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Princeton University Athletics
Men's Basketball Heads to El Paso and State Farm Sun Bowl Tournament
December 23, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 23, 2004
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The last time the Princeton men's basketball team was in El Paso, in 1996, Bill Carmody's Tigers defeated Texas A&M and host UTEP to win what was then the Sun Classic Basketball Tournament. Head coach Joe Scott, an assistant coach on that team, is hoping for the same result for his Princeton team in 2004.
The first opponent in the way of a 2004 championship at the State Farm Sun Bowl Tournament is Tulane, Princeton's opponent Monday night in the first round of the tournament at UTEP's Don Haskins Center. Game time is approximately 11 p.m. EST (WHWH-AM 1350, GoPrincetonTigers.com), immediately following the first game of the day between the host Miners and Alabama State.
The 2004 Sun Bowl Tournament features three teams (Princeton, UTEP, Alabama State) that reached the NCAA tournament a year ago. Tulane, which finished 11-17 last year, is 4-4 early this season after defeating North Carolina A&T at home in New Orleans on Tuesday.
Princeton (5-3) saw its four-game winning streak come to an end with the disputed ending of its 48-46 loss at Temple Monday, but the Tigers continued to get it done at the defensive end. The Tigers are allowing just 49.9 points per game, third in the nation, and are holding opponents to just 36.1% shooting from the field, 11th nationally.
Tuesday's consolation game starts at 7:30 EST, while the championship game starts 30 minutes following that game. Princeton has reached the championship game of each of its last three in-season tournaments that used a consolation/championship format.
NOTE OF THE DAY
A Tough 5-3 Princeton has three losses-one in double overtime (Wyoming), one by two points (Temple) and one to the No. 6-ranked team in the country (Syracuse). All three games were on the road.
EIGHT MORE THINGS YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT
Days in the Sun Princeton won the Sun Classic Basketball Tournament in 1996, defeating Texas A&M and host UTEP to win the title.
Road Warriors Princeton has played just one home game in its first eight games. The trip to El Paso is Princeton's second west of the Mississippi this season.
Five in 10 Princeton begins a stretch of five games in 10 days when it meets Tulane Monday. The Tigers will have played five games in 30 days entering Monday's game.
End Game Princeton lost at Temple 48-46 last Monday when a Will Venable layup that appeared to have been goaltended by Temple's Dustin Salisbery was ruled to be a clean blocked shot.
On the Defensive Princeton has allowed fewer field goals (115) than any team in NCAA Division I that has played at least six games this season.
On the Defensive II Princeton ranks third nationally in points allowed per game (49.9) and 11th in the country in field-goal percentage defense (36.1%).
More Defensiveness Princeton has held an opponent to six field goals or fewer in a half six times in its last five games, including both halves at Temple Dec. 20.
Dialing Long Distance 55% of Princeton's field-goal attempts this season (182 of 329) have come from three-point range.The Tigers have taken at least half of their shots from three-point range six times in eight games.
PRINCETON & IN-SEASON TOURNAMENTS
The Other Time The only other meeting between Princeton and Tulane came in an in-season tournament-the 1993 Otis Spunkmeyer Classic at Cal. Tulane defeated the Tigers 56-51.
Tourney Tested Princeton has reached the championship game of each of its last three in-season tournaments that have featured a consolation/championship format.
Unfamiliar Foes Princeton has played both Tulane and UTEP only once and has never played Alabama State.
Home for the Holidays Princeton's players spent Tuesday-Friday at their respective homes. The Tigers then arrived separately in El Paso Saturday and practiced on both Saturday and Sunday.
Been Here Before Princeton head coach Joe Scott was at the Sun Bowl Tournament two seasons ago as the head coach at Air Force. The Falcons lost to UAB but defeated UTEP in the consolation game.
TEAM NOTES & ANECDOTES
Injury Report Luke Owings has a stress fracture in his left foot and will likely be sidelined for the Sun Bowl Tournament. Owings started Princeton's first four games and averaged 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds.
Back in Action Andre Logan returned against Temple, playing 14 minutes, after missing Princeton's first seven games due to knee surgery. Logan started 20 games a year ago, averaging 8.2 points.
The 500 Club Princeton has made at least one three-point shot in all 502 of its games since the rule came into effect for the 1986-87 season. The Tigers, along with Vanderbilt and UNLV, are the only schools to have made at least one three-pointer in every one of their games in that time.
More From Three 35 of Princeton's 47 field-goal attempts against Rutgers came from three-point range; 26 of Princeton's 39 field-goal attempts against Temple came from beyond the arc.
USA, USA Princeton's last game against a Conference USA team came in 1999, when the Tigers defeated UAB 64-41 at Jadwin Gym.
Coach Speak Joe Scott returned to Princeton in April after four years as head coach at Air Force. Scott was the Mountain West Conference "Coach of the Year" last season after leading the Falcons to their first NCAA tournament in 42 years.
We're Honored Princeton has two returning first-team All-Ivy players (Judson Wallace, Will Venable) for the first time since the 1996-97 season, when Steve Goodrich and Sydney Johnson returned.
Election Year Princeton was among 46 teams receiving at least one vote in the preseason USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll that was released in late October.
Exit Polls The Tigers were chosen to win the Ivy League for the second straight year in a preseason media poll. Princeton was chosen first on 14 of 16 ballots in the poll.
Senior Moments Princeton has five seniors this season (Berger, Logan, Stephens, Venable, Wallace), its largest senior class since the 1997-98 season, when the Tigers finished 27-2.
Just Like This Year Princeton finished third nationally in scoring defense and 14th nationally in team field-goal percentage last season.
Conference Call Princeton finished its 2003-04 conference season with at least a .500 record for the 51st straight year, a current streak more than twice as long as any other team in NCAA Division I (Syracuse has the second-longest streak).
TV Stars Princeton will appear on ESPN when it plays at Duke Jan. 5. The Tigers appeared on ESPN last week when they faced Temple in Philadelphia.
On Schedule Princeton has played a team that eventually reached the Final Four in each of the last four seasons (Duke in 2001, Maryland in 2002, Texas in 2003 and Duke in 2004).
PLAYER NOTES & ANECDOTES
Back on Track Judson Wallace is averaging 14 points per game in his last seven games after scoring only four points in Princeton's season opener against Bucknell.
It Was a While Last year, Judson Wallace became the first Princeton player since Bob Roma in 1978-79 to average 15 points and six rebounds in a single season.
Milestone Year? Judson Wallace needs just 149 points to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career. He would become just the 25th Princeton player to score 1,000 career points.
Minute Man Will Venable has played 159 of 160 minutes in Princeton's last four games and 311 out of a possible 330 minutes for the season.
Mr. Versatility Will Venable ranks in the Top 10 in the Ivy League in assists, rebounds and steals.
National Pastime Will Venable was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 15th round of the 2004 MLB Entry Draft after hitting .344 in 96 at-bats for Princeton in 2004.
Taking Care of It Scott Greenman has just 34 turnovers in 36 games the last two seasons. Greenman has a team-high 25 assists and just eight turnovers in eight games this year.
Deep Thoughts Scott Greenman has attempted 34 three-point shots in Princeton's last four games (8.5 3-pt. attempts per game).
More From Deep 192 of Scott Greenman's 272 career field-goal attempts (71%) have come from three-point range, including 50 of 64 (78%) this season.
I'm Honored, Again Noah Savage was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week for the second time this season this past Tuesday. Savage had a team-high 12 points against Temple on Monday.
Home Games Noah Savage is a Princeton resident who played basketball at The Hun School, just a mile or so down U.S. Route 206 from the Princeton University campus.
Start Me Up Matt Sargeant's seven points at Monmouth were a season high. Sargeant is averaging 26 minutes per game since entering the starting lineup four games ago.
Super Sub Mike Stephens has played 24 or more minutes off the bench four times in eight games.
He's Our Center 6-10 center Mike Stephens has 10 assists and just four turnovers in 155 minutes this season. Stephens is also second on the team with five blocked shots.
21-Point Salute Luke Owings scored 21 points in his first career start, Princeton's 61-48 season-opening win against Bucknell Nov. 11.
Smart Guy Luke Owings was the valedictorian of his high school class at Washington, D.C.'s, Gonzaga College Prep, the same high school attended by former Princeton coach John Thompson.
Logan's Run Andre Logan is in his fifth year of eligibility. He was awarded a fifth year after missing all but three games in 2002-03 due to a knee injury.
He's A Player Andre Logan was leading the team in scoring when he first sustained a torn ACL in Jan. 2002. He was then averaging 12 points per game in 2002-03 before ending his season after three games.
Time Chart Guard Max Schafer has played in seven games off the bench this year. He started the final six games last year due to an injury to starting guard Ed Persia.