Basketball Recap: Penn Gets the Win

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Previous Games

02/28/25 - Away	48-47 W
02/23/24 - Home	57-64 L
02/24/23 - Away	94-49 W
02/25/22 - Home	70-49 W
02/26/21 - Away	54-59 L
+ 5 more games

Penn proved they can win big last Tuesday (they won by 30) and on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. In a tight matchup that could have gone either way, they made off with a 48-47 victory over the Merrillville Pirates. Given the Kingsmen's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 62nd, while the Pirates are ranked 225th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Penn found their leader in freshman Caleb Coolman, who posted 14 points and six rebounds. Another player making a difference was Peyton Miamba, who scored eight points and five boards.

Despite the defeat, Merrillville saw an underclassman step up: freshman Charles Hardiman went 8-for-19 en route to 18 points and seven rebounds. The dominant performance gave Hardiman a new career-high in boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Rodrick Durant-Hicks, who had seven points and three steals.

Penn is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight games. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-8 record this season. Merrillville has traveled a rocky road recently, having lost 14 of their last 16 contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 5-18 record this season.

Penn wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next match, a 52-37 loss against La Porte on the 4th. As for Merrillville, they have also already played their next game, a 45-42 win against Valparaiso on the 4th.