Nov. 21, 2005

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Ibrahim Jaaber scored 18 of his 24 points in the second half as Penn held off Siena 82-77 in the season opener for both teams Monday night.

David Whitehurst added 18 points and Steve Danley had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Penn, while Antoine Jordan had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Saints.

Penn led by as much as 13 points with 12:05 to play and was ahead 69-64 with 4:04 to go, but a 3-point shot by Tay Fisher brought Siena to within 71-69 with 2:32 remaining.

Danley then hit four straight points and, after Kojo Mensah hit one foul shot, Whitehurst made two free throws to give the Quakers a 77-70 edge at the 34-second mark.

The game marked the Siena debut for coach Fran McCaffery, a Penn graduate and former player, who was the head coach at UNC Greensboro last year.

It was just the second meeting between the schools, with Penn an 89-62 winner last season.