PHILADELPHIA - It'll be Penn and Princeton once again. The second-seeded University of Pennsylvania (21-7, 11-3 Ivy) women's basketball team secured its spot in its second straight conference title bout with the Tigers with a 57-52 win over Harvard in the semifinals of the Ivy League Tournament.
 
PENN NEWS AND NOTES
*Michelle Nwokedi finished 1-for-1 from deep, improving Penn's record to 9-0 this season when the senior captain nails a shot from downtown.
 
*With the 117th start of her career, Ross broke Alyssa Baron's record for the most in program history.
 
*Nwokedi was two points shy of her third straight double-double with an 8-point, 14-rebound performance.
 
*Four players posted eight or more points for the Quakers, with Anna Ross (15), Ashley Russell (9), and Eleah Parker (8) joining Nwokedi.
 
*Penn is now 32-50 all-time vs. Harvard, having won nine of their last 10 against the Crimson.
 
*The Quakers had 10 assists on 19 field goals, with Ross and Nwokedi contributing three apiece to lead the way.
 
*Ross now has 139 assists on the season, two shy of Penn's single-season record, set by Cheryl Rath in 1986-87.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Neither team was able to get into a rhythm early, and Harvard maintained an 8-2 edge after seven minutes of play. The Quakers broke a five-minute scoring drought with a Parker layup before a personal 4-0 run for Russell brought it to 8-8 just before the end of the first period.
 
The Red and Blue found their footing in the second quarter, however, and a trey followed by a layup from Nwokedi tied it at 13 before Phoebe Sterba gave the Quakers their first lead of the night on a long jumper. Five points from Princess Aghayere and a late three-pointer from Lauren Whitlatch gave Penn a five-point lead at the half, their largest margin of the night to that point. It was the Penn defense that powered the lead, holding the Crimson to just 22.6 percent shooting from the floor and forcing eight turnovers in the first half.
 
After Harvard went on a 9-2 run to retake the lead early in the second half, Aghayere brought it back again, sinking a mid-range jumper to tie it back up and halt the Crimson's momentum. The Quakers held Harvard to a single field goal over the last eight minutes of the third frame, enabling them to maintain a 37-35 lead headed into the fourth quarter.
 
The Red and Blue managed to get the offense going in the final period, and a 10-4 run forced a Harvard timeout with 4:27 to play and the Quakers up, 48-41. After the Crimson brought it to within three, Penn coach Mike McLaughlin was forced to take a timeout of his own. Ross immediately hit a three out of the break, but consecutive treys for Harvard tied it up with 1:45 to play. Ross responded with another three, and the score stayed at 54-51 until the final seconds, when Beth Brzozowski sunk a pair of free throws to all but seal it.
 
Penn shot 48 percent from the floor in the second half, propelling the offense past six three-pointers from Harvard's Katie Benzan.
 
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Quakers will play for their second straight Ivy League Tournament title and their fourth NCAA Tournament bid in five years when they take on top-seeded Princeton at 4 p.m. on Sunday.