Quakers shoot lights-out in Hanover romp

HANOVER, N.H. - They enjoyed it. Good thing, because it didn't last.

On the eve of their Saturday clunker against Harvard, the Quakers went to Leede Arena with all the answers and walked away with an 88-62 rout of Dartmouth.

And even if the Quakers hadn't shot a better percentage than the Big Green from the foul line and out-rebounded them by 20, they would have had little trouble.

They also shot 70.6 percent (12 of 17) from three-point range, their best clip of the year by 20 points and a full 40 points above their average.

"This is probably the worst loss I've ever had to swallow," Dartmouth captain Johnathan Ball said.

The Big Green had dropped 22 straight against Penn dating back to 1996, but in the first half there was little to suggest that No. 23 was a lock.

A pair of threes from freshman Tyler Bernardini jumpstarted Penn to an 8-0 edge, but Dartmouth came back with three threes from DeVon Mosley, who had 11 points by halftime.

Penn's Harrison Gaines keyed a late first-half run, getting to the hoop almost at will in the last four minutes, but his team's lead was still in single digits at halftime even as it was shooting 75 percent from deep.

That would change in a hurry. Andreas Schreiber had a personal 7-0 run to start the half and the Quakers as a team went five for their first five second-half threes.

"That was a terrific performance," Penn coach Glen Miller said. "I'm surprised at the deficit. This year, you can never quite trust your team . even that big lead [can be] fool's gold."

But whatever trepidation Miller feels about his team was nothing compared to what Dartmouth coach Terry Dunn went through Friday night.

"Defensively, it was way too easy for them, [but] their offense was clicking on all cylinders," he said.

"Right now you have to do a lot of self-evaluation. A lot of people have to look deep and try to get some personal guidance," Ball said before joining teammates and coaches at an impromptu postgame meeting in a back corridor at Leede Arena.

Injuries to Ball (knee) and leading scorer Alex Barnett (toe) didn't help; the two played but had limited mobility, particularly on defense.

Still, Penn was happy to take credit for the 12-for-17 night just three weeks after going 0-for-5 and squeaking out a two-point win against Dartmouth at the Palestra.

"If I hit the first couple of shots, personally I'll gain confidence," Schreiber said. "If a couple of guys get on a run, the whole team gets going."

The threes were spread among six different players. Four scored in double figures, and seven had at least eight points.

But even the 88 points the Quakers racked up would not have been enough the next night in Boston.

Notes: Cameron Lewis did not make the trip due to an illness . Remy Cofield attended both games but sat them out and wore a boot over his injured right foot.

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