After it was all over, after the third “final” buzzer had sounded, interviews had been conducted and pronouncements made about the night’s place in the history of the Palestra, I walked up to the second level to look out over the now-empty floor. To my surprise, I found Harvard freshman Tom Hamel standing at the top of the ramp, gazing at the scoreboard’s memorial: Harvard 83-Penn 82.
“I’m just trying to soak it all in before I have to go,” he said.
It was that kind of night.
For most outside observers, Harvard’s game against Penn was the afterthought of the weekend. The marquee game was Harvard’s trip to Princeton on Friday night, a hard-fought game Harvard lost 65-61. But someone forgot to tell Penn. The Daily Pennsylvanian put out a call to the student body for turnout for what was billed as the biggest Penn home game in five years. The near-capacity Palestra was ready to rock….