Defense fails Hens' men in loss to Penn

Defense has been a staple this year for the Delaware men's basketball team. It's what propelled the Hens to a season opening upset of Old Dominion and it's what led to their first five-game winning streak in a decade.

But defense is also what failed the Hens Wednesday night, as they fell to Penn 78-68 in a non-conference match-up at the Bob Carpenter Center. The loss, the second part of a women's-men's doubleheader, dropped the Hens to 5-4 this season.

The Delaware offense, which shot 50-percent from the field, kept the Hens close during the first half, but the defense allowed the Quakers to put up 52 points in the second half to walk away with the win.

"You would hope that what has been our staple would continue to be our staple, but it wasn't tonight," Head Coach Monte Ross said. "There were too many lapses on the defensive end, and it cost us tonight."

The Quakers were lead by guards Miles Cartwright and Zach Rosen, who scored a combined 50 points. Thirty-eight of those points came in the second half.

"They were very, very sharp tonight, which we weren't," Ross said of Cartwright and Rosen. "You have to give them credit that they were able to take advantage of it."

After trailing by 3 at the half, the Hens rallied to the tie the game on a jumper by sophomore forward Kelvin McNeil with 13:42 left in the game and took the lead a minute and a half later when senior guard Jawan Carter hit a 3-pointer.

But Penn quickly regained the lead and never gave it up again.

"We tried to get each other to focus, and coach was on us all night, but we just had one of those games, man," Carter said. "It's tough to have one like that going into the holidays, but it's just learning from it. There's a lot of season left."

Carter finished the night with 21 points, making him the Hens' leading scorer. Two other Delaware players also finished in double-digits: sophomore forward Jamelle Hagins with 17 and senior guard Alphonso Dawson with 12.

The Hens' next game is Dec. 29 against Santa Clara, part of the Cable Car Classic in Santa Clara, Calif.