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UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
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J.B. Offline
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Post: #1
UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
The Battle of 33rd Street returns to the storied Palestra this afternoon, as the 6-6 Dragons take on the 4-5 Quakers.

Drexel is surprisingly an 8 point dog against their neighbors down the street.

Today is a rare live TV game for Drexel, as the game will be carried live on Comcast Sports Net at 4:00. Penn is producing the telecast through the Ivy League Digital Network.

Penn's wins are against very beatable RMU, CCSU, and Lafayette, and a nice win on the road against UCF (RPI of 76). Their losses are against good to great teams, but they also lost to a bad Navy team.

Penn leads all time series 15-10 but Drexel has won the last 6. Last year, Drexel won 53-52 in OT, what could arguably be the most poorly played game by both teams in the history of Division I basketball. It's the only game that I could ever find in CBB box scores in which the winning team shot less than 30% from the field. Last time Penn beat Drexel was in the great 2006-2007 Season. That Penn win may have been the game that kept Drexel out of the NCAA Tournament that season.

I'm going to stay positive here. I predict that Drexel breaks the lose 2 win 2 pattern that they've held all season, and defeat Penn 74-72.
(This post was last modified: 12-28-2016 02:55 PM by J.B..)
12-28-2016 09:51 AM
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J.B. Offline
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RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
I decided to slightly update the title of this thread after reading this very snooty, very typical Ivy League like notation in UPenn's game notes....

"It’s Penn, Please
The first time you mention us on-air or in
your columns, please use our full name—
the University of Pennsylvania. After
that, we ask that you refer to us simply
as Penn. We would ask that you refrain
from calling us Pennsylvania or UPenn at
any time. Thanks for your cooperation!"
12-28-2016 10:00 AM
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Seahawk Nation 08 Offline
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Post: #3
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
(12-28-2016 10:00 AM)J.B. Wrote:  I decided to slightly update the title of this thread after reading this very snooty, very typical Ivy League like notation in UPenn's game notes....

"It’s Penn, Please
The first time you mention us on-air or in
your columns, please use our full name—
the University of Pennsylvania. After
that, we ask that you refer to us simply
as Penn. We would ask that you refrain
from calling us Pennsylvania or UPenn at
any time. Thanks for your cooperation!"

Eh, to be fair, a lot of schools use that kind of language. I've seen a very similar type of note for UNCG, who prefers the 4 letter acronym over being called "UNC Greensboro". It's the only way to ensure the marketing of your university is consistent across all media outlets.

Certainly hope you beat the crap out of the Ivy Leaguers though!
(This post was last modified: 12-28-2016 10:02 AM by Seahawk Nation 08.)
12-28-2016 10:01 AM
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J.B. Offline
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Post: #4
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
Drexel trails by 4 at halftime. Note that a Steve Donahue coached Penn team has never lost when leading at halftime.
12-28-2016 04:57 PM
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J.B. Offline
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RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
They battled to the final minute with a chance to win but couldn't pull it off this afternoon. Way too many mistakes throughout proved costly. 17 turnovers are way too many for this team to be successful.

Miles Overton had his best game thus far nailing 5 3-pointers and a game high 19 points.

Drexel finishes their OOC schedule 6-7, which is exactly what I predicted. I do think that this team is battle tested and ready to compete in the CAA. They're not going to finish toward the top this year, but I think that 9 or 10 wins in the CAA is a strong possibility if they can limit the turnovers. I'll be happy if they can finish in the top 6 and go into the CAA Tournament with a shot to win it if they can avoid playing on Friday.
(This post was last modified: 12-29-2016 10:45 AM by J.B..)
12-28-2016 08:01 PM
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bdragon Offline
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Post: #6
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
Don't get me wrong, I am happy with the Spiker hire and think he's done a great job beginning to revive this program - there's a good energy around it unlike anything in we've seen in the last 5 years (since the 11-12 NIT season). The early line on the new recruits is positive (esp. Lee, Jonnson), the resurgence of Rodney and Austin is a huge lift. So, I get it, we're on the right track.

However, I still think we should have won 2 of the Rider, St Joe, Penn games. We're 5-7 (forget Kean), we should be 7-5. I'm not buying the freshman excuse, lots of teams start freshman (Penn did it yesterday). I'm not buying the new head coach excuse, he's a good coach and doesn't need that crutch. Penn was a beatable team and we just made too many mistakes. St. Joe and Rider, we let slip away at various points of each game. We need an aura of winning in those situations. Spiker even alluded to this sentiment in an interview on the broadcast yesterday. When asked, summarize your achievements so far, he said with a very "meh" tone, "we're 6-7".

I'll be a little disappointed with less than 9 wins in the CAA. Delaware, JMU beatable twice. Even 3 of 4 against those 2, we should win 6 other games. Hofstra, Elon, W&M are beatable, and I know we can steal a game or two from the top 4. Again, Spiker says "We are nowhere near where we should be". I take from that, we are better than the 5-7 in OOC showed. If the coaches get results, aka getting us to where we SHOULD be, it must translate to 9 or 10 CAA wins.

I'm being a little bold, but I'd rather see the expectations raised as a fan / alum and start expecting wins, instead of being satisfied with the moral victory of progress and promise for the future. If Spiker weren't a good coach and the players on this team weren't solid mid major guys, I wouldn't be thinking this way. So, my boldness and expectation comes from the positives that I've seen so far.

Go Dragons.
12-29-2016 10:38 AM
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MedicSBK Offline
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Post: #7
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
The formula for victory is much different and more broad this year than in years past. There IS still some learning that's going on which is key.

In the press conference after the game Spiker said that this team is not where they should and could be yet. That, to me, is one of the biggest most encouraging things that could have been said.

Also, I was so impressed by the amount of emotion both Spiker and Donahue showed in the post game. These guys love each other and each have such a thirst for victory. We are lucky to have Spiker.

Anyway, here's the postgame..

http://alwaysadragon.com/postgame-penn/
12-29-2016 03:39 PM
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Seahawk Nation 08 Offline
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Post: #8
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
Have to remember Spiker is attempting to implement a brand new system. It's hard to take a group of players recruited for the purpose of handling a plodding style of play and get them on the run.

All I can think of as a comparison is CJ Gettys, our 7-footer who transferred to Rutgers as a grad student this past year. Trying to run the floor in Keatts' first year here was pretty humorous. Dude was gassed after 2-3 possessions.
12-29-2016 06:54 PM
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bdragon Offline
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RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
Ok, I under estimated the CAA. IF JMU is this good after going 2-11 in a RPI 238 OOC SOS, this conference is going to eat these Dragons alive. Not sure if we'll see anybody that we SHOULD beat. We may be lucky to get 9 wins. The freshman are now really looking like freshman. Overall, DU having trouble getting the ball inside, struggling with the pressure, not able to force the tempo.
12-31-2016 03:27 PM
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J.B. Offline
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RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
(12-31-2016 03:27 PM)bdragon Wrote:  Ok, I under estimated the CAA. IF JMU is this good after going 2-11 in a RPI 238 OOC SOS, this conference is going to eat these Dragons alive. Not sure if we'll see anybody that we SHOULD beat. We may be lucky to get 9 wins. The freshman are now really looking like freshman. Overall, DU having trouble getting the ball inside, struggling with the pressure, not able to force the tempo.

JMU is playing really well today, and this is a tough one for Drexel. But you can't judge how the entire CAA season is going to go on one game. Just as there's nobody in the conference that Drexel SHOULD beat, there's nobody in the conference that the CAN'T beat on any given Thursday/Saturday. I still think (or at least hope) that they can get past 9 wins.
12-31-2016 03:52 PM
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Dragon For Life Offline
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Post: #11
RE: UPenn - Battle of 33rd Street Continues
Its going to be a long year regardless we do not have a reliable 3 pt game and we make silly mistakes/turnovers. However, the young players will got more experience and next year I am still excited to see how they do.
12-31-2016 04:50 PM
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