|
By
Jon Teitel
jonteitel@hotmail.com
October 13th, 2004
2004-05 Penn
Basketball Preview
The Veterans: The
Quakers return five seniors from last season, but the sophomore class
might be the most important group of players, as no less than three of
them (Mark Zoller, Ibby Jaaber, and Steve Danley) are expected to be in
the starting lineup.
The Youngsters:
Penn’s recruiting focused on the backcourt and on the Northeast, as the
team’s three freshmen are all guards from in or around Pennsylvania:
Brian Grandieri (from Pennsylvania), Michael Kach (from New York by way
of Massachusetts), and David Whitehurst (from New Jersey).
The Departed: The
Quakers lost three senior starters from last season, and they will all
be difficult to replace. Charlie Copp started all 27 games last year at
the point, and was very careful with the ball (only 32 turnovers). Adam
Chubb led the Quakers in blocks and free throws made last year, while
leading the conference in rebounding (7.5 RPG) en route to being named
Honorable Mention All-Ivy. The key loss will be Jeff Schiffner, a
2-time 1st-team All-Ivy performer who is 2nd in
school history with 220 three-point field goals made. Schiffner led the
team in three-point field goals as a sophomore, led the nation in
three-point shooting as a junior (49.3 3-PT FG%), and led Penn in
scoring and free throw percentage as a senior.
The Strengths and
weaknesses: Penn has decent size, with three players standing over 6’8”
(Jan Fikiel, Ryan Pettinella, and Nameir Majette) and nobody under
6’1”. As always, Penn will live by the three and die by the three.
Penn made 8.7 3-PT FG/game last year at a 39.7% clip, both of which
ranked them in the top-10 in the nation. The Quakers also led the
conference in assists last year (16 APG), and will hope to distribute
the ball well again this year.
The Star: Tim Begley
showed promise last year when he was named 2nd-team All-Ivy,
and he will be expected to lead the Quakers this season. Begley led
Penn in assists last year with 4.19 APG, led the conference in
three-point field goals made with 3.07 3-PT FG/game, and finished 9th
in the nation in three-point shooting with 45.6 3-PT FG%. Penn has had
its share of three-point shooters in the past, but with 68 more Begley
will become the all-time leader in school history.
The Schedule: Penn
will face a stiff test this year, including being the first Ivy League
team to host a Preseason NIT game since 1994. After that, they travel
to Wisconsin, and later play one game against St. Joseph’s and two
against Princeton. The final month of the season is not much easier, as
five of Penn’s final seven Ivy League games are on the road.
The Imports: Penn has
three players from outside the United States: two from Germany (Jan
Fikiel and Lorenz Manthey) and one from Cameroon (Friedrich Ebede).
The Coach: The
Quakers best asset is their head coach, Fran Dunphy. His 270 career
wins in 15 seasons (166 in the Ivy League) are the second-most all-time
behind Princeton legend Pete Carril. Dunphy was asked by his alma mater
(La Salle) over the summer to return to campus and coach the Explorers,
but he decided to stay in West Philadelphia, which brought a great sense
of relief to Penn fans. (Click here to read
CHN's Interview with Fran Dunphy)
The Prediction: Last
year’s team
was built to win it all last year, but they fell just short of
Princeton. Most teams would be in a rebuilding phase after losing three
senior starters, but this is not necessarily the case with Penn. While
this year’s Quakers are certainly young, all of the sophomores gained
valuable experience as freshmen. If they cannot contend this season,
then look for them to be a favorite in 2006.
Learn
more about the author Jon Teitel and how to contact him here
●
Return to the
2004-05 Ivy League
Preview
●
Check Out
The Interview with
Penn Coach Fran Dunphy
|
