Kreitz shows poise in redemption effort

Two days of mulling over the final seconds of regulation against Yale last Saturday night left Penn's lone senior starter, Garett Kreitz, chomping at the chance for redemption against Lafayette. The gritty and emotional co-captain of this year's Quakers desperately wanted to erase any memory of Yale senior Matt Ricketts stealing the ball from him with 30 seconds left in regulation and shooting up a game-tying lay-up. The Elis went on to win 71-70 in overtime. Last night Kreitz managed to break through after a dismal first half in which he netted only one of five from the field. The Quakers' co-captain recomposed himself to hit the two biggest hoops of the game. With Penn trailing 66-61 with under five minutes to play, Kreitz got himself free in the left corner and drained a three pointer. Seconds later, the Cresskill, NJ., native sank another trey from the center of the arc, despite a Lafayette defense draped all over him. "There is no question that those were two huge baskets," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "I am real happy for Garett because he took the game against Yale real personal. And if you know Garett, you would expect that from him .That is just the way he is. So I was real happy for him and happy for us, because he was able to get us over the hump." Shooting the rock in the closing minutes took a lot of courage and confidence for Kreitz, who prior to nailing that first trifecta was 2-for-10 from the field. But the veteran commented after the game that he knew the only way to regain his touch was to keep popping from the outside. Following the senior's second trey, Leopards coach Fran O'Hanlon called a timeout, trying to stop the bleeding and quiet a suddenly jumping Palestra crowd that was on their feet following Kreitz's heroics. "We lost him the first time in transition," O'Hanlon said. "But the second time I thought Brian Ehlers was right up there on him, but he kind of got into groove. And we know he is somebody you have to make put the ball on the floor. Otherwise, if you let him get his legs set underneath him, you could be in trouble because he is a deadly shooter and [trouble] is exactly what we were in that instance." O'Hanlon's timeout had little effect on firing up his own players or cooling off the Quakers. Following the two bombs by Kreitz, Penn looked as if it just wanted the victory more than Lafayette in the final minutes. The Leopards were never able to again catch the Quakers, although they had their chances, and Penn punched out a "W" when it need it. Dunphy, who has watched Kreitz mature as a player during his three years coaching him, was not the slightest bit phased by his leading scorer's rough first half from the field. "I am a big believer in rewarding somebody for all the dues he has paid," Dunphy said. "You stay with him. You know he is going to have his rough moments, but I think it is important to stay right with the guy." Kreitz recognized he was the beneficiary of patient coaching. He acknowledged in the post-game conference that the effect of the Yale loss still lingered in his mind. "Emotionally the Yale game played on us -- especially me -- as you could see, for a good part of this game," Kreitz said. "It's something that I can not let bother myself and in turn if I do not let it bother me, then it will probably not affect my teammates either." It is easy to see how much the Quakers depend on Kreitz. If the three-point specialist had not come to the rescue against the Leopards, the Red and Blue might easily have unraveled in the waning minutes and allowed Lafayette to escape with their first win ever at the Palestra. Instead, the Quakers rallied around Kreitz's gutsy performance and raised their game to another level. "There is no question in my mind that he is one of the toughest players I have ever coached," Dunphy said. "And I think here again tonight he showed everyone how mentally strong he is."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.