Men's Hoops Tops Vicenza 67-58, Going 2 For 2 in Italy

Day 8: Vicenza (Game vs. ASD Pallacanestro Vicenza): Recap | Photo Gallery | Postgame Video | City Video
Day 7: Venice/Vicenza: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video
Day 6: Bologna (Game vs. Fortitudo Kontatto): Recap | Photo Gallery (Includes Box Score) | Postgame Video | City Video
Day 5: Bologna: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video
Day 4: Florence: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video
Day 3: Florence: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video
Day 2: Rome: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video
Day 1: Rome: Recap | Photo Gallery | Video

A third quarter that saw Princeton double up its second Italian opponent was enough to lift the Tiger men's basketball team by ASD Pallacanestro Vicenza 67-58 to put Princeton at 2-0 on its three-game Italy trip.

Spencer Weisz led the team in scoring with 13 points, adding six rebounds and four steals with just one turnover to earn game MVP honors. Steven Cook chipped in 11 points and Devin Cannady added 10.

The game, which came against a Vicenza team in Italy's third division of pro basketball, Serie B, saw Princeton hold a lead that fluctuated within the single digits and stood at just one at the half, 34-33. In the third quarter, Princeton outscored Vicenza 22-11 and was never within less than a few possesions the rest of the way.

As with Friday night's comeback win over Fortitudo Kontatto in Italy's second division, plenty of Tigers saw time with all 13 who checked in playing at least nine minutes and none more than Pete Miller's 21. Miller used that time to bag a team-high eight rebounds.

Princeton won despite having an off night from the field, going 25 of 70 (.357) overall and 9 of 34 (.265) from the arc, but 15 of those 25 buckets were assisted with 10 players contributing to the total.

The Tigers, who had most of Sunday free to explore Vicenza, will have a quick turnaround, heading to Pavia for an 8:30 p.m. local time/2:30 ET game with Junior Casale, which is with Fortitudo in Italy's second division. The team counts two Americans on the squad, including UNC Wilmington alum Brett Blizzard and Jordan Tolbert, who played at SMU just last season. The game will be videostreamed on YouTube here.

Princeton's stats from Sunday's game are below.

Khyan Rayner: 14 min, 3 pts, 1-6 FG, 1-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 ast, 3 (1-2) reb, 2 stl, 2 to, 1 foul
Aaron Young: 13 min, 1 pt, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3FG, 1-2 FT, 2 ast, 1 (0-1) reb, 2 stl, 5 fouls
Devin Cannady: 12 min, 10 pts, 4-6 FG, 2-3 FG, 1 ast, 1 (0-1) reb, 2 stl, 1 to, 3 fouls
Amir Bell: 19 min, 5 pts, 1-10 FG, 1-7 3FG, 2-4 FT, 1 ast, 5 (1-4) reb, 1 stl, 1 foul
Spencer Weisz: 19 min, 13 pts, 5-11 FG, 3-9 3FG, 2 ast, 6 (2-4) reb, 4 stl, 1 to, 2 fouls
Henry Caruso: 17 min, 8 pts, 3-5 FG, 0-1 3FG, 2-4 FT, 1 ast, 5 (2-3) reb, 4 to, 2 fouls
Myles Stephens: 18 min, 3 pts, 1-4 FG, 0-1 3FG, 1-4 FT, 3 (1-2) reb, 1 stl, 1 to
Steven Cook: 18 min, 11 pts, 4-6 FG, 1-2 3FG, 2-4 FT, 1 ast, 3 (1-2) reb, 1 stl, 1 to, 5 fouls
Jackson Forbes: 14 min, 0-4 FG, 0-3 3FG, 1 ast, 1 (1-0) reb, 1 stl, 1 foul
Mike LeBlanc: 9 min, 2 pts, 1-5 FG, 0-2 3FG, 1 (1-0) reb
Noah Bramlage: 12 min, 5 pts, 2-2 FG, 1-1 3FG, 3 ast, 4 (1-3) reb, 4 to, 3 fouls
Alec Brennan: 15 min, 2 pts, 1-4 FG, 0-2 3FG, 1 (0-1) reb, 1 stl, 1 to, 4 fouls
Pete Miller: 21 min, 4 pts, 2-4 FG, 2 ast, 8 (2-6) reb, 1 stl, 2 to, 3 fouls
Team: 25-70 (.357) FG, 9-34 (.265) 3FG, 8-18 (.444) FT, 15 ast, 45 (14-31) reb, 21 stl, 17 to, 30 fouls

Below is a look back at Bologna, Venice and Vicenza from sophomore Elias Berbari:

Day 6 marked our second day in Bologna but our first full one, and we were definitely able to take advantage of it. The excitement as everyone arrived to breakfast at 9 a.m. was noticeable because that evening, we were going to get our first chance to play as a unit since March. First, though, we embarked on a walking tour around the unique city that is Bologna.

Bologna is a medieval city, with its defining architectural structure being the portico: an arch-like walkway that, when linked with others, makes travel to the city center very easy which was very important back when the city was first built. Bologna has over 40 kilometers of these porticos and they still contribute to its lively city center, the second largest in Italy only to Venice. Tall towers, formerly used for defense, also pop up in various places around the city.

Although we passed large areas filled with open markets that compared well to both Rome and Florence, it was clear that Bologna was different in more ways than one. It has earned nicknames of both 'the red town', for its nearly uniform use of red brick for its buildings, and 'the fat town', for its high consumption of ham, salami, and mortadella (called 'bologna' in Italy). It certainly lived up to both of these names. As we made our way through the narrow, bustling streets of the city center, we passed beautiful, old-fashioned meat markets, which were positioned right next to fresh fruit and cheese shops. It was easy to imagine how life here was in the Middle Ages.

Our friendly tour guide was very excited to explain to college students that Bologna has the oldest university in the world, founded in 1088 and which currently has around 90,000 students. As we prepared to climb the 500 steps of the Torre degli Asinelli, the tallest tower in Italy, she mentioned that if a Bolognian student were to climb this tower before graduating, they would supposedly experience misfortune and failure in school. We all reacted with recognition, as the Princeton superstition says that if you walk through the front gates during your studies, the same will happen.

The climb up the 97-meter-high Torre was quite an adventure. Sweating and cautious on the way up the steep wooden steps, we were rewarded with a breathtaking view of the entire city, filled with red rooftops and green hills in the distance. Afterwards, we enjoyed some much needed sorbet and were given a few hours to roam around. Hans and I explored the lively shopping center at Via Independenza and were able to interact with locals to collect opinions on various types of clothing and styles.

After a much needed pregame meal at the hotel, it was time to focus on our game against Fortitudo Bologna, a highly successful pro club that is very popular locally. We were blessed to have a chance to aid in the relief efforts for the recent earthquake only about 100 miles from us; entrance to the game would be free with all donations going towards those in need after the disaster. Both teams were excited to compete, but we both knew that we would be a part of something bigger that night.

After a wild win that required a full team effort, we enjoyed delicious lasagna and pizza as a group before returning to the hotel to rest up for our trip to Venice.

Everyone knows Venice is built on a marsh, but we started Day 7 eager to see what the legendary city actually looked like in person. We loaded the bus after a quick breakfast and after a couple of hours on the road, it was time to switch over to aquatic forms of transportation. The water taxis we took glided past each other through the water like cars on a highway, and the 30-minute ride to the central area of Venice provided some incredible views of the famous gondolas and houses.

Once we stepped foot on land, it was off to a nearby glass-blowing shop that took everyone by surprise. We were brought inside for a live demonstration and everyone's jaws dropped as the glass 'Maestro' took a red hot chunk of glass and skillfully shaped it into a beautiful horse in just about a minute's time. Following a fascinating explanation on how different colors and qualities are produced, we could not wait to see what the souvenir shop had to offer and plenty of the guys purchased gifts for back home.

Lunch time brought us to Rosso Pomodoro, a nearby restaurant famous for its pizza crust. It hit the spot and more: I myself had one of their 'July and August' seasonal pizzas topped with tomatoes and spinach. Everyone left the restaurant satisfied and ready to explore Venice.

Stomachs filled, we were given a quick walking tour of the San Marco square, which had yet another beautiful basilica to look at. Then it was time to explore the sights and sounds of Venice by ourselves. Breaking off into smaller groups, Devin, Myles, Noah and I took pictures on a few of the bridges overlooking canals and rivers before turning down the narrow, shaded alleyways to get away from the masses of tourists. We stopped for a bit to simply take in our surroundings; none of us had ever imagined visiting a city like this before our second year of college. Being there with brothers made the experience even better for us all.

After some last minute shopping, we boarded the water taxi, got to the bus, and we were off to Vicenza. Initially there was nothing planned, but in the spur of the moment we decided to attend a local soccer match that featured Vicenza against the league favorites, Carpi. Vicenza's lively fans sang throughout the entire game, and it was exciting to see both sides so eager to play in their first game of the season, similar to how we had felt just a day ago against Fortitudo. We grabbed some snacks after the game and it was back to the hotel to charge up for Day 8. Bologna and Venice had added a huge section to the already crowded vault of memories that this trip has blessed us with so far.

Calendar

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Players Mentioned

Amir Bell

Elias Berbari

Noah Bramlage

Alec Brennan

Devin Cannady

Henry Caruso

Steven Cook

Jackson Forbes

Mike LeBlanc

Pete Miller

Khyan Rayner

Myles Stephens

Spencer Weisz

Aaron Young