M. Hoops: Go time -- Penn kicks off season at Palestra

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And so begins the next season of Penn men's basketball, with another Friday night tilt in that fabled building on 33rd and Spruce.

"There's nothing quite like it. There are many nights when you walk through here after practice," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said from the Palestra on the eve of his team's season opener against No. 14-ranked Wisconsin. "There might not be anybody in here. You've just got to stop, and think, and say to yourself what a fantastic venue this is and has been for so many years."

Eight months after falling in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Oklahoma State, the Quakers welcome a similarly formidable opponent to their home court in the season's first action for both teams.

The Badgers, winners of a school-record 24 games in 2003, have won the last two Big Ten titles. They return four starters who each averaged in double figures for a team that advanced all the way to the Sweet 16, before bowing out to No. 1-seeded Kentucky.

Besides junior guard Devin Harris -- tabbed by league coaches as the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year -- the Badgers return seniors Freddie Owens (10.3 ppg) and Mike Wilkinson (10.3 ppg), along with sophomore Alando Tucker (12.0 ppg). Tucker, however, will miss the Penn game with a broken foot.

The agile Harris was spectacular in a pair of exhibition contests last week, averaging 24.5 points, 9.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game in 62 total minutes.

"Any time a program is as successful as they are, there are a number of different components. It's got history. It's got tradition. It's got solid leadership with [head coach] Bo Ryan," Dunphy said. "They've made a commitment at the University of Wisconsin, and it's a pleasure to compete against them."

Adam Chubb, Charlie Copp and Jeff Schiffner will play their first games as seniors for a Penn team that graduated six players in June -- starters Ugonna Onyekwe, Koko Archibong and Andrew Toole among them. Super-sub David Klatsky is also departed.

"There's a lot of unanswered questions with our team," Dunphy said. "Schiffner and Begley have been our staples, but there are three other guys who are going to start. They've played substantial minutes, but still not as many as Schiffner and Begley have. We've got to take a look at a lot of different combinations."

If Penn is to engineer the upset, they'll need to solve Wisconsin's vaunted defense. The Badgers held opponents to under 60 points per game last season and limited high-scoring Kentucky to 63 points in their season-ending Tournament defeat.

"I'm quite sure that they think that their defense is very good," Dunphy said. "It's one of those defenses where they keep the shooting percentages low. They really make you miss a lot of shots, and they're a very good rebounding team."

While both schools boast storied basketball histories, Penn and Wisconsin have only met four times. The Badgers have won each meeting, most recently in 1967 at the Palestra.

Tonight's game marks the third time this week that an Ivy team has taken on an opponent in the Top 25. Yale fell to No. 1-ranked Connecticut, 70-60. Brown succumbed to the Texas Longhorns, currently ranked No. 11, by a 89-51 margin.

"You always root for your Ivy brethren and your Big 5 brethren," Dunphy said. "You want everybody to do as well as they can so, in the end, if you're the winner, you've accomplished a great deal. You're going to accomplish a great deal anyway if you win this league."

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