A FRONT ROW VIEW: Kegler won't let Penn lose

But the five starting seniors have been through this before. Two years ago, after Temple and St. Joseph's humiliated Penn in two consecutive games, the Quakers rebounded just days later to defeat Princeton for the first time in three years. The Quakers just don't get down. They know exactly what they can do. Even before last night's 7 p.m. tip-off, it was clear there would be no lapses. You could see it in their eyes. You could see it in their actions. While the crowd worked itself into a frenzy awaiting the opening jump, Scott Kegler clapped his hands. After Matt Maloney chased down the loose ball, Kegler nailed a three-pointer from the left corner to begin the Quaker onslaught. There would be no letdown, not last night. Kegler would not allow it. Kegler provided Penn's heart and soul on the Palestra floor. He pumped his fist after he connected on his first of four long-range bombs. Then when Eric Moore swished two free throws, Kegler was the first to congratulate him. Kegler hit another shot from behind the arc just minutes later. After adding three free throws, he had scored nine of the Quakers' first 21 points and staked Penn to a 12-point lead. La Salle coach Speedy Morris must have felt like he had seen this before. He had -- last year, in fact. Starting in place of the injured Barry Pierce last year at the Spectrum, Kegler accounted for nine of Penn's first 14 points. And this year, Kegler is shooting 55 percent from behind the three-point arc. Even with this knowledge, Morris still could not stop Kegler from draining four of his five three-point attempts last night. But Kegler did not just excel on the offensive end of the floor. He followed La Salle's Romaine Haywood through picks and traffic all over the court. Haywood finished the first half with just six points on three-of-11 shooting. Then when the Quakers went to a trapping zone, Kegler anticipated a La Salle pass from the left corner and stole it at the top of the key. In the ensuing minute and a half, he poured in eight points to extend Penn's lead to 22 points. Kegler led the Quakers with 14 first-half points as Penn took a 54-31 lead into the break. La Salle could start the buses. The game was over. On the first possession of the second stanza, Kegler made sure the Explorers knew whose arena they were in. Although La Salle wore their home whites, it was undoubtedly Penn's home court. With just seconds showing on the shot clock, Kegler called for the ball. As the clock expired, he drained yet another three-pointer. Although the Explorers eventually made a run, it was too late. There was no way Kegler was going to let the Quakers lose two games in a row. You knew that when you saw him dive for loose balls. You knew it when you saw him beat La Salle's full-court press for easy baskets. The offensive explosion overwhelmed La Salle. The defensive pressure suffocated the Explorers. There was nothing Speedy Morris could do. With Kegler leading the Quakers last night, there would be no letdown. After being embarrassed in Amherst, Mass., Saturday night, nothing was going to stop Kegler. You could see the intensity in Scott Kegler's eyes from the moment he stepped onto the Palestra hardwood. Joshua Friedman is a College senior from Beverly Hills, Calif., and sports editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian.

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