Jackson-Cartwright Looking To Finish Penn Career Strong
By Matt Leon
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – It is the final non-league game of the regular season on Saturday night for the Penn Quakers as they welcome the New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders to the Palestra.
The Quakers are 3-11 and looking to get on track after a Big 5 loss last time out to St. Joe's on Saturday, 85-68.
"We've been working on a lot of stuff all week," Penn senior guard Miles Jackson-Cartwright tells KYW Newsradio. "We are really excited about this opportunity to play again at home. Just to play well in front of our fans going into Ivy League play."
This will also be the final non-league game of Jackson-Cartwright's career. It is a career that has seen him score 1,231 points (23rd all-time in Penn history) and dish out 301 assists (10th all-time in Penn history) to this point. He was a second-team All-Ivy selection as a junior and is averaging 11 points a game this season.
"It doesn't mean anything to me unless we win," Jackson-Cartwright says. "That's the only thing that's important to me. What really separates the greats who played here is wins and losses and I can't consider myself a good, or even a great player without having a championship. So all the records that I have accomplished, I'm blessed and honored to have accomplished so far. But I really want a championship and that's my main goal."
Miles Jackson-Cartwright Interview
While it has been a struggle for Penn this season, one of their wins came over rival Princeton. That makes them 1-0 in the Ivy League, so Jackson-Cartwright's much coveted Ancient 8 title is still very much in play for the Quakers.
"That's what we're all staying connected to," Jackson-Cartwright says. "We know what the big picture is and we know what our goal was since the beginning of the year since we started training for our trip to Italy. So first-place in the Ivy to start it is where we want to be, but we've got to play well on Saturday (against NJIT) to really springboard us into the Ivy season."
The California native says he is well aware that he only has half a season left in his college career.
"I'm feeling a little older every day, my body-wise" Jackson-Cartwright says. "But it's bittersweet. I really love spending time with the guys and coming in here and coming to work every day. So I'm just trying to cherish every moment I have left."
Penn and NJIT will tip-off at 7:30pm on Saturday night at the Palestra.
You can follow Matt on twitter @mattleonkyw
