PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team put together arguably its best performance of the season in its first game out of fall-term exams Friday night, leading from start to finish in beating Rider at The Palestra, 79-66.
Penn improved to 4-7 with the win, while Rider fell to 4-8.
Quaker Notemeal
*Tonight marked the first time this season Penn never trailed in a game.
*Penn tied its season high with 41 points in the first half.
*Penn's 19-point lead, at 63-44, was its biggest lead in a game so far this season.
*Penn shot a season-best 45.8 percent from three-point land (11-of-24); this was the Quakers' second time hitting a double-digit total beyond the arc.
*Overall, Penn shot 52.5 percent from the field (32-of-61), setting season highs in field goals and FG percentage.
*Penn had 18 assists and just eight turnovers; the Quakers' 2.25 assist/turnover ratio was second best this season (18/7 vs. UMES on November 7).
*Senior
Nick Spinoso scored 22 points—on 11-of-14 shooting from the field—which was a season high and one shy of his career best. He also had six rebounds, three assists without a turnover, and two blocked shots.
*Junior
Ethan Roberts scored 20 points, led all players with five assists, and tied for game-high honors with eight rebounds.
*This marked the second time Penn had two different players score at least 20 points in the same game; that also happened against UMES on November 7 (Roberts 23,
Sam Brown 22).
*Sophomore
Niklas Polonowski drained four three-pointers en route to 14 points, two shy of his career high and a career best against a Division I opponent.
*Freshman
AJ Levine set season/career highs in rebounds (6) and assists (3) and scored three points.
*Freshman
Bradyn Foster, who had not played a second the entire season, got the start on Friday and finished with five points and four rebounds in just under 10 minutes of action.
*Rider got 16 points from Zion Cruz, while Tariq Ingraham had 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds. T.J. Weeks, Jr. added 13 points.
How It Happened
Both teams came out firing early on Friday, the Quakers leading 12-10 at the first media timeout just over five minutes into the contest. It was 14-13 when Penn went on a modest 7-2 run as Roberts and
Augustus Gerhart scored buckets and then Polonowski answered a Rider basket with a trey. The Broncs went more than five minutes without a point and the Red and Blue took advantage, ultimately using a 12-2 run that pushed their lead to 15 at 36-21. The score was 41-29 at the half.
Rider got within eight points early in the second half, a Weeks free throw making the score 46-38. However, Spinoso scored a bucket ahead of the under-16 media timeout, and then Polonowski and Roberts scored on consecutive possessions that pushed the Quakers' lead back to 15 and forced a Broncs timeout with exactly 14 minutes left.
A 10-2 Penn run pushed its lead to 19 points, at 63-44, but the Broncs had another run in them. The score was 68-52 when Cruz hit a three and Tank Byard scored in the lane. Spinoso matched Byard's bucket, but Andre Young dialed long distance and Weeks picked Penn's pocket in the backcourt for an easy layup. That made it an eight-point game, at 70-62, with just under five minutes to play. Penn took timeout.
The Quakers held their nerve. Roberts drove the lane for a lefty scoop to get the margin back to double digits, and then after an empty Rider possession Spinoso drove the lane for another bucket. That made the score 74-62 at the under-4 media timeout with 3:21 left, and the host Red and Blue kept Rider off the scoreboard until just 39 seconds were left in closing out the victory.
Up Next
Penn is back in action on Sunday, traveling to George Mason to take on the Patriots Sunday at 2 p.m.
For the latest on Penn men's basketball, follow @PennMBB on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.
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