Issuu

BASKETBALL PREVIEW

Fran McCaffery is back to change men’s basketball for the better

The 1982 Wharton graduate played at Penn for three seasons, earning three Ivy League titles and playing in the NCAA tournament twice

AVERY BROBBEY AND WALKER CARNATHAN Sports Associate and Former Sports Editor

For new Penn men’s basketball coach

Fran McCaffery, the Palestra has always been home.

A Philadelphia native and 1982 Wharton graduate, McCaffery spent his youth attending games at the Cathedral of College Basketball during the Red and Blue program’s heyday. He then starred for the Quakers himself from 1979-82 before embarking on a coaching career that included 12 NCAA tournament appearances, 14 years at high-major Iowa, and an NCAA Player of the Year under his wing. Now, that road has brought McCaffery back where it all began.

“I sat right here every Saturday, hoping that one day

I’d get to play here,” McCaffery said, pointing to the bleachers in the Palestra.

“I’m so thrilled to be back here and [to be] helping continue what is one of the great traditions in all of college basketball.”

“He really is a terrific basketball coach,” Fran Dunphy, Penn’s all-time winningest coach, said.

“He’s a terrific man, and he’s Penn. … He’s a proven winner, and hopefully, everything will go great as he comes back to the University of Pennsylvania.”

McCaffery began his collegiate basketball career at Wake Forest before transferring to Penn. During his senior year, McCaffery led the Ivy League with 105 assists and 51 steals, earning

the nickname “White Magic” along the way. The Quakers won two Ivy titles in McCaffery’s three seasons and shared a Big 5 crown in 1981.

“When you came here, you expected not only to contend for an Ivy championship [but also] for a Big 5 championship,” McCaffery said.

McCaffery was also with the program during its legendary run to the Final Four in 1979 but was forced to watch from the sidelines due to transfer regulations. Nonetheless, McCaffery’s playing career played a significant role in shaping the coach he would become.

One defining characteristic of McCaffery’s coaching style is its

fast-paced playing style — something he has credited to Bob Weinhauer, McCaffery’s coach during his playing career at Penn.

“We as coaches are typically a byproduct of our mentors,” McCaffery said.

“When I was here playing for coach Weinhauer, we had great success playing fast, and I’ve done it ever since.”

“The intensity from our team is a big change,” senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts said. “Practices feel so much more real, and the energy is just different.”

This up-tempo pace has ushered McCaffery-led teams to much success. As a college basketball coach for the last 43 years, McCaffery has a 58.8% winning average and is one of 14 Division I coaches to lead at least four programs to NCAA tournament appearances.

“The hope that Fran gives us, that’s what’s been so motivating,” Roberts said. “It’s been great to bounce off his energy. He’s a fiery guy. He can light a fire from halfcourt. He’s a winner, and I

think that just kind of flows into us.”

While McCaffery’s stints at Lehigh, UNC Greensboro, and Siena were significant, it was his 15 years at Iowa where he left the largest legacy. The Hawkeyes competed in seven NCAA tournaments and led the Big Ten in scoring for five consecutive seasons from 2018-23. His 297 wins with the program are the most in Hawkeyes history.

At Penn, McCaffery hopes to uphold not only his uptempo offense but also the expectations of a high standard of effort.

“I would say this: Your best players have to be your hardest workers because that example gives them credibility at practice, in the locker room, and it sets a standard of expectation [and] of greatness,” McCaffery said. “And I’ve been really impressed with this group, in particular, from a leadership standpoint [because they are] a group that’s connected and works incredibly hard every day.”

LYDIA TONG | DP FILE PHOTO McCaffrey pictured speaking at a press conference on April 7.

LYDIA TONG | DP FILE PHOTO

McCaffery pictured talking to Penn President Larry Jameson on April 7.

Freshman phenoms: How women’s basketball coach Mike McLaughlin approaches recruitment

In his 15 seasons with the Quakers, McLaughlin and his staff have produced seven Ivy League Rookie of the Year winners

VIVIAN YAO Former Sports Editor

In a league without athletic scholarships, Penn has built a recruiting juggernaut.

The Ivy League women’s basketball Rookie of the Year award was first handed out after the 1979-80 season. Before head coach Mike McLaughlin’s arrival on campus in 2009, only one player from Penn had earned this honor. But since taking over the program, McLaughlin has seen seven of his 15 seasons end with the Ivy League Rookie of the Year coming from the Red and Blue.

Over that same time frame, three winners have come from Princeton; two from Harvard; one each from Yale, Columbia, and Brown; and none from Dartmouth or Cornell.

Two of Penn’s seven award winners have been unanimous selections: 2021 College graduate Eleah Parker in the 2017-18 season, and, most recently, sophomore forward Katie Collins after her 2024-25 campaign.

The latter’s honor followed teammate junior guard Mataya Gayle’s award for the 2023-24 season — marking the second

time in McLaughlin’s tenure that Penn has produced back-toback winners.

Penn women’s basketball’s ability to field star-studded rosters year after year doesn’t come down to chance. It’s a full-time effort for McLaughlin and his recruiting staff.

“There are four of us who are actively recruiting. … We’re all heavily involved for 12 months out of the year,” McLaughlin said. “There’s really no break.”

Up until this year, that effort was spearheaded by former assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Kelly Killion, who left Penn in the offseason for American. Former assistant recruiting coordinator Ashley Robinson was promoted to fill Killion’s vacancy, and former assistant coach Andre Gibbs stepped into Robinson’s old position. New assistant coach Ryan Weise rounded out the Red and Blue’s coaching and recruiting staff this season.

Fit, size, strength, speed, and skillset are just some of the elements the quartet evaluates in a

The current roster also has no lack of international representation. Two of the four rookies this year come from overseas. Freshman forward Ari Paraskevopoulou is joining the roster from Athens, Greece, while freshman center Kate Lipatova has roots in Moscow.

The transfer portal adds a third way for McLaughlin to fill in the gaps in his roster outside of the recruiting circuit.

“The transfer pieces are a viable option here at Penn,” McLaughlin said. “It’s a way to reset the program as a class gets a little bit older.”

extending her an offer, the relationships she developed with members of the Penn program during the recruiting process were hard to beat.

“Every coach wants a certain style. I want a kid that’s driven. I want a kid that loves to do this every day,” McLaughlin said. “I love Penn. I want to bring in kids who are qualified and can succeed here. I don’t want to put anyone in a position where they’re not going to thrive.”

The vetting process is intense and thorough, with some players on the AAU circuit getting looked at as early as their freshman year of high school.

2023 Wharton graduate Kayla Padilla, who was the 2020 Ivy League Rookie of the Year and hails from Torrance, Calif., first entered Penn’s radar when she was a sophomore in high school. A club teammate’s brother was playing at Penn at the time and tipped the coaches off to include Padilla on their list of potential recruits. The conversations with the Penn coaching staff started from there.

“There’s never a full stop on recruiting,” McLaughlin said. “It’s constant. One of us is always engaged with the recruit. There’s a lot of tedious behindthe-scenes [work]. Everyone sees the result when they’re [at Penn], but it takes a lot of people to get them that far.”

McLaughlin and his staff typically have three avenues to fulfill their needs: American recruits, international recruits, and transfer recruits. While Penn recruits within the United States come from all over, McLaughlin noted that he has had significant success recruiting within a 100-mile radius of Philadelphia.

Penn, like the rest of the Ivy League, does not offer athletic scholarships. With the rise of name, image, and likeness deals in the college athletics landscape, financial benefits have been a significant attraction for top athletes nationwide. McLaughlin is transparent about Penn’s lack of non-need-based financial aid for its athletes. This is typically where he is most involved in the conversations with athletes and their families.

“At the end of the day, you can get an education anywhere,” Padilla said. “Obviously, the quality of that will differ, but it’s really the people you surround yourself with that will make the biggest impact on your college experience. The coaching staff and the teammates that I had were the people and the things that made my experience what it was, and that was a great one. I’m just glad that I had prioritized that aspect of the recruiting process.”

For Woodstock, Ga. native Gayle, Penn was one of 13 schools — including multiple Ivy League institutions — that offered her the opportunity to play ball at the next level. For Gayle, visiting campus and absorbing the Philadelphia culture, combined with a positive experience with the coaching staff, solidified her decision.

“We tell them what an opportunity like Penn does for them, not just for their experience here, but what it could lead to,” McLaughlin said. “We give the [parents] a plan. We explain to them what our internship program looks like, what our basketball board can do to support their daughter. We take complete responsibility for them on and off the floor.”

Beyond finances, recruiting conversation often centers around reviewing academic transcripts. Unlike some schools, the coaching staff cannot guarantee any of their recruits admission to the University — another nod to Penn‘s academics-first mentality.

While the coaches do work alongside the Penn Athletics staff to help identify athletes who would be able to successfully matriculate to Penn, at the end of the day, recruited athletes go through the same application process as the rest of the student body.

Once offers are extended, the coaches enter an anxietyinducing waiting game. After spending much of the last few months choosing which players they want, the roles are now reversed, and the players have to choose Penn, too.

“I wanted to come to a place where I thought I could come in and help the program a lot,” Gayle said. “I wanted to play. I liked the way coach [McLaughlin] talked. He was like, ‘I’m not giving you a spot, but you can come in here and you can earn it.’”

Having an outstanding rookie year means nothing, though, if those players can’t develop into key contributors in the future. Of the seven Rookie of the Year award winners, all but Collins have made an All-Ivy team. All five winners who have graduated were first team All-Ivy honorees, with Parker earning the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year title and 2014 College graduate Alyssa Baron and 2017 College graduate Sydney Stipanovich earning Ivy League Player of the Year nods.

Needless to say, the coaching staff has found success in ensuring that their players aren’t just settling for one good season. This bodes well for Gayle and Collins, who still have plenty of time left representing the Red and Blue.

Collins qualifies as one of those success stories, hailing from Manasquan, N.J. For her, the ability to stay close to home was appealing.

For Padilla, the allure of attending one of the top undergraduate business schools in the nation was hard to pass up. With practically the entire Ivy League prospect.

“Looking back, it’s definitely a perk,” Collins said. “It’s important to come to a program that emphasizes freshmen, because sometimes teams just push them to the side and expect them to know everything, but allowing the freshmen to grow and do well is really important. It’s just not something that I considered, but I honestly wish I did.”

DANA BAHNG | SENIOR DESIGNER

A deep dive into the 2025 Ivy League men’s basketball preseason poll

While Yale unanimously took the top spot, the Red and Blue are looking to rebound after last year’s disappointing Ivy League campaign

SEAN GAWRONSKI Sports Reporter

Adisappointing No. 7 Ivy League finish last season meant that the Quakers ended a fourthstraight season without an Ivy League tournament showing. But with new coach Fran McCaffrey now at the helm, the team is gearing up for a return to the national stage.

Here is how Penn stands in the Ancient Eight based on the 2025-26 Ivy League preseason media poll.

No. 1 Yale (Last season: 22-8, 13-1 Ivy)

The reigning Ivy League champions were a unanimous pick for first place. This season, Yale is looking to establish itself as a fierce national competitor — not only for another Ivy title in March, but a national one in April, even after falling to Texas A&M in the first round of March Madness last year. The Bulldogs lost key players to the NBA in the offseason, including reigning Ivy League Player of the Year guard Bez Mbeng and conference-leading scorer guard John Poulakidas. With three returning starters and four-time Ivy League Coach of the Year James Jones — who has seven championships under his belt — the Bulldogs have plenty of ammunition to reload and begin the season back atop the league.

No. 2 Harvard (12-15, 7-7)

Coming off a mixed season, the Crimson made a surprising leap from a No. 5 season finish to No. 2 in this year’s preseason poll — partly due to their retention of talent. The team’s three top scorers — guard Chandler Piggé, forward Thomas Batties II, and unanimous Ivy League Rookie of the Year guard Robert Hinton — are returning. Transitioning from missing the Ivy League tournament to becoming Ivy League champions will require Harvard to unite its distinctly talented players, and coach of 18 years Tommy

Amaker is up to the task.

No. 3 Cornell (18-11, 9-5)

Though the Big Red’s pursuit of an Ancient Eight title was cut short in their championship loss to the Bulldogs last season, the team is optimistic for the season ahead. Coach Jon Jaques’ recordbreaking first season came with the help of a trio of guards: AK Okereke, Jake Fiegen, and Cooper Noard. Although Okereke has since transferred to Vanderbilt, the Big Red boasts five returning seniors who are pivotal to the team’s fast-paced style of play. As host of Ivy Madness this year, the upcoming season will prove whether Cornell will be competing at home for an Ivy League championship or watching from its own stands.

No. 4 Princeton (19-11, 8-6) Princeton did not live up to its expectations last year. After being ranked No. 1 in the 2024-25 preseason poll, the Tigers finished at No. 4 in the conference and lost a nail-biter game in the 2025 Ivy League

semifinals. Entering this season, the redemption arc does not look promising, as the Tigers lost several players integral to their previous success. Guard Xaivian Lee, who took the country by storm with his dominant Ivy League playstyle, transferred to reigning NCAA champion Florida, while fellow guard Jack Scott is leaving for Duke and forward Caden Pierce is sitting out the season. With those departures, the team will turn to juniors to lead this year, as the roster is notably without any seniors. It looks to be an uphill battle for Princeton to reach glory this season.

No. 5 Dartmouth (14-14,

8-6)

Unlike Princeton, Dartmouth finished its season on a historic note — with its first winning season in the 21st century and first Ivy Madness appearance in program history. While the team lost in the semifinals, the Big Green are hoping to use that momentum to mount another strong season. Forward Brandon Mitchell-Day is returning

as a consistent vocal leader for the team alongside four returning starters, including five-time Ivy League Rookie of the Week point guard Connor Amundsen. With a schedule featuring nonconference matchups against Florida and Boston University, Dartmouth will have plenty of challenges under its belt before entering Ivy League play.

No. 6 Brown (14-13,

6-8)

The Bears also underperformed last year. Entering the 2024-25 season as No. 3 in the Ivy League, the Bears came up short in a close race for the final seed in the Ivy tournament. Brown lost five players to graduation this offseason, including standout guard Kino Lilly Jr., who left Brown as the all-time program leader in three-pointers made and second in all-time program career points. The Bears’ roster is left with only a few underclassmen who have received substantial minutes on the court. Forward Landon Lewis and guard Alexander Lesburt Jr. collectively scored

more than 500 points for the Bears last season and will look to lead Brown back to its first Ivy League tournament appearance in two years.

No.

7 Penn (8-19, 4-10)

Following a second-straight disappointing No. 7 finish last season, the Quakers have experienced one of the most transformative offseasons in program history. After firing former coach Steve Donahue after nine seasons, Penn hired former Iowa coach Fran McCaffery — the most prolific and winningest coach in Hawkeyes history — as his replacement. The program has retained the likes of senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts and sophomore guard AJ Levine and welcomed Virginia transfer junior forward TJ Power, the first former fivestar recruit in program history. Ahead of their season opener on Nov. 7, the Quakers have set the goal of an Ivy League championship this season. The polls are not optimistic about their chances, but the Quakers are poised to set up a strong foundation for the McCaffery era of Penn men’s basketball.

No. 8 Columbia (12-15, 1-13)

What began as an auspicious year for the Lions quickly became a nightmare. After starting the 2024-25 season 11-2, Columbia finished its final 14 games with a record of 1-13. After an injury to star guard Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa, the team continued to spiral to its worst finish in decades. At the end of the season, coach Jim Engles announced his resignation after nine seasons with the program. However, the Lions have a bright spot in the darkness: new coach Kevin Hovde. The new leader rejoins the Columbia coaching staff after a stint at Florida, where he helped the Gators win a national championship as an assistant coach. Hovde hopes to lead Columbia to its first conference championship since 1968.

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Sophomore center Michelangelo Oberti pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 31.

A look into the 2025 Ivy League women’s basketball preseason poll

Princeton takes the top spot for the fourth-straight season, while Penn sits in fourth

ELLIE CLARK Sports Reporter

The women’s basketball Ancient Eight experienced a season of surprises and upsets last year. Preseason favorite Princeton did not capture the regular season or tournament title, and Harvard clinched its first March Madness berth in program history. Penn finished fourth in the conference and was the odd one out after the Ivy League sent three teams to March Madness.

In the wake of an unexpected season, let’s see each team’s conference standings heading into this year.

No. 1. Princeton (Last season: 21-8, 12-2 Ivy)

Last season, Princeton missed out on a regular-season title, breaking its six-year winning streak. Despite this, the Tigers remain the heavy preseason favorite, receiving 17 out of 21 first-place votes in this year’s preseason poll. Losing 2023 Ivy League Rookie of the Year Madison St. Rose to an ACL tear last November pushed the

team into an unsteady spot, but Princeton’s underclassmen stepped up in response. Guards Skye Belker and Fadima Tall now look to lead the team alongside fellow guard Ashley Chea, the league's only returning unanimous first team All-Ivy selection.

No. 2. Columbia (24-7, 13-1)

Until last season, Columbia was the Ivy League’s perpetual runner-up. However, after a dominant regular season run and a first-ever program victory in March Madness play, the Lions cannot be underestimated. While the team faces significant roster losses — including 2025 Defensive Player of the Year Kitty Henderson and two-time All-Ivy honoree Cecelia Collins — it still has some major players, including first team All-Ivy guard Riley Weiss, who racked up the second-highest scoring average in the conference with 17.8 points per game.

The pressure is on for backto-back-to-back Ivy League

Coach of the Year Megan

Griffith to lead the Lions to a second-straight solo Ivy League title and March Madness berth.

No. 3. Harvard (24-5, 11-3)

Harvard’s playoff run was one of the most talked-about topics in women’s basketball last March after former Crimson guard Harmoni Turner’s 44-point performance during last season’s Ivy Madness semifinal fueled the team’s Ivy League championship. Harvard enters this season facing some sizable losses, including Turner. Eyes will be on guard Saniyah Glenn-Bello to step up, but the Crimson has filled the roster with promising newcomers on its quest for a back-to-back title.

No. 4. Penn (15-13, 6-8)

The Quakers round out the projected Ivy Madness contenders. They are also facing the loss of a program great: first team All-Ivy guard Stina Almqvist, who led the Quakers in scoring and rebounding.

Penn’s returning lineup is headlined by sophomore forward and reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year Katie Collins and junior guard and 2024 Ivy League Rookie of the Year Mataya Gayle. Collins dominated defensively last season, leading the league in blocked shots.

With Almqvist’s graduation, there are big shoes to fill — both on the paint and in the team’s leadership, especially as the Quakers try to close the gap between themselves and the premier teams of the conference. Penn’s record is 1-13, including tournament games, against Harvard, Columbia, and Princeton over the past two seasons.

No. 5. Brown (12-15, 6-8)

Last year, Penn’s higher NET ranking compared to Brown propelled the Quakers to Ivy Madness play. A similar story played out in the 202324 season, when the Quakers edged out the Bears for the final spot in the Ivy League tournament after defeating higher-seeded teams.

This year, the Bears will look to change the story and make it to Ivy Madness. All-Ivy guard Grace Arnolie is returning to dominate offensively, although the graduation of Gianna Aiello leaves the Bears’ defense in a state of turmoil. However, the Bears lost only two players in the offseason and picked up 2025 NESCAC Rookie of the Year Monét Witherspoon in the transfer portal. Only time will tell if the Bears can convert good vibes into points and wins.

No. 6. Dartmouth (8-19, 2-12)

Dartmouth continued its upward trajectory last season by nabbing two victories in conference play. Although its sole All-Ivy nod, Victoria Page, graduated last spring, the Big Green’s two best

returning players are set to return. Guard Zeynep Ozel put up the most points and three-pointers on the team after Page. Forward Olivia Austin finished fifth in the league in rebounds and contributed strong defense to the court. Dartmouth also picked up promising forward Yufei Zou from the IMG Academy. Overall, this season may be filled with growing pains as Dartmouth gains its footing with underclassmen and new coaches.

No. 7. Cornell

(7-20, 3-11)

The Big Red need to make some big changes if they want to be competitive in the Ancient Eight. Cornell finished last season as the only team without an All-Ivy selection and at the bottom of the league offensively. Last season, the Big Red also fell toward the bottom of the league in blocked shots and steals. Former forward Summer Parker-Hall led Cornell last season in scoring, steals, and blocked shots, and the team will surely feel her absence after her graduation last spring. However, forward Emily Pape, guard/forward Rachel Kaus, and guard Clarke Jackson are showing promise on the offensive end of the court.

No. 8. Yale

(4-23, 3-11)

It’s a tale of two programs: Yale men’s basketball sits atop the preseason poll, while the women’s team has fallen to the bottom of the ranks. Yale needs to up its defensive game to try to stay competitive in the Ivy League after being at the bottom of the league for the secondstraight year. Offensively, the Bulldogs have lost teamleading scorer and All-Ivy honorable mention Mackenzie Egger, who also finished fourth in the Ivy League in scoring. The team looks to build on that success with its recruits, as this year’s roster is filled with more new blood than returning players. Promising acquisitions from the transfer portal — forwards Mary Meng from Michigan State and Luisa Vydrova from Texas at El Paso — look to bolster the team’s scoring capabilities, and the team’s success will depend on it.

Collins and senior guard Saniah Caldwell pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 24.

How an offseason full of change, position battles is translating to the court for men’s basketball

Players had to ‘earn their spots’ under new coach Fran McCaffery

CONOR SMITH Deputy Sports Edtior

There is a lot of excitement around Penn men’s basketball.

After dismissing head coach Steve Donahue, the program made a splash hire, bringing in longtime Iowa coach Fran McCaffery. Within a month, McCaffery added former Duke and Virginia junior power forward TJ Power via the transfer portal. Power, a top-20 recruit out of high school, became the Quakers’ first former five-star recruit in program history.

With all this excitement, though, there are a lot of questions about how Penn’s roster will shake out on the court.

Here’s what to know about an offseason full of change and battles for Penn men’s basketball.

Guards galore

Last year, Penn had little depth to work with at the point guard position. This year is different.

The Quakers have a plethora of players who could be the primary ballhandler for a fastpaced McCaffery offense. The starting spot last season first belonged to then-junior guard Dylan Williams before thenfreshman guard AJ Levine took over for the majority of Ivy League play.

Assistant coach Ben Luber, a former four-year point guard at Penn State, has primarily worked with Penn’s guards since being hired to McCaffery’s staff. Luber noted that he came into the program “with a fresh, open mind,” opening a competition for starting minutes.

“There was a lot of competition on the front end, a lot of guys going at each other, and we had to figure out, ‘Who can we trust in certain situations?’ The

number-one thing for us has been, ‘Who can take care of the basketball?’ We don’t like turning it over,” Luber said.

“We were all extremely critical with each other, but at the same time constructive,” Levine added. “But really, all we are doing in the point guard room is building leadership skills. … We’ve all had our shots at point guard, and just making sure that dude is the dude that’s leading the team, no matter who [the starter] is, getting them ready to do that when it's game time.”

Senior guard Cam Thrower, who missed all of last season with a wrist injury, is returning.

During the 2023-24 season, Thrower averaged 5.0 points per game and racked up 23 assists in 24 games. McCaffery said he sees Thrower, alongside lengthy 6-foot-4 freshman guard Jay Jones, as combo guards, while Levine and Williams are locked into the point position. Despite an influx of new and returning ballhandlers, one of those two will be the starter again.

Neither Luber nor McCaffery named who that would be yet, though.

“[Levine’s] been really good. He’s worked hard to figure out what we want and has really made great strides,” McCaffery said. “In the beginning, I think he was overly aggressive. [Now] he’s utilizing his speed to develop a really good pace for himself: fast to slow, slow to fast. He’s been really good in ball screen action, been really good in transition. He’s finding people, and that’s what we need him to do, and still playing hard on defense.”

“The same [goes] for Dylan,” McCaffery added. “Dylan can

score and he wants to score. What he’s been doing is figuring out ways to set up his teammates and make plays for everybody, and take his opportunities to score when they come.”

New faces in the frontcourt

Penn’s frontcourt has just as many — if not more — question marks around it as the team’s backcourt.

Power is the presumptive starter at power forward, but the transfer is currently dealing with an upper-body injury that could sideline him for the start of the season. If Power is not good to go, the Quakers are looking to lean on junior forwards Augustus Gerhart and Lucas Lueth.

Gerhart made six starts last season, averaging 3.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game in 26 appearances. Lueth, a transfer, hails from Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. At Kirkwood, he averaged 10 points and 4.5 boards, winning an NJCAA Division II championship in the process. He was named the championship tournament’s most valuable player.

“I’m very versatile,” Lueth said. “I can do a lot of things, shoot, get to the basket, pass. I pride myself on making the right decisions. First and foremost, I’m a team player. I’m very team-oriented. Defensively, I’m very versatile — I can guard anywhere.”

“[Lueth] can play pretty much any frontcourt position,” McCaffery added. “Great length, terrific athlete. He can stretch the floor, make threes, [he can] rip and drive. He’s been really impressive.”

Lueth’s versatility may come

in handy if the Quakers look to go small at center at some point during the season. Following the departure of 2025 College graduate Nick Spinoso, the center position is seemingly wide open. The team could opt for Gerhart as well, who played at the five alongside a power forward last year.

Another name that Penn fans are familiar with is sophomore center Michelangelo Oberti, who started in four contests last season and made 15 total appearances. Alongside Oberti, the Quakers brought in two 6-foot-9 freshman centers in William Kruse and Dalton Scantlebury. McCaffery pointed out that Scantlebury has been “really playing well,” praising his “high motor.”

Staff “really excited” about Zanoni

One returning player who is looking to have an increased impact this year is senior guard/ forward Michael Zanoni.

Last year, Zanoni started to find his groove in a Donahue offense that prioritized threepointers — his specialty — right before the start of Ivy play. On Dec. 29, 2024, against Big Ten opponent Penn State, Zanoni made 7-of-12 from beyond the arc, notching a career-high 27 points.

After that showing, though,

the Mercer transfer would play just one more game before sitting out for over a month after contracting mononucleosis. When he returned, Penn was floundering in Ivy play, and he never regained the momentum he had before falling ill. Zanoni averaged 6.4 points per game last season, shooting 35.8% from beyond.

“I’m really excited about him. He’s a really good shooter. He moves well without the ball,” McCaffery said. “He is not a guy who makes mistakes, veteran guy, smart, tough. … He’s gonna be a really good player for us this year, and I expect him to be. He put the time in this summer to be a guy that we can count on. And I think he’s gonna have a terrific season.”

Zanoni, like the rest of the roster, had to prove himself to the new coaching staff unfamiliar with his game.

“Everyone came in, with a new coaching staff, ready to compete and earn their spot,” he said. “The competition every day was something where you had to come in, be locked in, and really just earn your spot. We did a good job of competing and preparing each other, and it’ll give us a step ahead when the season starts and we go against teams like Providence and Rutgers, we’re going in to win those games.”

YAELLE DE OLIVEIRA | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Levine pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 31.

Sisters Ese and Ruke Ogbevire bring family ties to women’s basketball

The sisters describe their journey playing on the court with each other’s support

SAMANTHA WICKHAM

Sports Reporter

For Penn women’s basketball junior guard Ese Ogbevire and freshman guard Ruke Ogbevire, basketball has always been a family affair. The sisters started playing together, separated by only a few years, and now find themselves reunited on the same court once again — this time wearing red and blue.

Their basketball journey started in elementary school with their father, who was set on his kids learning the game. For the duo, what began as a reluctant hobby soon turned into a shared passion for the game.

“My dad, he always pushes us and supports us in every way that he could,” Ese said. “Always training us in the morning and the afternoon, he was sure to make time for us.”

“Even if we didn’t want to, he would always motivate and

force us to go out there,” Ruke added.

This persistence carried the sisters from dribbling in their Texas garage all the way to the Ivy League. After years of long practices and family sacrifices, both siblings now don the Red and Blue: Ese as a junior guard returning from a season where she was sidelined by an ACL injury, and Ruke as a freshman beginning her college career.

For Ruke, joining her older sister helped make the distance from home feel smaller.

“My sister going here definitely influenced my decision,” she said. “Just knowing that I’d be so far away from home, but I’d have family near me, was definitely a big plus.”

As players, the two share strikingly similar styles: Both are quick, crafty, and relentless drivers to the basket. Ruke’s playstyle largely resembles that of her sister’s, with Ese taking up the role as her mentor after two years of experience in the program.

determination have set the tone for the duo and the team.

2023-24 freshman season stats games played

Ivy League rookie of the week

4.7 average points per game

That mentorship pushes the siblings both on and off the court, and it shows in their performances.

“They can score within and around side because they’re crafty,” coach Mike McLaughlin said. “They both have quick twitch; they get to spots really fast. They’re easily coachable [and] driven, and you can see the connection between them, not just in personality but in how they play.”

“We just played a scrimmage, and Ruke got a chance to play and had some success,” McLaughlin added. “I intentionally looked down at Ese, who was on the bench, and you could just see the excitement for her younger sister.”

The sisters have pushed each other every step of the way, and they now stand at the gateway of a new shared goal: an Ivy title. As the Quakers chase an Ivy League championship, Ese’s leadership and

“Obviously we have a great history winning the Ivy League, and you want to come in and try to win another one,” she said. “That’s the goal before my senior year. … That year off was a wake-up call, so I’m just hungry to go get it now.”

After overcoming two ACL injuries, Ese’s journey has been marked by perseverance. But this season, she carries a renewed sense of purpose and is eager to finally take the court alongside her sister in the same uniform.

“I envision us both really killing it like we were in high school,” Ese said. “Once she gets accustomed to the college game and I get back into it post-injury, I think the chemistry is really going to be there and help the program.”

For the Ogbevires, this season represents more than a reunion — it’s the next chapter in a shared journey filled with family, growth, and

determination. Later in the season, Penn will play games in the sisters’ home state of Texas, giving them a chance to return home together and to compete on a new stage.

“Both of them being here, playing Division I basketball at such a high level, and earning this education, it’s pretty remarkable,” McLaughlin said. “It’s an unbelievable accomplishment for that family.”

Through every setback and every success, the sisters have found strength in each other — and now, they’re writing the next chapter side by side. Whether in practice or under the bright lights of the Palestra, the Ogbevires’ bond continues to shape not just their own story, but the future of Penn women’s basketball. As Penn looks to climb back to the top of the Ivy League, the Ogbevires’ support and determination might just be the spark the team needs.

SportsassociateEmilieChi contributedreporting.

1,895

High school stats points scored as alltime leading scorer

23.7 points per game in 2024-25 district play

471 career assists

DANA BAHNG | SENIOR DESIGNER

Penn basketball is hitting its stride

WEINING DING, KENNY CHEN, YAELLE DE OLIVEIRA, NOAH JEONG, AND KEVIN REN Multimedia Editor, Senior Photographer, and Staff Photographers

Family on and off the court: How men’s basketball transitioned through a complete coaching change

The

assistant coaches led the way in creating a found family this offseason

HANNAH CHANG Deputy Sports Editor

Family” is a buzzword among sports teams, but how is it actually realized?

In a place that, according to junior forward Augustus Gerhart, is “pretty volatile,” how do college teams create a family when each player stays for four or five years — and often less in the world of name, image, and likeness deals and the transfer portal?

And what happens to the Penn men’s basketball family when coach Steve Donahue — who had led the program for the past 10 years — and his entire coaching staff leave?

“My first instinct was like, ‘Dang,’” junior guard/forward Niklas Polonowski said. “We had so [much] blood, sweat, and tears shed together.”

It’s a jarring reminder that while it’s hard to build a family, it’s even harder to keep it together. That’s why new coach Fran McCaffery and his staff are emphasizing a “family environment,” according to assistant coach Tristan Spurlock, which the assistant coaches already had built with McCaffery.

During his playing career at Siena, assistant coach Ronald Moore played for McCaffery, who later attended Moore’s wedding. When McCaffery asked him to join his coaching staff, Moore called it a “match made in heaven.”

“Him reaching out was something that was expected without saying so,” Moore said. “He’s always been trying to get me to coach since I stopped playing.”

Spurlock followed McCaffery from Iowa to Penn, not only because the Washington, D.C. native wanted to return to the East Coast, but also because “[he] and coach [McCaffery] are like family. … He’s one of the best,” he said. Assistant coach Ben Luber first

met McCaffery when he was in high school, and McCaffery later acted as his mentor in coaching.

Now, these four coaches have united at Penn, and they’ve hit the ground running.

“They’re not going to come in here and have a couple seasons of transition,” Polonowski said “We’re winning the Ivies this year. We wanna get to it.”

Sophomore guard AJ Levine noticed the difference in mindset between this year and last year right away.

“Some people had individual goals. … It wasn’t a collective unit,” Levine said of last year’s season. “That’s the thing that Fran preaches. … We’re not going to go win an Ivy chip unless we’re all in on that.”

“We look at each other in the eyes and tell each other the truth,” Luber said. “I think that’s a foundation in Fran’s program. We honor one another by telling each other the truth. We’re not gonna sugarcoat it.”

Levine noted that he appreciated this style of direct communication, telling The Daily Pennsylvanian: “I just want people to tell me what I need to do better, and I will apply it.”

Expectations, such as scoring within three or four seconds of inbounding, are communicated clearly and practiced concretely.

Senior guard Cam Thrower said that “learning from either mistakes or from things that they’ve taught is the biggest thing that they want.”

But honesty and direct communication only work on a basis of trust. “If I’m getting on [someone], it’s coming from a place of love,” Spurlock said.

“My mentor” Moore believes that without off-court relationships, success is elusive.

Senior guard Dylan Williams found a mentor in Moore. Their shared position, similar build, and Moore’s prolific basketball career inspired Williams to train one-on-one with him before practice. It began organically: Williams felt comfortable enough to text Moore to work out, and the coach was available, no matter the time.

That comfort is something everyone on the team feels.

“I’ve never in my life had a relationship with coaches like I do now,” Levine said, “I’m going to hang out in the coaches’ office just to talk to them. … It doesn’t feel like a coach-player relationship. It feels like someone that’s my mentor.”

Levine, freshman guard Ryan Altman, special advisor to the head coach Michael Fink, and Luber celebrated Rosh Hashanah together this year, which Levine said he never imagined doing with his teammates. But he is learning what McCaffery’s staff is emphasizing: It’s not a team, it’s a family.

Luber’s father is Jewish, but his mother is Catholic; Luber was raised Catholic like senior guard/ forward Ethan Roberts. Roberts and Luber bonded over their shared faith and go to St. Agnes Church together on occasion.

It’s never just about basketball, and the relationships aren’t just for the courts. Spurlock keeps his phone open, calling players when he’s grocery shopping, or talks after practice about life and joking together.

“One thing I want them to always say about me is, ‘Man, coach Spur never lied to me; I know he always cared about me, always loved me,’” he said.

“We’re here to help them not only just be basketball [players], but to help them be young men,” Moore added.

Gerhart also appreciates the coaches’ trust in him.

“They give you freedom to mess up in class, to mess up on the court, to mess up in life a little bit,” he said. “I’ll make a bad read [in a game, but] I don’t get pulled out right away. … [The coaches are] always saying like, ‘He’s a big boy; he can make his own decisions; he can make plays for himself.’”

That is exactly what McCaffery and his staff want.

“[We let] guys kind of make their own decisions within the kind of ideas that we want to do,” Moore said.

Change is already happening. There’s been more film-watching and a different style of communication. McCaffery is emphasizing speed, pace, and conditioning.

So the team has been doing a lot of running in practice, which, according to Gerhart, has been “competitive pretty much from the jump.”

“I was not in this shape last year, I’ll tell you that,” Levine said. “We’re able to play live and correct things on the go a little quicker and implement them very quickly.”

This is what the team was hoping for or “probably better,” Williams said. “We think a lot of good things are gonna happen.”

“New era”

Soon after Donahue and his staff left Penn, the team cautiously discussed who could potentially take over.

“Fran almost seemed like a little bit of a stretch at the time. And we were like, ‘Ah, no way he’d come here,’” Polonowski said.

Yet McCaffery came, bringing along coaches Luber, Moore,

Spurlock, and Fink, who holds a new position on the staff and whom Gerhart said is “a really good friend and a great voice on the sidelines.” But the excitement was tempered with some hesitancy.

“I’ve seen [McCaffery] screaming a little bit,” Polonowski said with a smile. “So I didn’t know if he was going to be hard on us like that.” There were also the nerves of having to start over again.

“I’m going to have to work twice as hard to get the minutes that I want,” he added.

No one knew what to expect — and that’s what made this year especially strange for the returning teammates.

“One of the weirdest things this year is just not having an older voice or a senior who kind of knows what’s going on,” Polonowski said.

Certain players have stepped up, and Polonowski pointed to Gerhart as an example, saying that “he’s tried … to work extra hard to try and make sure that the other guys are comfortable.”

While the coaching staff came to fill the hole that Donahue and his staff left, Gerhart and his returning teammates are trying to fill the hole that student leaders — including 2025 College graduate and former forward/center Nick Spinoso and former guard and leading conference scorer Sam Brown — have left in the team.

That’s the tricky thing about college basketball and family. People come and go with graduations, transfers, and new jobs. This year, Penn men’s basketball experienced larger changes than usual, and while that was not easy, the team is welcoming whatever lies ahead.

COURTESY OF PENN ATHLETICS

Men's basketball pictured taking a timeout.

The DP Sports editors forecast men’s and women’s basketball’s 2025-26 seasons

Here’s how the DP Sports editors think the Quakers will perform this year

VALERI GUEVARRA, JUSTIN LEE, HANNAH CHANG, TYLER RINGHOFER, AND CONOR SMITH Sports Editors and Deputy Sports Editors

Valeri Guevarra — DP Sports

editor

Men’s basketball — No. 4 in the IvyLeague

To go from nearly the bottom of the Ivy League to an Ivy Madness berth is a big jump, but if any team could do it, it would be Penn men’s basketball.

Coach Fran McCaffery and the wealth of expertise on his staff are undoubtedly a difference-maker. However, I have to give credit to the returning players and incoming freshman players for braving the unknown and changes through the coaching transition. This collective grit, alongside more competitive practices and increased filmwatching, will be very valuable for the team to sharpen its skills and execution. Last year, the team lost four games by three points or less, which simply comes down to better execution. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Red and Blue finish lower than fourth due to the growing pains.

Women’s basketball — No. 4 in theIvyLeague

The last two seasons for the Quakers have ended the same — an Ivy Madness semifinal appearance and finishing with an overall record of 15-13. I think this season will be more of the same regarding the former, but it is going to be the Quakers’ place to lose. The gap between the top three in the league — Columbia, Harvard, and Princeton — and fourth is large. With Penn’s primary scorer currently unknown after the graduation of former star guard Stina Almqvist, I don’t see Penn coming close to that trio. If junior guard Mataya Gayle or a combination of consistent scorers can fill in those shoes, I see Penn’s ceiling as finally locking up an Ivy Madness berth outright instead of leaving it up to head-to-head records or NET rankings like the last two seasons.

Justin Lee — DP Sports editor

Men’s basketball — No. 3 in the

IvyLeague

Last season was a hectic one for the Red and Blue, culminating in a seventh-place finish and Steve Donahue’s departure. But this season, I believe the Quakers will pull through, with a big part coming from experience in the incoming class, which includes junior forward TJ Power — a former five-star high school recruit who began his collegiate career at Duke — freshman guard Payton Kamin, and freshman forward/center Dalton Scantlebury. The McCaffrey era, however, will be defined by a flowing offense with returning Quakers. Senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts will look to lead the front court, and I count on the strong incoming class for a shot at an Ivy Madness berth.

Women’s basketball — No. 4 in theIvyLeague

I believe that while the incoming class of Penn women’s basketball is strong, it still won’t be enough to make up for the team’s losses. The team will have big shoes to fill from the graduation of Almqvist, who finished her career with 1,100 points and 500 rebounds. I was impressed with the team at the Red and Blue Scrimmage, with the sister duo of freshman guard Ruke Ogbevire and junior guard Ese Ogbevire being two players to watch. I think the Quakers will have another shot at the Ivy League championship this year.

Hannah Chang — Deputy DP Sports editor

Men’s basketball — No. 4 in the IvyLeague

New year, new start, and a lot of unknowns. How will McCaffery turn around this Penn team that came seventh in the Ivy League last season and lost key players over the offseason? Will Power be able to play? Will McCaffery’s faster style of play really translate to wins or just to chaotic lapses of defense?

The team is aware of these questions, but it still seems excited, determined, and united. And for

that reason alone, I’m optimistic for the season.

Women’s basketball — No. 5 in theIvyLeague

The team’s leading scorer last season, Almqvist, is now playing professionally in Europe, and she leaves big shoes to fill. Gayle and sophomore forward Katie Collins will have to do the heavy lifting of leading the offense. The team has been playing through Almqvist for so long that it might take it some time to find a way to get its offensive game flowing. I see it trying to find new ways to create space and drive to the basket or be more consistent with its shotmaking. I don’t doubt that it will be able to do so, but I wonder how quickly it will take to find an offensive flow and confidence.

Tyler Ringhofer — Deputy DP Sports editor Men’s basketball — No. 1 in the IvyLeague

This is its year. While that might come as quite a surprise to those outside of Penn, it’s not shocking to the ones inside the locker room. The belief has been building for months, and now the Quakers are ready to show that they are the No. 1 team in the Ivy League. This may seem like an unrealistic prediction on face value, but I believe the Quakers got something this offseason that will drastically change the direction of the program — a new coach with a new philosophy. At Iowa, McCaffery was known for his high-powered, fast-paced offenses that thrived in transition — a style that couldn’t be more fitting for a Penn team that has the necessary speed, energy, and athleticism to compete with any team. It may take time for the group to gel, but I believe the Quakers are ready to roll.

Women’s basketball — No. 2 in theIvyLeague Building on an Ivy League tournament appearance last

season, I expect the Quakers to be just as, if not more, formidable this season. With Collins continuing her rise and Gayle providing a steady hand, Penn is right where it needs to be to contend for an Ivy League title. Last year, the Red and Blue came up just short of upsetting Columbia in the Ivy League tournament.

In fact, the Quakers went toeto-toe with the Lions in their first matchup of the season in New York, before Columbia ultimately put them away. The experience from these games, along with their returning core, makes them a serious threat to finish at the top this time. With experience and depth, the Quakers have the tools make a championship run.

Conor Smith — Deputy DP Sports editor

Men’s basketball — No. 4 in the IvyLeague

In the first year of McCaffery’s tenure, I predict that Penn sneaks into the last spot of Ivy Madness. The X-factor for the Quakers will be Power, given that he is good to go by the start of Ivy play. While there is a lot of justified excitement around Power, Penn fans really do not know what they are getting out of the former five-star recruit. Power played sparingly at Duke and Virginia, failing to play to

his ranking. Maybe it’s the optimist in me, but from what I’ve heard from those around the team leads me to expect a return to form for Power. If he is even half the scorer that he was projected to be coming out of high school, Penn will boast the best scoring duo in the Ivy League between him and Roberts.

Women’s basketball — No. 4 in theIvyLeague

While finishing fourth would be considered a success for the men’s team, it would prove more of the same for Penn women’s basketball. It would mean that the team was unable to take the next step to compete with the likes of the conference’s premier programs. Penn is not Princeton, Columbia, or Harvard — yet. Over the past two seasons, despite making Ivy Madness both years, the Quakers are 1-13, including tournament games, against these programs. Expectations should be high for a team that boasts back-to-back Ivy League Rookie of the Year winners, and for this season to be considered a success, Penn needs to break into the Ivy League’s upper echelon. I don’t think this is the year, though. The team lacks a strong number-one scoring option and is already dealing with injuries at the guard position.

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

The DP Sports department put in its picks for the 2025-26 basketball season.

A tale of two programs: Men’s basketball’s historic rise, fall, and quest to rise again

The program won 24 Ivy League titles from 1970 to 2007

WALKER CARNATHAN AND JUSTIN LEE

Former Sports Editor and Sports Editor

On March 2, 2007, the scoreboard at the Cathedral of College Basketball flashed a well-known refrain: “Ivy League Champs.”

There, as two-time Ivy League Player of the Year and 2007 College graduate Ibrahim Jaaber sat on the rim and waved the severed net above his head, Penn men’s basketball occupied a familiar position atop the Ivy League. A 28point win over Yale had secured the Quakers their 25th conference crown, with this one being their second in a row and seventh in nine years.

That campaign, the first under coach Glen Miller, seemed to foreshadow another decade of dominance for Penn. But as the title came and went, so too did stars like Jaaber, leading scorer and 2007 College graduate Mark Zoller, and leading shot-blocker and 2007 College graduate Steve Danley, all of whom were recruited by former coach Fran Dunphy.

Miller never coached another winning season and was fired less than three years later. In retrospect, the close of that 2007 season was not a continued coronation, but the start of a new age for the program. One of fewer banners, one with fewer fans, and one characterized by a broader theme: a failure to sustain the program’s previous standard of success.

Over the course of 38 seasons from 1970 to 2007, the Red and Blue won 22 Ivy League titles, including streaks of six in a row in the early 1970s and four in a row in the mid-1990s. In the 18 seasons since, they have won one.

During that 38-year span, Penn finished with a losing Ivy League record once. Since, it has happened nine times.

In those 38 years, Penn went 47-31 against Princeton, its top league rival. Since then, the Quakers are 7-29 against the Tigers, garnering a streak of 13 straight losses stretching to this day.

In evaluating Penn’s decline, former coaches and players have blamed a number of factors: recruitment shortcomings, the advancement of Ivy League competition, and the league’s larger slide from the national stage. But now, with an alumnus from those glory days returning to helm the program, Penn hopes its winning ways are soon to follow.

“It’s important to all of us that we get back to where we were,” new coach Fran McCaffery, who played for the Quakers from 1979-82, said. “And it’s not easy.”

The first title in Penn’s decadeslong dynastic run came in 1970 under coach Dick Harter. Penn went on to win the conference title in each of the next five seasons, the latter four of which came under legendary coach and future NBA champion Chuck Daly.

At the time, Penn’s unique combination of historic facilities, premium location, and worldclass academics made it a hotbed for top basketball talent.

“Kids want the Ivy League apart from the rest of Division I,” 1972 Wharton graduate Alan Cotler, who played for the Quakers from 1969-72, said. “They want the Palestra, they want the Big 5, they want the Wharton School.”

From 1970-2007, eight Quakers went on to play in the NBA, with many others carving out professional careers overseas.

One such professional player was standout shooting guard and 1979 Wharton graduate Tony Price, who was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the second round of the 1979 NBA Draft after helping Penn to its most successful campaign in program history. That season, the Red and Blue danced all the way to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament — a feat not replicated by any other Ivy League team in the last 45 years.

Bob Weinhauer, the coach of that Final Four group, employed a high-tempo brand of offense designed to generate additional possessions against slower-paced opponents.

“In those days, there was no clock. A lot of teams didn’t play fast,” McCaffery said. “We played fast. Pushed the break, makes and misses, we attacked. We had a mindset that was aggressive.”

Weinhauer made the leap from Penn to Arizona State in 1982, a move that had become commonplace for Quakers coaches. Daly, Weinhauer, and Weinhauer’s successor Craig Littlepage each coached the Red and Blue for six seasons or less before jumping to larger programs or, in Daly’s case, an NBA assistant coach job.

Despite its lack of coaching continuity, the program found success in each new iteration. All of Penn’s six head coaches between 1970 and 2007 won at least one Ivy title.

In 1989, coach Tom Schneider departed for Loyola Maryland, leaving the head coach position vacant once again. Penn hired from the inside, promoting an assistant coach from Schneider’s staff who was no stranger to the school’s basketball tradition: Dunphy.

“My impressions were how phenomenal [Penn] was,” Dunphy said. “I went to the Palestra seemingly every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday night — I grew up there as an elementary school person. I was honored to go to Penn, and I knew what the history and legacy was.”

Dunphy’s tenure not only continued the program’s previous tradition but also advanced it. After failing to win the conference in his first three seasons at the helm, Dunphy led the Quakers to three straight undefeated Ivy League seasons from 199395.

One of the key ingredients to Dunphy’s success was top

talent — in his 17 seasons at Penn, Dunphy coached the Ivy League Player of the Year nine times. But the approach those star players employed was just as important to the program’s all-time winningest coach.

“When we got to a pretty good level, the guys that were our best players were also our best defenders and our best teammates,” Dunphy said. “The culture got started because of their unselfishness and desire to succeed.”

“If you’re not tough, and you’re not built to get through some really tough stuff, [Penn] is not the place for you,” 1999 Wharton graduate Jed Ryan, who played for the Quakers from 1995-99, said.

In addition to their mentality, the early-2000s Quakers’ tandem of skill and athleticism made the team mustwatch campus entertainment and the Palestra a can’t-miss destination.

“We had guys who played above the rim. … We didn’t play like [an] ‘Ivy League team,’” 2003 Wharton graduate Ugonna Onyekwe, who was named Ivy League Player of the Year in 2002 and 2003, said. “I can’t think of a more exciting time in Penn basketball.”

Penn’s non-conference schedule, which featured opponents like Duke, North Carolina, and Michigan State, also helped elevate the team’s national footprint, according to Dunphy and Onyekwe. But in West Philadelphia, there was no greater fervor than when the Tigers came to town.

“It seemed like the entire student body was standing [in] lines out the door at Smokey Joe's for that Tuesday night [after the game],” Ryan said. “It was definitely an all-campus event,

definitely something that everyone looked forward to.”

The feud between the Quakers and the Tigers was fueled by the team’s proximity but also by scarcity: There was only one conference title to go around. From 1970-2007, a team other than Penn or Princeton won the Ivy crown just three times.

“In the Ivy League at the time, the regular season champion was gaining the automatic berth [in the NCAA tournament],” 2000 Wharton graduate Matt Langel, who played for the Quakers from 1996-2000 and currently serves as Colgate’s men’s basketball coach, said. “And in the city of Philadelphia, the most formidable opponent in the conference was Princeton.”

“The Ivy League of [the] early 1990s was different than the Ivy League today,” Dunphy said. “Penn and Princeton were the two programs that were winning the title every year. Now, I think all eight teams are capable of making a difference in the league every single year.”

In 2006, Dunphy led the Quakers to a 12-2 conference finish and another tournament appearance. It would be his final season with the Red and Blue.

After Dunphy crossed town to coach for Temple, his former program began a slow descent from the limelight. Jaaber, Zoller, and Danley graduated in 2007. In 2009, Miller lost his job after his Quakers began the season 0-7.

And in many ways, through different teams, coaches, and administrators, Penn’s oncedominant program has never been the same.

This story is part one in a two-part series chronicling the history of the Penn men’s basketballprogram.

ANDY MEI | DESIGN ASSOCIATE

Threads of the McCaffery era: Men’s basketball rocks throwback ‘Pennsylvania’ jerseys for 2025-26 season

Similar uniforms were worn by coach Fran McCaffery and the 1979 team who competed in the Final Four

AVERY BROBBEY

Sports Associate

The McCaffery era is an age of novelty, complete with a new coaching staff, new recruits, and transfer athletes who will debut at the Palestra this season. The Quakers’ primary uniforms will reflect the same spirit of change.

With a solid red or white coloring and an arching “Pennsylvania” text across the front, these iconic jerseys evoke a feeling of sophistication and timelessness for Penn men’s basketball. The sleek red and blue striping paired with the bold numbering merges old school tradition with modern confidence that the Quakers can capitalize on for a winning season.

“I think it’s a great-looking jersey,” coach Fran McCaffery said. “Something that we always expect is that we’re going to show up in a classy uniform. I think it’s an example of the history of this program [that] makes the building and the program special.”

The jerseys’ vintage look accompanies Penn men’s basketball’s historic legacy.

The Quakers donned similar jerseys in 1979, when they went on a Final Four run and earned an Ivy League title with coach Bob Weinhauer at the helm.

The 1979 team not only topped the Ancient Eight, but also led the Big Five for the seventh time in 10 years.

While not many were impressed with Penn’s eighth Ivy League championship in 10 years, no one could have predicted its journey to the top of the NCAA. As the ninth-seeded team in the East, Penn defeated teams like North Carolina — the East’s top seed — and St. John’s, which was coached by NBA Hall of Fame New York Nets coach Lou Carnesecca.

The victory run came to an end in the national semifinal, when the Quakers took on Magic Johnson and his Michigan State national champion team. Weinhauer even told Penn Athletics in 2004 that if the entire team had guarded Johnson, the results would have been the

same. Nevertheless, with numerous titles won and dominant teams toppled, the 1979 Quakers and their legacy wearing these threads will never be forgotten.

“When you walk through the main doors of the Hutchinson Gymnasium [towards the Palestra], you can see the big Final Four exhibit. There’s that iconic photo of four players all wearing the old ‘Pennsylvania’ jersey, [so] when you put [the jersey] on, you feel the history. You feel excited [about] how many games have been won in a jersey like that,” junior forward Augustus Gerhart said.

Returning to this style is symbolic of Penn’s deeprooted ties to the Keystone State as its only Ivy League representative and the custodian of the tradition of playing in the Cathedral of College Basketball.

“I’m born and raised in Pennsylvania,” Gerhart said. “Playing for Penn is really special. … [Philadelphia is] such a storied city to play basketball [in], and so many great players have grown up in this state. To be a part of that, touching that energy, is really special.”

Like Gerhart, the Penn men’s basketball team will

carry the weight of history on its shoulders when it takes to the court this season — a feeling senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts described as “unexplainable.”

Although McCaffery himself watched from the bench when the 1979 team rose to the Final Four due to transfer regulations, he nonetheless will bring the victorious spirit of the team to the 2025-26 season. In the following three seasons of his Penn career, McCaffery was a star point guard, leading the Ivy League in assists and steals during his senior year and helping Penn win the Ivy title all three years.

The last time the Quakers sported a solid red version of these jerseys was in 2019, to celebrate the 1979 Final Four team’s 40th anniversary. They went on to sweep the Big Five after an eight-point win over Saint Joseph’s, with program legend AJ Brodeur notching a 20-point performance that night.

Thus, with McCaffery in control, all-star transfers on the sidelines, and monumental history on their chests, the players of Penn men’s basketball has every necessary feature for a standout 2025-26 season to debut the McCaffery era.

DANA BAHNG | SENIOR DESIGNER

Texas trip, Christmas Classic highlight women’s basketball’s 2025-26 schedule

Women’s basketball will tip off its season at home against King’s on Nov. 7

It’s that time of year again. Penn women’s basketball will tip off its year at home against King’s on Nov. 7, also accessible via ESPN+.

Last season, Penn willed its way into the Ivy League tournament after a 2-6 conference start. A major factor in its playoff berth was nowsophomore center Katie Collins, who was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year. Collins averaged 10 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game. The Quakers, who finished 15-13 overall and 6-8 in the Ivy League, ultimately fell to Columbia in the Ivy Madness semifinals.

Let’s unpack what this year’s schedule holds.

Pod play

Penn will tip off Big 5 play on Nov. 12 at Drexel in the 29th iteration of the “Battle of 33rd Street.” After making an NCAA tournament appearance in 2024, the Dragons went 17-13 last season before falling in the semifinals of the Coastal Athletic Association tournament. Along with a pod win, the teams are also vying for the upper hand in their rivalry, as they are split 14-14 all time.

Penn’s second Big 5 matchup will come against Saint Joseph’s at home on Nov. 24. Last season, the Hawks went 24-10 and placed second in the Atlantic 10 tournament. Penn will be facing a very different St. Joe’s squad, though, as the Hawks graduated six seniors and saw two players transfer.

The Quakers will compete in the women’s Big 5 Classic at Villanova on Dec. 7. Seeding will be based on team record in pod play.

Holiday hoops

The Quakers are getting no holidays off this year.

The team will be celebrating Thanksgiving in Texas as it takes a two-game road trip to the Lone Star State. On Nov. 28, Penn will take on Division III St. Thomas in Houston, marking the first-ever matchup between the programs. It will be a homecoming for sisters junior guard Ese Ogbevire and freshman guard Ruke

Ogbevire, who are from Houston.

Penn will then travel to Austin to play Texas on Nov. 30 for its toughest matchup of the season. Last season, Texas finished 35-4 and made a Final Four appearance. The only other time the programs competed was in the 2014 NCAA tournament. In coach Mike McLaughlin’s first postseason run leading the program, the 12th-seeded Quakers fell to the fifth-seeded Longhorns 79-61.

During winter break, the Quakers will compete in the second-annual Fairleigh Dickinson Christmas Classic. On Dec. 29, Penn will play Maryland Eastern Shore at FDU in Hackensack, N.J. The team will then take on either FDU or Binghamton on the next day of the Christmas Classic.

“Adding a trip to Texas and other strong nonconference opponents will test us early and prepare us for the battles ahead,” McLaughlin said in a statement to Penn Athletics. “Our group is eager to embrace the journey and continue to grow together throughout the season.”

Ivy slate

Penn will open up Ivy League play on Jan. 3, 2026 at home against Princeton. Last season — for the first time in Ivy history — the conference sent three teams to the NCAA tournament. Harvard gained an automatic bid after winning the Ivy League title, while Columbia and Princeton both earned at-large selections. The odd team out: Penn. Penn was the only team that made Ivy Madness that did not receive an at-large bid after barely scraping into the conference tournament. In recent memory, the Quakers have not fared well against the top of the Ivy League. Combined, Penn is 1-13, including tournament games, against Harvard, Columbia, and Princeton over the past two seasons.

To be the best, you have to be able to beat the best. The Quakers will have six chances to do so against the conference’s top programs this season.

CONOR SMITH

Deputy Sports Edtior

WEINING DING | MULTIMEDIA EDITOR

Senior guard Simone Sawyer pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 24.

Steve Donahue’s return, Ivy opener at Princeton highlight men’s basketball’s 2025-26 schedule

Men’s basketball kicks off its ﬁrst season under coach Fran McCaffery at the Palestra against Rowan on Nov. 7

VALERI GUEVARRA

Sports Editor

After an offseason of changes on and off the court, Penn men’s basketball is set to open its season on Nov. 7 against Rowan, beginning its first season under the leadership of new coach Fran McCaffery.

Last season was not the prettiest for the Quakers. The Red and Blue finished seventh in the Ivy League for the second-straight season, with a 4-10 conference record and 8-19 overall record. Steve Donahue was later dismissed from his position as coach after nine seasons.

This season, the Quakers have a new look in multiple ways. McCaffery will be at the helm with his new staff and a roster that includes seven newcomers, including junior forward TJ Power — the program’s first former five-star recruit. The team is also set to wear throwback jerseys honoring the team’s winning seasons and historic Final Four run in 1979.

Let’s break down what lies ahead for the Quakers this season:

Donahue v. McCaffery

On Nov. 17, the Quakers will kick off Big 5 pod play with arguably the most anticipated matchup of their season — and it’s not because of the players, but because of the leaders on the sideline.

As the newly named Saint Joseph’s coach, Donahue is returning to the Palestra on the visitor’s side for the first time to face his successor. Both coaches also have significant ties to Big 5 basketball: Donahue grew up in Delaware County and began his college coaching career in the City of Brotherly Love, while McCaffery is a Penn men’s basketball alum and also started his coaching career on the Palestra sidelines.

As the reigning Big 5 champions, this matchup is the

Senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts

Hawks’ to lose. Between the storylines and the passionate Hawks fanbase, this matchup should pack the Palestra.

More Big 5 play

Just four days later, Penn will make college basketball’s shortest road trip to battle Drexel for the 29th edition of the Battle of 33rd Street, in which Penn looks to avenge its back-and-forth loss to the Dragons at the 2024 Big 5 Classic. One week later, the Quakers will host La Salle for the first time since 2022 during the Cathedral Classic. While it will not count towards Big 5 standings, this matchup could prove to be valuable experience if the two should face off again just over a week

later at this year’s Big 5 Classic on Dec. 6.

Notably, Penn is not guaranteed to play Villanova this season due to the reconfiguration of the Big 5 pod system. Should the programs not face off at this year’s Big 5 Classic, it will be the first time since the 2000-2001 season that the programs have not played each other. Penn’s most recent wins over nationally ranked teams were thrillers, both over Villanova in 2023 and 2018 — the latter when the Wildcats were the defending NCAA champions.

Faceoff with Rutgers

The Quakers’ non-conference play this season proves to be full of opportunities.

While the rest of the Penn community escapes campus for winter break, Penn men’s basketball is not taking any breaks and is set to face Rutgers of the Big 10 on Dec. 20 at Jersey Mike’s Arena. Historically, Ivy League schools have seen mixed success against the Scarlet Knights. In the last two editions of the Jersey Jam, Princeton edged Rutgers by less than eight points, while Columbia dropped its last two games at Rutgers in 2022 and 2024. This will be Penn’s first matchup since 1975 against the fellow colonial college.

Ivy play starts away

Similar to the changes on the staff and roster, this season’s conference schedule

has some departures from previous years. For the first time since the 201920 season, the Quakers will open Ivy play with a matchup against rival Princeton on Jan. 5, 2026 and will not end the regular season against the Tigers. Penn also starts conference play six days earlier than last season and ends its season two days earlier. When the Penn community returns to campus for the spring semester, its first opportunity to see the new era of Penn men’s basketball in action in conference play is against Yale on Jan. 24, 2026. There will be five additional opportunities to watch the Quakers at the Cathedral of College Basketball, ending with senior day against Harvard. BY

Men’s basketball schedule breakdown televised games

6 home conference games during spring semester

4 Big 5 games

KEVIN REN | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 31.

For standout senior guard Saniah Caldwell, basketball has always been more than just a game

Preparing for her ﬁnal season with the Red and Blue, Caldwell reﬂects on her time spent with her ‘family away from home’

MADISON KNIER Sports Reporter

Consistency is an understatement for women’s basketball senior guard Saniah Caldwell.

As a team captain, Caldwell plans to put her personal goals on the back burner as her team looks for its first Ivy League championship since 2019. Averaging 4.6 points per game with 23 steals and nine blocks in the 2024-25 season, Caldwell has shown a tenacity and leadership that will serve as a foundation for the whole team. Yet her motivation and love for the game reside primarily in elements that exist off the hardwood.

While other kindergarteners were knee-deep in crayons and counting, Caldwell found herself with a basketball in her hands, marking the beginning of her athletic career. In her younger years of play, Caldwell and her family moved around the country, so she was exposed to many styles of play and a variety of competitive settings. However, nothing quite compares to where she settled in sixth grade: North New Jersey, arguably one of the most competitive regions for women’s basketball in the country.

Here, Caldwell joined the New Jersey Sparks, a team affiliated with the exclusive Nike circuit.

“I’ve been able to play against the top people, obviously, in one of the top states. … It just makes your game better. It makes you appreciate everything more,” Caldwell said.

After a high school state championship title, an all-state nod, and a list of sectional and county championships, Caldwell’s success did not stop at the high school level. Despite numerous illustrious offers, Caldwell chose Penn for hoops and a plethora of other reasons that included Sydnei

Caldwell, her older sister.

Sydnei Caldwell transferred to Penn to continue her basketball career and finish her final year of undergraduate studies, allowing the Caldwell sisters to reunite as teammates for the 202223 basketball season.

“It was obviously always fun playing with her, but I think we did a lot better in college playing together, because she was definitely helping me, showing her the ropes and everything,” Saniah Caldwell said. “It was just fun.”

However, Saniah and Sydnei are not the only athletes in the Caldwell household. Their mother, Kenya, was a standout track and field athlete in college and is in Tennessee’s Track and Field Hall of Fame. Their father, Isaiah, proved his athleticism on the football field,

earning a spot in Middle Tennessee State’s Football Hall of Fame. He had an 11-year NFL career and now coaches in the league. Growing up in such an athletic environment, it would have been an injustice for Saniah Caldwell not to pursue athletics herself.

“I think from a young age, our parents just created a competitive atmosphere in our family. … They want us to win everything. Why wouldn’t you?” Saniah Caldwell said. “They were taught that, and they instilled that in us.”

Caldwell made an instant impact for the Red and Blue as a freshman, appearing in 17 games and accumulating four steals. Her skills only expanded during her sophomore year, as she collected seven three-pointers during the season and recorded nine steals and 31 assists.

Caldwell credited most of her athletic success to the environment in which she grew up and her biggest role models: her parents. She admires their humble attitudes and plans to follow their example. Her defensive mindset, primarily instilled by her former linebacker father, is abundantly evident in her style of play today. Yet, Caldwell’s maturity off the court may be what reflects her upbringing the most.

“Her work ethic is phenomenal in everything she does,” Penn women’s basketball coach Mike McLaughlin said.

“She comes from an athletic family. I coached her sister sitting here. They’re just professionals, you know, they’re professional college students.

… She’s first class all the way.”

Caldwell has found a chosen family in the Penn women’s basketball team. As a senior

leader, Caldwell plans on prioritizing her teammates’ health both on and off the court this season, further reflecting her selfless nature. She also plans to remain a fountain of encouragement through the long and testing winter basketball season.

“I feel like that’s the main thing that I focus on, making sure everyone feels comfortable,” Caldwell said. “People come to me asking a lot of questions because [I] have the experience. … I always want to just make sure I’m prepared to answer the questions and just help everyone out.”

Driven by the support of her family — both back home in New Jersey and on the Palestra’s hardwood — Caldwell is looking to take the basketball world by storm this upcoming season.

Sports reporter Ellie Clark contributedreporting.

WEINING DING | MULTIMEDIA EDITOR

Caldwell pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 24.

Ringhofer | Breaking down NBA and WNBA player comparisons for Penn basketball

Which professional stars’ styles of play do Penn basketball players resemble?

TYLER RINGHOFER Deputy Sports Editor

Whether competing in the NBA or WNBA or simply playing for the love of the game, basketball players at every level often model their style after their favorite professional players. From signature moves to on-court mentality, imitation isn’t just flattery — it’s inspiration.

From Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Dončić’s magical one-legged fadeaway shot and Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden’s patented stepback three-pointers to Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark’s otherworldly logo three-pointers, everyone has that one go-to signature move that makes opponents second-guess themselves.

They say that nicknames are earned, not given, and player comparisons work the same way. A player’s “comp” is often given by peers and suggests whose game the player’s basketball play style most emulates. It considers a variety of factors, including height, position, skillset, and even personality.

As the start of the Penn basketball season approaches, now is the perfect time to take a closer look at the roster and get a glimpse into each player’s game. From returning veterans to promising newcomers, here are my NBA and WNBA player comparisons for some of the standouts on the Quakers squad.

NBA comparisons

TJPower:PaulGeorge

A transfer from Virginia, junior forward TJ Power will look to help lead the Quakers to a deep run in the Ivy League tournament. Standing at 6-foot-9, the two-way wing draws comparisons to Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George — a testament to his versatility on both ends of the court. While George might be the smoother ballhandler, Power possesses many of the same traits: the

Gayle

ability to create his own shot, score off the dribble, and knock down jumpers from both midrange and beyond the arc.

EthanRoberts:DevinBooker

With similar 6-foot-5 frames, senior guard/forward Ethan Roberts draws apt comparisons to four-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker. A smooth and steady scorer, Roberts led the team with 16.8 points per game while ranking second in fieldgoal percentage during the 2024-25 season. Like Booker, Roberts’ dependable midrange game is the backbone of his offense, where he displays consistency and reliability. When the game is on the line, you can count on Roberts to get you a bucket.

Augustus Gerhart: Bam Adebayo

Need someone who can space the floor and dominate inside?

Look no further than junior forward Augustus Gerhart.

Gerhart brings a unique blend of strength and finesse to the court, making him a true hybrid between a forward and center. His versatility — including his ability to score on the low block, stretch the floor with his jumper, and defend multiple positions — makes him one of the Quakers’ most dynamic frontcourt pieces.

Gerhart’s game draws clear parallels to Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo, the three-time NBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist who is known for his ability to switch seamlessly on defense, facilitate from the high post, and play with an unselfish, team-first mentality.

Niklas Polonowski: Mikal Bridges

He’s cool, calm, and collected. Junior guard/forward Niklas Polonowski mirrors New York Knicks guard Mikal Bridges’ defensive discipline and positional awareness. Like Bridges, Polonowski thrives on efficiency, using length and anticipation to impact plays

on both ends. Offensively, his game continues to evolve into a confident, scoring-focused role, with a reliable threepoint shot that allows him to rise and fire over defenders. Tied for third on the team last season in three-pointers made, Polonowski’s combination of size, shooting touch, and composure gives him shades of Bridges’ two-way versatility.

WNBA comparisons

KatieCollins:CameronBrink

This one was easy. Like Los Angeles Sparks forward Cameron Brink, sophomore forward Katie Collins is a defensive anchor who makes her presence felt on every possession. Last season, she led the Ivy League with 1.6 blocks per game and 46 total blocks, using her length, timing, and anticipation to disrupt shots and control the paint. Her defensive IQ and discipline mirror Brink’s trademark interior dominance, while Collins adds balance offensively as a reliable scorer, finishing third on the

team with 10 points per game last season. As the reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year, she’s already shown flashes of becoming Penn’s next two-way star.

MatayaGayle:KelseyPlum

Similar in stature and style, junior guard Mataya Gayle brings shades of Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Plum to Penn’s backcourt — a fearless, scoring-minded point guard who plays bigger than her 5-foot-7 size. Gayle combines quickness and confidence with a smooth shooting touch, capable of creating her own shot or finding teammates in rhythm. Like Plum, Gayle isn’t afraid of the moment, using her craftiness and competitive edge to take over games when it matters most.

Sarah Miller and Saniah Caldwell: Sophie Cunningham andLexieHull

The Indiana Fever’s sharpshooting tandem of guards Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull finds its Ivy League mirror in sophomore guard Sarah Miller and senior guard Saniah Caldwell. For Penn, Miller and Caldwell were a consistent long-range threat who finished second and fourth on the team, respectively, in three-pointers made last season.

Miller, who earned an Ivy League Rookie of the Week honor last season, led the Quakers in three-point percentage at 35.9%, showcasing the same reliable stroke that made Cunningham one of the Fever’s most efficient shooters — 43.2% from deep last season. Caldwell, meanwhile, channels Hull’s two-way impact through her hustle, energy, and ability to knock down timely shots from downtown. Together, Miller and Caldwell form a poised, confident duo that gives Penn the same balanced perimeter presence that Cunningham and Hull bring to Indiana.

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Miller and

pictured posing with a basketball on Oct. 24.

Calling all Movers Shakers + Quakers

Ofering 60+ eateries, stores, and entertainment venues, Shop Penn has everything you need for the perfect Penn Quakers Game Day experience!

Burgers

Bands +

Ballers

Basketball Preview

BASKETBALL PREVIEW

Table of Contents:

Fran McCaffery is back to change men’s basketball for the better

Freshman phenoms: How women’s basketball coach Mike McLaughlin approaches recruitment

A deep dive into the 2025 Ivy League men’s basketball preseason poll

No. 5 Dartmouth (14-14,

No. 6 Brown (14-13,

No.

No. 8 Columbia (12-15, 1-13)

A look into the 2025 Ivy League women’s basketball preseason poll

No. 7. Cornell

No. 8. Yale

How an offseason full of change, position battles is translating to the court for men’s basketball

Sisters Ese and Ruke Ogbevire bring family ties to women’s basketball

Penn basketball is hitting its stride

Family on and off the court: How men’s basketball transitioned through a complete coaching change

The

The DP Sports editors forecast men’s and women’s basketball’s 2025-26 seasons

IvyLeague

A tale of two programs: Men’s basketball’s historic rise, fall, and quest to rise again

Threads of the McCaffery era: Men’s basketball rocks throwback ‘Pennsylvania’ jerseys for 2025-26 season

Texas trip, Christmas Classic highlight women’s basketball’s 2025-26 schedule

Pod play

Holiday hoops

Steve Donahue’s return, Ivy opener at Princeton highlight men’s basketball’s 2025-26 schedule

More Big 5 play

For standout senior guard Saniah Caldwell, basketball has always been more than just a game

Ringhofer | Breaking down NBA and WNBA player comparisons for Penn basketball

Which professional stars’ styles of play do Penn basketball players resemble?

Calling all Movers Shakers + Quakers