Sophomore guard Drew Gellert showed off amazing defensive skill from the tip-off, constantly frustrating star Penn guard Michael Jordan--no relation to His Airness. However, Harvard switched to a zone midway through the first half and Jordan was able to break free from Gellert to finish the first half with 13 points.
While Jordan scored, the Crimson, and especially Clemente, faltered. Layup after layup rimmed out and Harvard went 9-of-29 from the floor, including 1-of-9 (11.1 percent) from behind the arc. Clemente couldn't buy a bucket except for a short jump shot and had two points in the half. It would be the only points he scored.
Harvard was lucky to go to the locker room only down 32-19 at the half, considering it shot so poorly. In addition, Penn (12-7, 5-0) went 9-of-9 from the free throw line while the Crimson didn't even get one trip.
"We were solid defensively and held them to under 40 percent shooting in the first half," said Sullivan. "But we just couldn't score."
The Crimson's woes continued in the second half as the Quakers pulled away. Timely basket after timely basket by unheralded players like forward Frank Brown, who had 15 points on 3-of-3 3-point shooting, and guard Matt Langel, who added six assists, kept any hope of a Crimson comeback on the bench. The Quakers, in fact, used 13 players, including playing guys normally reserved for junior varsity.
While Jordan's 20 points overall weren't that impressive, his ball-handling and off-the-ball movement showed why he is the best player in the Ivy League. On one sequence in the second half, he made several ankle-breaking crossover dribbles to embarrass Harvard defenders. While Sullivan made sure his players always kept two eyes on Jordan, the Penn offense set screens and picks to set him free. Once he had the ball, he showed off his experience, either on crisp entry passes or forays into the lane.
"We had no answers for anything," Sullivan said. "We didn't play well at all. We've never seen guys hold on to the ball so well."
Clemente had the first of his two poor nights. He finished 1-of-9 overall and 0-of-6 from downtown. He fouled out with six minutes left in the game, and his two points were a season low.
Read more in Sports
M. Tennis Beats KansasRecommended Articles
-
After Slow Start, Men's Basketball Blows By NortheasternHarvard coach Frank Sullivan must have given one heck of a halftime speech. After a back-and-forth first half that left
-
M. Basketball Upsets PennsylvaniaHarvard was on the cusp of history Saturday night. The previous evening, captain Dan Clemente's 29 points allowed the Crimson
-
First Half Woes Plague W. Hoops in SplitThe Harvard women's basketball team needed a win against Penn at the Palestra on Friday night to prevent the Quakers
-
Title Hopes Fade as M. Basketball Loses to Yale and BrownNEW HAVEN, CT., PROVIDENCE, R.I.-- Parity is emerging in Ivy League men's basketball, but so far it isn't helping the
-
Losing Streak Stretches to Five for Men's BasketballHarvard men's basketball dropped to both Princeton and Penn this weekend, extending its losing streak to five games, a slide
-
M. Cagers Fall to Ivy FoesEach year, the men's basketball teams of Princeton and Penn swing through Cambridge to take on Harvard. Almost as regularly,