Ivy League Basketball: Close battle at top between Yale and Harvard

Ivy League Basketball power rankings: Close battle at top between Yale and Harvard

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 11: Head coach Steve Donahue of the Pennsylvania Quakers shows the net to the crowd after the win at The Palestra on March 11, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Penn defeated Harvard 68-65 for the Men's Ivy League Tournament Championship title. (Photo by Corey Perrine/Getty Images) /

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VILLANOVA, PA – DECEMBER 04: Jordan Dingle #3, Max Martz #14, AJ Brodeur #25, and Ryan Betley #00 of the Pennsylvania Quakers (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

6. Pennsylvania

Record: 13-10 (5-5 Ivy League)

The truth about Pennsylvania is that they are an extremely unpredictable basketball team. Nobody ever really knows which squad is going to show up. This is, after all, much of the same Penn squad that took out Villanova on its home floor last year.

This year, the Quakers picked up a big win at Alabama the first game of the season. They were even playing solid basketball early on in conference play. Then, things began to go downhill when they lost much of their depth due to injuries. This is the issue to blame for why they have lost three out of their last four contests in the Ivy League.

At 5-5 and currently sitting at 4th in the Ivy League Basketball standings, Penn is still capable of getting into the 4-team Ivy League Tournament field. With a lot of other guys injured, Senior forward, AJ Brodeur, who leads the team in scoring and rebounding with 16.5 ppg and 9.0 rpg, is going to have to control some games in order to make that possible. Unfortunately, I am afraid the Quakers may be done.

5. Dartmouth

Record: 10-15 (3-7 Ivy League)

At 3-7 in conference play, Dartmouth did not pick up its first league win until two weeks ago, but they have now won three of their last four. Now, those three victories they picked up are against all three of the teams that are ranked below them in these power rankings, nonetheless, they are playing better basketball right now.

Their most recent loss was to a talented Princeton team. They lost 65-62 in a game in which Junior forward, Chris Knight, played spectacularly en route to 27 points while shooting 72% from the field. Knight is their best player and he has shown that he is capable of being one of the best in the Ivy League.

With only three league wins, it is a long shot for Dartmouth to do what is needed to qualify for the Ivy League Basketball Tournament, nonetheless, they have plenty of things to be proud of due to their performances as of late.

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