College Basketball

Heartbreak at the Palestra as Harvard ends Penn postseason hopes

David Malandra Jr photo
By
David Malandra Jr
Author photo
David Malandra Jr Sports Editor

I am Sports Reporter that covers Pro & College Sports in Philadelphia & any other events that are featured in Philadelphia

All posts by David Malandra Jr
Sports Editor

Published22 Feb 2025

Disclosure
We sometimes use affiliate links in our content, when clicking on those we might receive a commission – at no extra cost to you. By using this website you agree to our terms and conditions and privacy policy.
image (7)

Philadelphia: There are a lot of emotions when you play your final home game of the season & also being Senior night with possible postseason hopes on the line & that is what we saw on Saturday night as the Penn Quakers were fighting to get into the Ivy League Tournament as they took on Harvard Crimson from the Palestra. The Quakers came into the game off a win over Dartmouth last night and Harvard made their way to the Palestra off a loss to Princeton last night.

Lineup:

 

How the game went:
Harvard would jump all over Penn to start the game as the Quakers would miss their first 7 shots before they got on the board, The lead for Harvard would be as high as 17 at 27-10 with 7:39 left & for the rest of the half, the Quakers would attempt to cut into the lead & got it down to 12 at 40-28, what could Penn do to counter whatever Harvard was showing

 

In the second half, Harvard picked up where they left off and got the lead up to 15 & there would be a couple of times where the Quakers got the lead down to 7 with the last one being at 56-49 with 7:12 left & the Quakers would not go away and the crowd at the Palestra would sense that something  special was happening after how the Quakers looked all game & Sam Brown would give Penn their first lead of the game at 61-58

https://twitter.com/PennMBB/status/1893461058116825387

 

Could the Quakers hold on to the lead as they got it up to 5 at 69-64 & the answer would be NO as Harvard  Evan Enlson would hit an amazing 3-pointer with 1.1 left to send the game into overtime

 

https://twitter.com/HarvardMBB/status/1893466350636449882

In overtime, both teams were cautious about their shot selection. Things came down to the final seconds in OT, as Harvard took the lead at 79-78. Penn had one final shot, and Harvard crushed the hearts of the Quakers & this loss ended Penn’s chances of making the Ivy League Tournament.

Postgame:

Penn Coach Steve Donahue

 

Final Numbers

What is next:

Penn has 3 games left and they are all on the road, this was a very challenging season for Quakers who had a good amount fo young players and this is a good learning experience that they can take into next year