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Princeton University Athletics
Capital Gain
December 17, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 17, 2002
The Sovereign Bank Arena will play host to its two closest Division I basketball teams Wednesday night, as Princeton (3-3) and Rider (3-3) will meet at 8 p.m. (WCTC, GoPrincetonTigers.com) The Tigers look to gain some momentum before its ESPN battle with Texas on Sunday.
Princeton-Rider Game Notes in PDF Format
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Game Notes
Bucking The Broncs - After 55 years in hiatus, this rivalry was finally renewed last season. Princeton defeated Rider 69-57 at Jadwin Gym.
Capital Gain - This is Princeton's first game in the city of Trenton since Dec. 15, 1937, when Princeton defeated Rider 39-23.
Out Of The Gates - Princeton jumped out to a 32-20 halftime lead against Rider last season and made twice as many field goals as the Broncs (12/6). Princeton shot 54.5% from both the field and beyond the arc in that half, while Rider shot 26.1% from the field and 20.0% from beyond the arc.
Elite Eight - Last year was the 10th meeting between the two teams. Princeton leads the all-time series 8-2, and owns a 4-1 advantage in neutral-site games.
It's A Different Game Now - The first meeting between the two teams came on Dec. 12, 1932, when Princeton defeated Rider 26-17. Three Princeton players who are listed as probable starters for Wednesday's game (Kyle Wente, Will Venable and Ray Robins) combined to score 17 points by themselves in last season's win. By himself, Jerry Johnson topped Rider's first overall point total with last season's game-high total of 21 points. Bank On It - Princeton will make its debut in Trenton's Sovereign Bank Arena Wednesday night when it takes on local rival Rider.
Charity Work - Sophomore Will Venable missed his first free-throw attempt of the season, giving him a .733 career free-throw percentage. Since then, he has improved his percentage 62 points by making 18 consecutive free throws. Against Rutgers, Venable made a career-best 10 free throws.
Double Trouble - Judson Wallace recorded Princeton's first double-double of the season when he scored 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in the 76-70 loss to Rutgers. The last Princeton double-double was recorded by Ray Robins, who scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in Princeton's 73-47 win over Brown last season.
Making His Point - Spencer Gloger scored a team-high 26 points against Rutgers. No Princeton player had scored more since Ray Robins scored 28 in a 60-38 win over Cornell last season.
Friday The 13th - Spencer Gloger has scored in double figures in 13 straight games, dating back to the 20th century.
Leading The Way - Spencer Gloger leads Princeton in points (18.5 per game), field goals (38), field-goal percentage (.514; minimum of one field goal per game), three-pointers (16) and free throws (19).
Taylor Made - The last player to lead the Ivy League in scoring for a full season is Brian Taylor, who averaged 25.0 points per game during the 1971-72 season.
Junior Mint - Spencer Gloger leads all Princeton players in career points, despite playing in 31 fewer games than his closest teammate. Gloger has scored 447 points in 34 games. Senior captain Kyle Wente has scored 429 points in 65 games.
Board Games - Judson Wallace and Spencer Gloger are averaging 14.0 rebounds per game. The last time Princeton had two players combine to average more than 14 per game was 1973-74, when Andy Rimol and Barnes Hauptfuhrer averaged 14.6.
Playing The Percentages - Princeton is undefeated in games where it has a better field-goal percentage than its opponents and winless in games when it doesn't.
Point Taken - Princeton had its highest point total against a Division I opponent since a 1995 win over Cornell in its 89-75 win over Lafayette.
Climbing Ivy - Spencer Gloger leads the Ivy League in scoring with his 18.5 points-per-game average. Gloger is also eighth in the league in rebounds (6.3 per game).
Will The Thrill - Sophomore Will Venable has made 22 of 32 two-point shots this season and 18 of 19 free throws.
Four Score - Princeton currently has four players either averaging or just below double-digits in points (Spencer Gloger, Andre Logan, Will Venable, Ray Robins). The last Princeton team to end a season with four players with at least 10.0 points per game was the 1986-87 team (Alan Williams, Bob Scrabis, Dave Orlandini, Joe Scott).
The Shot - Junior Ed Persia had that highlight of the early part of the season. He grabbed both an unbelievable victory and national attention by defeating Monmouth on Dec. 3 with an 85-foot bank shot at the buzzer. The play began with .7 of a second remaining on the clock and the score tied at 57-57.
Walking Wounded - Princeton has gotten off to a 3-3 start without the services of some key players. Andre Logan has missed the last three games with knee problems, and Konrad Wysocki, the 2000 Ivy League Rookie of the Year, has yet to play a minute after spraining his ankle in the preseason.
What Offseason? - Sophomore Matt Verbit, the starting quarterback for the football team during the final five weeks of the 2002 season, is now playing for the basketball team. Four Ivy Leaguers over the last 10 years have played for both the varsity football and basketball teams in the same year: Brown's James Perry (1997-98), Yale's Ken Marschner (1997-98), Columbia's Chris Tillotson (1997-98) and Dartmouth's Nick Murphy (1999-2000).
First And Goal - Sophomore Jon Berger, who was called up from the J.V. team during the 2002 preseason, scored his first collegiate point on a layup in the final minutes of Princeton's 89-75 win over Lafayette.
Three For All - Princeton has made at least one three-pointer in every game since the rule was enacted in the 1986-87 season (447 games).
On The One Hand ... - Princeton has the longest current streak in Division I of consecutive games without allowing at least 100 points (920 games, dating to 1968 vs. North Carolina).
... On The Other Hand - Princeton has not scored at least 100 points in a game in 856 games, dating to a 108-64 win over Yale in 1971.
Austin Powers - Princeton will travel to Austin, Texas, on Sunday for its lone ESPN appearance of the season when it battles No. 2 Texas. Princeton leads the all-time series 4-2 and has won the last two contests.
Time Travel - Princeton's next four games will be in three different time zones: Texas (Central), the two games in the Cable Car Classic (Pacific) and Holy Cross (Eastern).