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Princeton University Athletics
Men's Hoops Makes Home Debut Saturday Against FIU
November 27, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 27, 2002
The 2002-03 Princeton men's basketball team will make its home debut Saturday night at 7:30 (WCTC, GoPrincetonTigers.com) against undefeated Florida International. The Tigers, who have defended their home court extremely well under John Thompson, will look to avenge last season's 49-44 loss to the Golden Panthers.
Complete Princeton-Florida International Game Notes in PDF Format
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Just The Facts
PRINCETON (1-1) vs. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL (3-0)
The site Jadwin Gym * Princeton, N.J.
The date Saturday, Nov. 30, 2002 * 7:30 p.m. EST
Radio WCTC AM 1450, www.GoPrincetonTigers.com
The records Princeton: 1-1 (one loss in a row); Florida International: 3-0 (three wins in a row)
The coaches Princeton: John Thompson (third season, 33-24); Florida International (second season, 11-21)
The series Florida International leads 1-0
Game Notes
Princeton vs. Florida International: Game Notes
Opening Act - Princeton has won its home opener in each of the last five years, including both games in the tenure of head coach John Thompson. Last season, Andre Logan scored a team-high 18 points and pulled down seven rebounds in a 69-57 win over Rider in the home opener. Home Sweet Home - Princeton went 11-2 at home last season, and has a record of 20-3 at Jadwin Gym under third-year head coach John Thompson.
International Men Of Mystery - This is the first trip to Jadwin Gym by the Florida International Golden Panthers. The teams have met once all-time, with Florida International winning 49-45 on its home floor last season.
Split Screen - Princeton split its first two games of the 2002-03 season, defeating Western Michigan 62-59 in the first game of the Sooner Invitational last Friday. The Tigers fell to No. 7 Oklahoma 82-63 in the championship game.
Wallace's Way - Princeton was led last Friday night by sophomore center Judson Wallace, who set career highs with 11 rebounds and six assists to go along with nine points. Wallace's previous career high in rebounds was seven, while his previous high in assists was three.
Mason-ry - Judson Wallace's 14-rebound performance was the most by a Princeton player since Mason Rocca pulled down 18 rebounds in an NIT victory over Georgetown in 2000.
I'm Honored - Judson Wallace was named to the all-tournament team at the Sooner Invitational.
Seventh Heaven - Princeton set a program record by reaching its seventh consecutive postseason (four NCAAs, three NITs). It is one of 19 programs to be involved in the last seven postseasons.
Welcome Back, Pt. I - Junior Spencer Gloger played his first game for Princeton in three years against Western Michigan and led the Tigers in scoring with 18 points. Gloger hit two key free throws in the final seconds to keep the Broncos from having the chance to win the game on the final shot. Following his freshman season (1999-00), Gloger transferred to UCLA. He then transferred back to Princeton, where he had to sit out last season.
First Impression - Spencer Gloger averaged 12.1 points per game in his first season at Princeton and set freshman single-game records with 34 points and 10 three-pointers in a victory over Alabama-Birmingham. His 10 three-pointers against Alabama-Birmingham is also an Ivy League record. Gloger shot 42% from beyond the arc for the season (64 for 152).
Welcome Back, Pt. II - Junior Andre Logan also returned to the basketball court yesterday for Princeton after missing nearly all of the Ivy League season last year with a torn ACL, which he suffered 17 minutes into the league opener. He was second in scoring for Princeton with 11 points against the Broncos. Logan, who had started each game of the season prior to his injury, averaged 9.3 points per game, and recorded a 15-point, eight-rebound night against eventual NCAA champion Maryland.
Will The Thrill - Sophomore Will Venable, the son of former major league baseball player Max Venable, averaged 10.6 points per game in three contests against eventual NCAA tournament teams (both games against Penn, home against Kansas). Venable shot 53% from beyond the arc (eight of 15) following an early-season slump, when he made only two of his first 16 (13%).
50-50 Proposition - Princeton shot 50% from three-point land against Western Michigan, hitting on eight of 16 attempts. The Tigers wasted little time hitting from outside, shooting 71.4% from beyond the arc in the first half (5 for 7).
It Doesn't Always Work Out - Princeton improved on that against Oklahoma, shooting 47.1% from the field, but the Sooners shot 53.6% in an 82-63 victory.
New Faces - Princeton welcomes two players in the Class of 2006. Scott Greenman is a 5-10 guard from New Jersey powerhouse St. Augustine Prep, where he was named South Jersey Player of the Year after averaging 17 points per game. He owns the school record for three-pointers and assists at the school. Michael Kawalek is a 6-5 guard from Flower Mound, Texas, where he averaged 12.5 points, 7.1 assists and 4.0 steals in leading Flower Mound to a conference title as a senior. He recorded 17 assists in one game.
I Know What You Did Last Summer - Princeton played seven games in Spain during the summer of 2002, going 6-1. The team spent 12 days in Spain and toured five cities during the stretch, including Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia.
Poll Position - Princeton was picked to finish third in the annual preseason media poll. Penn picked up 11 first-place votes and 123 total points, while Yale picked up the remaining five first-place votes and 116 points. Princeton received 90 points, five more than Brown. Each of the top three teams in this year's poll shared the Ivy League championship last season. It was the first time in league history when there was a three-way tie for the championship.
D Plus - Princeton has led the nation in scoring defense in 14 of the last 16 seasons. One of the two seasons when Princeton wasn't first was last season, when the Tigers finished second by a total of 10 points to Columbia.
Three For All - Princeton has made at least one three-pointer in every game since the rule was enacted in the 1986-87 season (443 games).
Inside And Outside - Princeton attempted 654 two-point field goals and 631 three-pointers last year.
On The One Hand ... - Princeton has the longest current streak in Division I of consecutive games without allowing at least 100 points (916 games, dating to 1968 vs. North Carolina).
... On The Other Hand - Princeton has not scored at least 100 points in a game in 852 games, dating to a 108-64 win over Yale in 1971.
Spanish Armada - Princeton did score more than 100 points in one of its victories in Spain last summer. Spencer Gloger scored 23 to lead the Tigers to a 113-102 victory over Rayet Guadalajara.
Familiar Faces - Third-year head coach John Thompson returns to the sidelines with the same coaching staff of the last two seasons (assistant coaches Rob Burke, Mike Brennan and Howard Levy).
Scouting Florida International - The Golden Panthers won the FIU/Hampton Inn Tipoff Tournament by defeating Morris Brown 60-52 and Iona 65-55 last weekend. Junior Matias was named MVP of the tournament after averaging 21.0 points per game. Nikola Novakovic averaged 8.5 rebounds per game, while Carlos Morban averaged 4.5 assists per game. In FIU's win over Princeton last season, Morban led the Golden Panthers in scoring with 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field.
The Crystal Ball - Princeton will travel to Monmouth on Tuesday, Dec. 3, to play the Monmouth Hawks. Princeton won last year's matchup 76-70 and leads the all-time series 6-2.