PHILADELPHIA— For the first time in nine years, this looked like it could be the night.   

Yes, it looked like Dartmouth was finally going to leave the famed Palestra with a victory over the Penn Quakers.   The Big Green were shooting the lights out, going a blistering 56.2 percent in the first half, 6-for-11 from 3-point range, building an eight-point lead that could’ve been higher. 

It all seemed to be working for Dave McLaughlin’s crew, who would move into a three-way tie for third place in the Ivy League with a win. 

The only problem was that they played the second half.   

“At halftime I said we had to keep them out of transition, keep them off the glass and get 50-50 balls,” said McLauglin, after it all unraveled for Dartmouth in an 80-71 loss Friday that suddenly leaves the Big Green in dire straits in the Ivy race heading to Princeton on Saturday. “At the beginning of the half, we didn’t keep them off the glass, they made some plays which gave them life and gave the crowd life.” 

That’s how a lead that had reached 26-14 in the first half, while sixth man Cameron McNamee drained four straight 3-pointers, then 45-34 early in the second half, disappeared.  As hot as Dartmouth was early, that’s how cold they were after intermission, shooting just 8-for-24, 33.3% after the break, only 3-for-12 from behind the arc.  And they didn’t help their cause at the foul line either, going just 14-for-25, 56.0%. 

More telling the host Quakers found their game, particularly 6-9 Jr. forward TJ Power, who erupted for a career high 38 points, including six treys. “He’s a crazy prospect,” said Sr. forward Brandon Mitchell-Day, who led the Big Green with 23 points and eight rebounds.  “He was getting to his spots and they were drawing up plays to get him open. 

“He’s just an elite shooter, and when someone can shoot that well, it opens up the whole court for the rest of the team.” 

Still, Dartmouth managed to maintain the lead until Power’s driving layup tied it 53-53 with 11:38 left.  Even after that, the Quakers never went ahead until Jay Jones scored in the lane, making it 61-59 with 8:00 left. 

Dartmouth responded with a pair of McNamee’s free throws to tie, only to see Penn answer back with a 9-1 run over the next four minutes to take command, 70-62 on Power’s layup.  During that span, Dartmouth missed seven straight shots, which didn’t bother McLaughlin so much as the fact that it filtered down to the other end of the court. 

“You’ve got to finish plays,” said McLaughlin, mindful that the last time the Big Green (who wore black in this one) left here smiling was 2017, his first season at the helm.  “If your shot’s not falling, you still have to play really hard on the defensive end of the floor. 

“But they had the best player on the floor tonight, and I thought they were really physical and beat us on the glass (44-33) and in loose balls.   

“Now we’ve got to move on quickly.  Get some rest and be ready to battle a well-coached Princeton team tomorrow.” 

Like the Palestra, Jadwin Gymnasium has generally been a chamber of horrors for Dartmouth until last year, when they knocked off the Tigers for the first time since 2009.   To make it two in a row, they’ll need to maintain that first-half level of play against Penn through the full 40 minutes. 

“After a tough one like this, you’ve got to move on quickly and find that bounce,” said McNamee, who posted a career-high 18 points. “Obviously, if we play like this tomorrow, we’ll have the same result. 

“We need to rebound better, be more physical and tougher tomorrow.” 

The loss drops the Big Green to 11-14. 5-7 in the Ivy.  That leaves them two games behind 7-5 Penn and a game down to 6-6 Cornell, which upset first-place Yale in the battle for the last two spots in the upcoming four-team Ivy tournament.   

While there’s clearly no margin for error, Mitchell-Day remains confident. “That’s the beauty of the Ivy League,” he said. “Look at the standings right now any team can win any tonight. 

“Winning at Jadwin’s always tough. Princeton’s historically one of the best programs in the Ivy. But we’ve proven we can do it.  It’s a different group of guys, but the same mission.  The same team standard. 

“It’s definitely not going to be easy, but I still think we can get it done up there,” 

As far as winning here at the Palestra, well, maybe next year.