Penn Basketball returns to the NCAA Tournament in its first season under Fran McCaffery. Can he help continue the Ivy League’s impressive outcomes in the NCAA Tournament?
After back-to-back losing seasons, Penn moved on from Steve Donahue and brought in longtime Iowa coach and Penn alumnus Fran McCaffrey. It wasn’t smooth sailing, but Penn is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
How they got there:
The Ivy League tournament is tough. Only four teams make it, which means less room for error during the regular season, but also only needing two wins in the conference tournament to earn a bid. Penn basketball made their fans sweat for it, winning both their tournament games in overtime.
In the semifinal against Harvard, AJ Levine hit a layup with five seconds left in overtime to give Penn the win. Then, in the final, TJ Power drilled a three-pointer with two seconds left in regulation to force overtime, where they were able to hang on.
Penn finished third in the Ivy League, but a big reason why is a 2-4 start to conference play. They went 7-1 after that, then capped that off with the two conference play wins. Power was the lone nominee for the All-Tournament team, thanks to his monster 44-point and 14-rebound performance in the final.
General Information:
Team: Penn
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Record: 18-11 (9-5)
Head Coach: Fran McCaffrey (30th season, 1st at Penn)
What to know about Penn basketball:
Penn basketball starts with Fran McCaffery. Fran has 566 all-time wins, and only 5 losing seasons in the 30 he’s coached. He has plenty of tournament experience, making his 13th appearance. He hasn’t had the most success when he gets there, but half the battle is done for him.
He’ll have Power, who, as mentioned, was an absolute monster in the conference tournament. The former five-star seems to have found his home after struggling to find a court at Duke and Virginia. He shoots 43% from three on six attempts a game, which is impressive for a guard, but arguably more impressive for a 6’9 forward. He still uses that size, though, averaging just under eight rebounds a game.
What might be most impressive, though, is his stamina. He averaged 35 minutes a game on the season, and 43 a game in the conference tournament. The best ability is availability, and if he’s on the court in the NCAA Tournament, then Penn has a chance.
This isn’t a one-man show, though, as Ethan Roberts averaged 16.9 a game himself. Roberts scored 30 in back-to-back games in November and is great at getting to the line, going 6.3 times a game, and making 79.9% of them.
Penn finished 11th in the country in 3-point percentage at 38.7%, but surprisingly doesn’t shoot a ton. They also do a great job of three-point defense. That could be a scary combo for their opponent, and hopefully something Penn can take advantage of.
NCAA Tournament prediction for Penn basketball: Round of 64 exit
Seed: 14
Penn was given the 14 seed and will face Illinois in round one. Obviously, being the Iowa coach for so long, McCaffery has a ton of history with Brad Underwood, which can be a good or bad thing. The Ivy League has proven to be dangerous in the tournament. Two years ago, we saw Yale take down Auburn in round one. The year before, Princeton made it all the way to the Sweet 16. Even last year, Yale kept it close with Texas A&M all game before dropping that one.
Penn played three Power 5 opponents in the non-conference. The good news is that they lost by just one to Rutgers. The bad news is that they lost by 25 to Providence and 27 to Villanova. Now, they have to play the top offense in the country in Illinois, which can beat you in so many ways. As mentioned earlier, though, it’s March, and the Ivy League knows how to keep top teams on their toes.