PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team heads to New York for Ivy Madness, the fourth-seeded Quakers facing top-seeded Princeton Friday afternoon in the first of two semifinals at Columbia's Levien Gym.
 
Penn—which is making its second straight appearance at Ivy Madness and fifth in the six-year history of the event—and Princeton will tip off at 4:30 p.m., followed by second-seeded Columbia and third-seeded Harvard at 7:30 p.m. Friday's winners will meet Saturday at 5 p.m. to determine the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
 
GAME 28: PENN (15-12, 7-7 Ivy League) at PRINCETON (23-4, 13-1 Ivy League)
Friday, March 15, 2024 | 4:30 p.m.
New York, N.Y. | Levien Gymnasium
Watch Live on ESPN+ ($) | International Stream | Live Stats
 
Penn in Ivy Madness
*The Quakers are making their fifth appearance in Ivy Madness, having only missed this event once in 2022.
 
*Penn won the inaugural event in 2017 at The Palestra; after winning the regular season, they were the top seed and beat #4 Brown (71-60) and #2 Princeton (57-48) to earn the league's NCAA Tournament bid.
 
*Penn also made the final as a second seed in both 2018 and 2019, losing to top-seeded Princeton both times (63-34 in 2018 at The Palestra and 65-54 in 2019 at Yale).
 
*This is the second straight year Penn has been the fourth seed; last year the Quakers fell to top-seeded Princeton 60-47 at the Tigers' Jadwin Gym.
 
The Princeton Series
*Saturday's matchup against Princeton marks the 97th contest between the two programs, the Tigers holding a 67-29 lead in the all-time series.
 
*The Tigers are currently on an 11-game win streak against the Quakers, Penn's last win coming at Jadwin in 2019 (66-60).
 
*Penn's longest win streak against Princeton is five games, starting in 2016.
 
*The series dates to 1974, when the Tigers earned a 44-35 win at Old Nassau. Penn's first win did not come until 1980, a 98-49 rout at The Palestra.
 
Last Time We Met
*The Tigers claimed the victory against the Quakers at Jadwin less than a week ago, 72-55, snapping the Red and Blue's three-game win streak.
 
*Jordan Obi had a team-high 17 points for Penn, adding six rebounds and six assists in 33 minutes of play.
 
*Stina Almqvist had 16 points, including shooting a perfect 5-5 from the line, while also grabbing five boards.
 
*Penn was 13-of-14 from the free-throw line in the contest—which isn't surprising, as Penn is the best free-throw shooting team in the league (.760 percentage).
 
Quakers Claim Multiple Ivy Postseason Honors
The Ivy League announced the All-Ivy teams and postseason awards on Tuesday…
 
*Obi was named first-team All-Ivy for the first time, after earning second-team All-Ivy the last two seasons. She earned the honor after averaging 14.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game. She was second in points per game for the Quakers, sixth in the Ivy League, and led the Quakers in blocked shots (36) which was second in the Ivy League. She ended the regular season with five double-doubles, including 17 games with 15 points or more.
 
*Almqvist earned her first All-Ivy honor, getting voted to the second team. She finished fifth among Ivy League players in scoring with 15.4 ppg, leading Penn in this category. She was top ten among Ivy players in rebounds (6.5) and blocks per game (1.1) and scored in double figures in 11 of Penn's 14 Ivy League games this season.
 
*Freshman Mataya Gayle earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year, the seventh Penn woman to earn the award. She is third in scoring for Penn, averaging 14.1 points per game, and led the Red and Blue in assists (83), steals (40), and three-point field goals (49). Gayle scored in double figures in nine of Penn's 14 Ivy games this season.