Not just happy to be there

BOSTON -- This year, the Penn men's basketball team isn't just happy to be here.

The Quakers are looking for a win.

"We were disappointed in the way that we played last year against Cal," senior guard Andrew Toole said. "This is a very experienced group that is looking to play our best basketball tomorrow night and try to advance."

It's been over a year since Penn lost in a first-round NCAA Tournament game to California, 82-75. But the Quakers' subpar performance in that game still haunts them today.

The 11th-seeded Quakers have a chance for redemption when they take on sixth-seeded Oklahoma State today at 2:45 at the FleetCenter in a first-round East Regional game.

Penn (22-5, 14-0 Ivy League) is in a similar situation to last season. The 2001-02 Quakers won 10 straight going into the Tournament; the 2002-03 squad has won 15 in a row. Last year's team also received an 11-seed, and this year's starting lineup is identical to last year's.

So what's different this year? Another year of experience, another year of improvement -- and a last chance for a group of Penn seniors.

"When you have a team with a lot of seniors, they come into the tournament and know that every game could be their last," senior forward Ugonna Onyekwe said.

"You see the light at the end of the tunnel."

In Oklahoma State, Penn faces a team that went 21-9 overall and 10-6 in perhaps the nation's toughest conference -- the Big 12. The Cowboys are also ranked 23rd in the nation by the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 poll.

Popular opinion, however, regards the Quakers as a Cinderella team -- one that has a good chance of causing an upset.

"They pass the ball better than any team we've played this year," Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said. "I don't think that if the University of Pennsylvania beats us, it's an upset."

The Quakers aren't getting a big head from the attention, however.

"We don't necessarily see ourselves as underdogs," Onyekwe said. "We know what we have to do, and we do not take this team for granted... they are going to come to play, and so are we."

Size-wise, Penn matches up well with Oklahoma State. Cowboys starting forwards Ivan McFarlin and Andre Williams are both six feet, eight inches tall, and top guard Victor Williams is only 5-10.

The Cowboys' defense, however, is what the Quakers are worried about. They play a tough man-to-man defense -- usually not a defense that the Quakers match up well against.

"I think their defense is outstanding," Dunphy said. "We would love if they would just allow us to run our offense, but I'm sure they're going to be in our face from start to finish."

Penn does, however, shoot 47 percent from the field and 41 percent from three-point range. Junior guard Jeff Schiffner leads the nation with nearly 50 percent accuracy from behind the arc.

"They're a pretty good three-point team," Oklahoma State senior swingman Melvin Sanders said.

"Last we knew, they were on a 15-game win streak -- that's pretty impressive."

Penn's shooting in the second half in the most recent game of that win streak was impressive as well. In a 74-67 win over Princeton, the Quakers shot 73.7 percent from the field and 100 percent from three-point range.

The Quakers are looking to shoot like that again this weekend and take home a Tournament win.

"We didn't play well last year, and we have been working throughout the whole season," Onyekwe said. "It's a special time of the year for us. We're looking forward to playing."

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