A Throwback Revival at the Cathedral

Imagine a drill sergeant yelling at you in your face. Then imagine that you are in a tiny room, and the noise reverberates and crashes. Then multiply that by 8,000. That was what the Palestra was like last night. One particular second half moment stands out: Penn had just gone on a 7-0 run whipping up the crowd at the Cathedral like a preacher calling down fire and brimstone.  The noise from the 8,000 present, amplified by the unparalleled acoustics of that grand old gym, was literally deafening. In the Fourteen Game Tournament that decides which team advances to March Madness from the Ivy League, games in February have huge meaning. The Quakers entered the game with a 4-1 mark, while Harvard was 6-0. A loss by Penn would put them two games behind Harvard, a huge deficit. Friday night’s game was a season-changing night. For the first time in a while at Penn, a conference game felt like an event. Over 1,600 Penn students turned out to fill the student section, making it by some accou...