PHILADELPHIA – Following its win over No. 21/21 Villanova on Monday at The Palestra, the University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team looks to keep its momentum going. The Quakers travel to Maryland-Eastern Shore this weekend for a Saturday evening matchup with the Shore Hawks.

GAME 5 – PENN (3-1, 0-0 Ivy League) at UMES (1-2)
Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 | 4 p.m.
Hytche Arena | Princess Anne, Md.
Watch Live on DMV Sports Network ($) | Listen Live on QAN | Live Stats
Penn Game Notes (PDF) | UMES Game Notes (PDF)

Quaker Audio Network (QAN)
Penn fans can listen to most of the 2023-24 Penn's men's basketball season through the Quaker Audio Network, a free Internet-based audio streaming service. Gary Erdelyi will be on the play-by-play call Saturday. To access the Quaker Audio Network, simply type www.pennathletics.com/audio into your computer or device.

The Series with UMES
*The Quakers and the Shore Hawks are meeting for the first time in men's basketball.

*Penn entered the season 5-2 all-time against programs currently in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), going 3-1 against Delaware State and 2-1 vs. Howard. The Quakers will actually face the Bison on December 11 at The Palestra; it will mark a homecoming for HU grad transfer Jelani Williams, who earned his undergrad degree at Penn and played one season for the Quakers after missing three to injury and one to COVID-19.
 
*Penn is looking to start a season 4-1 for the third time in the Steve Donahue coaching era; the Quakers were 4-1 through five games his first season at the helm (2015-16), then lost their fifth game after starting 4-0 in 2018-19.
 
Penn Picked Fifth in Ivy Preseason Media Poll
Penn was picked to finish fifth in the Ivy League's Preseason Media Poll, which came from the votes of two members of each school's media contingent. The poll was announced on Tuesday, Oct. 17.
2023-24 Ivy preseason media poll (first-place votes in parentheses)
  1. Yale, 124 (14)
  2. Princeton, 110 (2)
  3. Cornell, 80
  4. Brown, 77
  5. Penn, 68
  6. Harvard, 66
  7. Dartmouth, 28
  8. Columbia, 23
 
That's Not All
A quick scan of some other preseason predictions for the Quakers...
 
*Blue Ribbon picked Penn second, selected senior Clark Slajchert for its preseason all-conference team, and selected freshman Tyler Perkins as its preseason Newcomer of the Year.
 
*Lindy's picked Penn fourth and selected Slajchert as second-team All-Ivy.
 
*KenPom rates Penn fifth among Ivy League teams and 215th overall in NCAA Division 1.
 
Penn MBB by the Numbers
1 - Collegiate double-doubles by freshman Tyler Perkins, who led all players with 24 points and 14 rebounds last Wednesday against Bucknell in his first game against a Division 1 opponent; the last player with a double-double in his first such game? AJ Brodeur (23 pts/11 rbs at Robert Morris).
 
1:05 - Through four Penn games this season, the team that lost the respective games has led a whopping total of 65 seconds out of the 160 minutes played. Taking it a step further, the team that WON the games has led all but 8:03 of the 160 minutes.
 
2 - Games played by Penn at what is now the Wells Fargo Center entering this season. The Quakers split a pair of games with tonight's opponent, Villanova, back when it was called the First Union Center, losing 80-51 on February 6, 2001 and winning 72-58 on December 10, 2003. Penn will double that number in one week this season, playing there on December 2 (Big 5 Classic) and 9 (Kentucky).
 
3 - Non-conference opponents who are ranked in this week's Associated Press (AP) Preseason National Poll: Houston (#6), Kentucky (#17) and Villanova (#21); the Quakers, as you know by now, beat 'Nova on Monday night.
 
4 - Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors won in 2021-22 by senior Clark Slajchert (3) and junior George Smith (1); Slajchert also was Ivy League Player of the Week once last season. Sophomores were eligible for the rookie award in 2021-22 because there was no 2020-21 season (COVID-19).
 
5 - Consecutive double-figure scoring games by Slajchert, dating back to last season's Ivy League Tournament semifinal; including last season, Slajchert has hit double digits in the scoring column in nine of Penn's last 10 and 10 of its last 12 contests.
 
6 - Returning players who have had at least one double-figure scoring game during the course of their Penn career: Slajchert (31), junior Nick Spinoso (18), Smith (8), senior Andrew Laczkowski (2), junior Ed Holland III (1), and sophomore Cam Thrower (1).
 
6 - Newcomers on the roster: freshmen Sam Brown, Augustus Gerhart, Tyler Perkins, and Niklas Polonowski; sophomore transfer Johnnie Walter (from CSU-Northridge); and sophomore walk-on Jake Hsu (who played football for the Quakers last year).
 
9 - Free throws made by Perkins to start his collegiate career; he enters the UMES game 19-23 (82.6 percent).
 
16 - Double-figure scoring games by Slajchert last season, including a pair of 30-point outings—33 vs. Colgate, 31 in the Ivy opener at Brown—and four others with at least 20 points; he has hit double figures in all three games so far this season, as well.
 
27 - Points scored by Slajchert in Friday night's loss at Saint Joseph's—on 11-of-17 shooting, including five treys which tied a career high set twice before.
 
40.7 - Percentage of points returning to the lineup in 2023-24 (915 of 2,249) including three of the team's five leading scorers from last year: Slajchert (13.6 ppg in 2022-23), Spinoso (8.8 ppg) and Smith (5.6).
 
+55 - Penn's rebound advantage through four games this season (180-125); the Quakers have outboarded all four opponents so far including a 52-22 (+30) advantage against Bucknell, their largest margin against a Division 1 opponent since going +37 in a win over Columbia on February 2, 1974 (65-28).
 
69 - Points scored by Perkins through four games, tops among Penn players (17.3 ppg); the freshman also leads the Quakers in rebounds (31) and steals (7) and is second in assists (12) and 3FG (8).
 
93 - Assists dished out last season by Spinoso, the team high; that included an 11-assist game against Saint Joseph's and ten others with at least four dimes. Spinoso also was second on the team in rebounds (168) and third in both steals (22) and blocked shots (13).
 
For the latest on Penn men's basketball, follow @PennMBB on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.