AJ Levine the Hero as Penn Punches Ticket to Ivy League Championship

The University of Pennsylvania Men’s Basketball team earned a spot in the Ivy League championship game on Saturday, March 14, defeating Harvard 62-60 in overtime in Ithaca, N.Y. on a layup from sophomore AJ Levine with 6.1 seconds to play.

The six foot tall guard hooked around the right wing, evading the Crimson defense as he drove to the basket. Levine shadowed Harvard guard Tey Barbour, who led the field with 16 points, on the way back down the court, successfully contesting Barbour’s attempt at a game-winning three.

The Quakers (17-11, 9-5 Ivy League) will face regular season leader Yale (24-5, 11-4 Ivy League) at 12 p.m. on Sunday, March 15 in the championship with a bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line. Penn went 0-2 against the Bulldogs in league play but played them tough in New Haven, losing 74-70.

Playing without senior wing and lead scorer Ethan Roberts, ruled out with a concussion the day prior, Penn forward and unanimous first team All-Ivy pick TJ Power put up 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Quakers. He kept Penn in the game early, scoring 11 of 18 points during the first nine minutes.

A Power jumper put the Quakers in front 27-18 with under two minutes to play in the first half, but they made just two shots in the next seven and a half minutes of play, allowing an 18-5 Harvard run. Michael Zanoni saved the Quakers late, adding a three and the game-tying midrange jumper with 55 seconds to play. Penn scored the first five points in the extra period, looking ready to take control, but a Barbour layup tied the game with 20 seconds left, setting up Levine’s heroics.