Quakers Shoot Less Than 30% Falling to the Crimson 53 – 42
PHILADELPHIA, PA. 1/17/2026 –
In a game badly needed by the University of Pennsylvania the ball did not fall enough as Harvard takes home a 53 – 42 victory. Penn is still winless in the Ivy League and Harvard is a team that is ahead in the standings. The top four qualify for Ivy Madness, and the Red and Blue cannot afford to fall too far behind.
“Our mentality is every game is basically your championship, your playoff game,” said Penn guard Mataya Gayle. This is very disappointing. We wanted this win. All I can do is look to the next game. We have a quick turnaround, so just recovering and getting ready for that, going in with a fresh mentality and ready to win.”
Good Start for Penn Did Not Last
The Quakers came out and scored the first 10 points of the game. The Crimson missed their first 6 shots and turned the ball over three times. The Red and Blue lead 14 – 7. The second quarter was the opposite. Penn went 0 – 9 to intermission scoring 2 points in the stanza to trail 19 – 16.
Tail of two quarters. It would not switch back as Harvard won the third quarter 22 – 12. The Crimson got hot, Penn did not.
There were too many scoring droughts by the Red and Blue. They could not make a serious run in the game, and made less that 30% of their field goal attempts.
“The dry spells definitely,” said Penn Coach Mike McLaughlin. “Defensively we are good enough to win. Offensively you can’t have a lot of success when our shot selection is not great. You can’t finish around the rim. We didn’t get to the foul line. Just these two big valleys on the offensive side. Peaks and valleys are a part of the sport, but you can’t go that dial.”
What the Numbers Say
Harvard wound up shooting 35.3% (18 – 51). The defense was there for Penn. But looking at the line score the hosts scored 14 first quarter and fourth quarter points. Combined the Red and Blue scored 14 points (2 and 12).
Abagail Wright led Harvard with 14 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Saniya Glenn-Bello and Karlee White added 11 points each. Olivia Jones assisted a career-high five times.
For Penn Mataya Gayle scored a game-high 16 points. Katie Collins added 12 points and took down a team-high 9 rebounds, one shy of a double-double.
Up Next
Penn (10 – 6, 0 – 3) seeks their initial Ivy win of the season. They host Dartmouth on Monday.
Harvard (9 – 7, 2 – 1) will try to establish themselves high in the Ancient Eight standings as they travel to Princeton on Monday.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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