Notes
 
About the Paradise Jam
The Paradise Jam is an eight-team tournament where each team is guaranteed three games. This is also an NCAA "exempt" event, which allows Penn to play 30 regular-season games as opposed to the regular Ivy League limit of 27. Penn also was in an exempt event last year, going 2-1 at the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.
 
In addition to Penn and UNI, the field includes Eastern Kentucky, Kansas State, Kennesaw State, Missouri, Old Dominion, and Oregon State. The Quakers will face either EKU or K-State in their second game.
 
If Penn loses on Friday, the Quakers play again on Saturday in a consolation game against the EKU-KSU loser. If Penn wins on Friday, the Quakers are off until Sunday and a semifinal game against the EKU-KSU winner. All eight teams will play in Friday's opening round and Monday in place games (7th, 5th, 3rd, championship).
 
The Series with UNI
• The Quakers and the Panthers have never played in men's basketball, this is the first meeting.
 
• All-time, Penn is just 1-3 against programs currently in the Missouri Valley Conference (0-1 vs. Evansville, 1-0 vs. Indiana State, 0-2 vs. Loyola Chicago). The Quakers' most recent meeting with a team currently in "The Valley" came on November 30, 2003, an 86-48 win over ISU at the Coca-Cola Classic hosted by Michigan State (an event that brought the four teams from the 1979 Final Four back together on its 25th anniversary).
 
After Friday…
• If Penn plays Eastern Kentucky over the weekend, it will represent the second meeting between the Quakers and the Colonels in men's basketball and just Penn's fourth meeting all-time against an Ohio Valley opponent.
  12/28/1982 - Penn 83, EKU 70 (Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn.)
 
• If Penn plays Kansas State over the weekend, it will also be just the second meeting between the Quakers and the Wildcats. Penn is 3-11 all-time against current Big 12 programs, the most recent coming at last year's NCAA Tournament when the Red and Blue fell to Kansas, 76-60, in the first round in Wichita, Kan.
  3/15/1975 - K-State 69, at Penn 62 (NCAA Tournament First Round at The Palestra in Philadelphia)
 
Fast Out of the Gate
Penn is 3-0 for the first time since 2015-16, which also was head coach Steve Donahue's first season at the helm. Prior to that, however, the last time the Quakers started 3-0 was all the way back in 1981-82.
  Penn's last 4-0 start? 1978-79
  Penn's last 5-0 start? 1978-79
  Penn's last 6-0 start? 1974-75
 
Penn by the Numbers
2:22 • Amount of time Penn has trailed in its last two games, all in the first half (1:10 vs. Rice, 1:12 vs. Lafayette).
 
3 • Points scored by junior Ryan Betley in last Tuesday's game, when he drained a three-pointer on Penn's first possession of 2018-19; less than five minutes later he ruptured his patellar tendon, and so last year's leading scorer will miss the remainder of the season.
 
3 • NCAA Division 1 players this year from China, including freshman Michael Wang. He shares the distinction with James Zhao (California) and Kevin Zhang (Tulane). Wang played his high school ball at Mater Dei (Calif.).
 
6 • Points scored by Wang on his first two touches in the season opener at Mason; both of those touches ended as made three-pointers. The freshman finished his debut with 14 points.
 
8 • Ivy League weekly awards won by junior AJ Brodeur in his career after he was named Ivy League Player of the Week last Monday. He was Rookie of the Week four times as a freshman, and Player of the Week three times last year.
 
9 • Consecutive double-figure scoring games by Brodeur dating back to last season. He is averaging 16.8 points per game in that span.
 
10 • The number of times Penn has hit 90 points in the 92-game Donahue era after the wins over Rice (92-76) and Lafayette (91-61). The last time the Quakers surpassed 90 points against consecutive Division I opponents was 2002-03, when they scored 99 points at USC and then scored 98 vs. Monmouth.
 
10 • Points scored by senior Antonio Woods in the game's final 5:22 last Tuesday; in fact, all of those points came in a span of 4:17 as Woods—who was scoreless to that point—scored 10 of Penn's final 13 points in the Mason win.
 
10 • Career double-doubles for Brodeur after he went for 19 points and 10 rebounds in the opener at Mason. Penn is 9-1 in those 10 games.
 
24 • Penn wins last season, most since the Quakers had 25 in 2001-02. All time, the Red and Blue have had nine seasons with 24 or more victories.
 
26 • Ivy League titles won by Penn. That is behind only Princeton (27). The rest of the league has 20 combined.
 
31 • Points scored by junior Devon Goodman in the last two games (15 vs. Rice, 16 vs. Lafayette).
 
64.5 • Brodeur's two-point field-goal percentage so far this season (20-of-31).
 
69.3 • Percentage of Penn's scoring that returns from a year ago (1,737 of 2,506 points). Darnell Foreman and Caleb Wood scored 688 of the 769 points lost.
 
83.8 • Penn's combined FT percentage against Rice (23-28) and Lafayette (8-9) after the Quakers shot just 33.3 percent from the charity stripe at Mason (6-18).
 
112 • Career blocked shots by Brodeur. Only midway through his college career, he is already fifth on the program's all-time list in that category. Brodeur set the program's single-season record as a freshman, with 66.
 
161 • Assists by frontcourt mates Brodeur (83) and senior Max Rothschild (78) last season. Senior point guard Jake Silpe is another keen eye on the floor, he had 89 assists in 2015-16.
 
291 • Three-point baskets scored by Penn last year, a program record. The Quakers have also set program marks each of the last two years in three-point attempts, with 690 in 2016-17 and then 830 last season.
 
38.3 • Penn's win percentage in its first 47 games under head coach Steve Donahue (18-29).
 
73.3 • Penn's win percentage in its last 45 games under Donahue (33-12).