Penn junior basketball player Phoebe Sterba was recently named Ivy League Player of the Week, following a career performance for the women’s basketball team in its conference-opening victory at Princeton. Ms. Sterba also garnered player of the week honors from the Big 5 and was named the Ann Meyers Drysdale Women’s National Player of the Week by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA). 

Against the defending league champion Tigers, Ms. Sterba scored a career-high 21 points, consistently hitting clutch shots to power Penn past Princeton. Twelve of Ms. Sterba’s points came in the fourth quarter, including a 3-pointer to start the period with the Quakers down five, a 3-pointer to vault Penn into the lead with 5:30 left at 50-48, and a steal and ensuing layup to give Penn a four-point cushion and force a Princeton timeout late. She entered the game having only taken two free throws all year, and went a perfect 4-for-4 to ice the game with under 15 seconds. 

In addition to her 21 points, Ms. Sterba also made three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. She currently ranks fifth in the Ivy League, averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers per game. 

Ms. Sterba is the second player in program history to be named national player of the week by the USBWA, joining Keiera Ray in 2013.