Lycoming News

The University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team secured a victory against Rider with a score of 79-66 at The Palestra. This game marked Penn's first since fall-term exams, and they led throughout the match. With this win, Penn's record improved to 4-7, while Rider's fell to 4-8.

Several highlights stood out in this game for Penn. Notably, it was the first time this season that Penn never trailed in a game. They tied their season high by scoring 41 points in the first half and achieved their largest lead of the season at 19 points when the score reached 63-44.

Penn also excelled in shooting, hitting a season-best 45.8 percent from three-point range and achieving an overall field goal percentage of 52.5 percent. Their assist-to-turnover ratio was commendable at 2.25, marking their second-best performance in this area for the season.

Key players contributed significantly to Penn's success. Senior Nick Spinoso scored a season-high 22 points on efficient shooting and added six rebounds and three assists without any turnovers. Junior Ethan Roberts added another strong performance with 20 points, five assists, and eight rebounds.

Sophomore Niklas Polonowski contributed with four three-pointers as part of his 14-point effort, while freshman AJ Levine set personal highs with six rebounds and three assists.

Rider's Zion Cruz led his team with 16 points, supported by Tariq Ingraham's contributions of 11 points and eight rebounds.

Throughout the game, both teams displayed aggressive play early on but it was Penn who managed to capitalize on key moments to maintain their lead until the end.

Penn will next face George Mason on Sunday at George Mason’s venue at 2 p.m.

For updates on Penn men's basketball activities, fans can follow @PennMBB on X (formerly Twitter) or visit PennAthletics.com.