PHILADELPHIA - It was the Michelle Nwokedi show for the University of Pennsylvania (15-5, 6-1 Ivy) women's basketball team on Saturday night, as the senior captain set a new career-high with 30 points to lead the Quakers to a 69-49 victory over Harvard. The win keeps Penn tied for first place in the Ivy League and is the ninth straight for the Red and Blue, ranking tied for second-longest in program history. 

PENN NEWS AND NOTES
*Nwokedi's 30 points are the most for a Penn player since Keiera Ray notched 31 vs. Harvard on Feb. 15, 2013. Nwokedi finished the night with 9-for-13 shooting including 4-for-8 from behind the arc, a new career-high in 3-pointers. Nwokedi also finished with eight rebounds, tying Princess Aghayere for the team high. 

*The Quaker defense stifled the Crimson's offensive attack all night, forcing 22 Harvard turnovers, the most forced against an Ivy League opponent since Dartmouth had 23 on Feb. 26, 2013. 

*Lauren Whitlatch finished as Penn's second-leading scorer with nine points, all from 3-point land. Whitlatch has hit a 3-pointer in 13-straight games.

*Penn won the rebounding battle 42-36, improving to 13-1 this season when outrebounding its opponent.

*The Ivy League's leader in assists Anna Ross finished with five dimes on the night, pushing her career total to 452.

*As a team, the Quakers were lights out from deep, going 12-for-28 from behind-the-arc. Seven Quakers hit at least one 3-pointer. 

*The win is the ninth straight for the Quakers over the Crimson, improving upon the best in series history for Penn. The Red and Blue are now 31-49 all-time against Harvard. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
Hot starts have been key to Penn's success in its current winning streak, and the Quakers held true to form on Saturday, shooting out of the gate vs. the Crimson and never looking back. The Red and Blue looked to Nwokedi early and often, as the senior started the game with a layup and followed with her first 3-pointer of the night. When she wasn't scoring from the floor, she made do from the free throw line, hitting four in the first quarter. A four-minute scoring drought from Harvard helped the Quakers push out to a 25-10 lead at the end of one. 

It would be all that and more from Penn in the second quarter, as the Quakers pushed their scoring run to 16-0, owning a 33-10 lead after Harvard had once cut it to 17-10 in the opening 10 minutes. Nwokedi was dominant during that stretch of time, hitting shots from all over the court, not afraid to pull up from deep as the Crimson gave her plenty of space from deep. At halftime, the Quakers held a firm 45-21 advantage, while Nwokedi had already hit a new career-high of 27 points on 8-for-10 shooting.

Nwokedi would have more than or equal to Harvard's point total until the 1:12 mark of the third quarter. The Crimson were able to stifle the Quakers momentarily on offense to start the third period, but Penn would awaken from 3-point land yet again, nailing shots from Sterba and Brzozowski to continue to add to the lead. 

With Coach McLaughlin able to use wholesale substitutions in the fourth quarter, Harvard outscored the Quakers 16-8 in the final period, making the final score 69-49. 

QUOTING COACH
"We were really, really good, if not great, in the first quarter. We moved the ball well, we got open shots, and Michelle made shots. It's pretty hard to guard. That's the best I've seen her score this year ... She came out here on a mission. She was terrific."

WHAT'S NEXT?
Penn will turn its attention to a battle for first place on Tuesday, Feb. 13, making the short trip to Princeton for a 6:30 p.m. tip inside Jadwin Gymnasium. Both the Quakers and Tigers sit 6-1 in Ivy League play.