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Princeton University Athletics
Men's Basketball Begins Patriot Stretch, Visits Lehigh
November 18, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 18, 2005
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Any fan of Princeton basketball knows the last time the Tigers played a game at Lehigh's Stabler Arena, and Princeton fans are hoping for the same winning result come Sunday afternoon when the Tigers visit the Mountain Hawks for a 3:30 p.m. game. (WHWH-AM 1350, GoPrincetonTigers.com).
What game was that? That was the Tigers' Ivy League playoff win against Penn on the Stabler floor nearly 10 years ago, a win that sent Princeton to the NCAA tournament and, five days later, one of the biggest upsets in tournament history.
Sunday's game, obviously, doesn't hold that kind of meaning. But it certainly holds enough meaning in 2005-06 for the Tigers, who are looking to rebound from their first season-opening loss since 2001, a 54-41 defeat against Drexel in the NIT Season Tip-Off first round at Jadwin Gym Monday. Princeton jumped out to leads of 13-5 and 16-9, but then saw Drexel fashion a 17-0 run to take control.
The game is the first between the teams since a Princeton win in 1996, a victory that extended the Tigers' winning streak in the series to 21 consecutive games. Lehigh's last win over Princeton came in 1930.
Sunday also marks the first of three straight games for the Tigers against Patriot League opponents, with Lafayette coming to Jadwin Gym Nov. 27 and Princeton visiting Colgate Dec. 3. The Tigers finished 3-0 against Patriot League teams last years, defeating Bucknell, Lafayette and Holy Cross, and have won nine of 12 games against Patriot teams in the past five seasons. Lehigh has already played three games, finishing 1-2 at the BCA Invitational in Laramie, Wyo., Nov. 13-15. The Mountain Hawks nearly defeated Northwestern in their first game before using a Jose Olivero last-second shot to beat Coppin State. Lehigh then fell to Butler in the fifth-place game.
Sunday's game will be televised live by Service Electric (SE2) in the Lehigh Valley and on a tape-delayed basis on Fox College Sports Atlantic on Tues., Nov. 22, at 5 p.m.
FACT OF THE DAY
Taking It Outside In 15 non-conference games over the past two seasons, Princeton has attempted 337 three-point shots (23 per game) and 275 two-point shots (18 per game).
EIGHT MORE THINGS YOU MIGHT WANT TO KNOW
It's Been a While Princeton has won 21 straight games against Lehigh. Lehigh's last win against the Tigers came in 1930.
It's Been a While 2 Princeton and Lehigh have not played since December 1996 after playing 11 times in 14 seasons prior to that game.
Patriot Games Princeton's game against Lehigh is the first of three straight games for the Tigers against Patriot League opponents (Lafayette and Colgate are the others).
More Patriot Games Princeton finished 3-0 against Patriot League teams last season, defeating Bucknell in Syracuse and Lafayette and Holy Cross on the road.
Out of the Gates The Tigers led Drexel 13-5 five minutes into Monday's NIT Season Tip-Off game but were outscored 23-6 the rest of the first half and 49-28 in the final 35 minutes of the game.
Helping Out Princeton had assists on 12 of its 15 baskets against Drexel Monday, including all seven of its first-half field goals.
A Lid On It Princeton's 41 points against Drexel Monday were its fewest in a season-opening game since a 62-36 loss to Muhlenberg on Nov. 28, 1945.
The Last Time Princeton's last game at Stabler Arena came on March 9, 1996, when the Tigers defeated Penn 63-56 in an Ivy League playoff game to advance to the NCAA tournament. Princeton would go on to upset defending national champion UCLA five days later.
MORE THINGS TO KNOW
The Home Front Princeton's game at Lehigh Sunday is one of just three road games for the Tigers in their first 10 games this season.
Conference Call Princeton is 9-3 in 12 games against Patriot League opponents over the past five seasons.
Tournament Tested Princeton's NIT Season Tip-Off appearance was its fourth overall. The Tigers played in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic last season and will play in the Maui Invitational in 2007.
About Preparation The Tigers had five days between the Drexel and Lehigh games and will have six days between the Lehigh and Lafayette games and five days between the Lafayette and Colgate games.
For Starters Princeton last began the season 0-2 in 2001-02. The Tigers have begun the season 0-2 just three times since the 1981-82 season.
TEAM NOTES & ANECDOTES
Ivy Talk Princeton (83 points) was chosen third in the Ivy League's Preseason Media Poll behind Penn (128) and Harvard (96).
523 & Counting Princeton is one of only three Division I teams (Vanderbilt and UNLV) that has made at least one three-point shot in every game since the rule took effect in 1986-87. The Tigers have now made at least one three-pointer in 523 straight games.
More From Downtown The Tigers had 10 three-pointers against Drexel. Princeton made seven or more three-pointers in a game 19 times last season and 10 or more three-pointers five times.
Shutdown Mode Princeton led the nation in scoring defense in 2004-05, allowing opponents to score just 54.3 points per game.
Shooting Stars The Tigers shot 50% or better from the field 11 times in 28 games last season, including seven times in 14 Ivy League games.
Happy Returns Princeton returns 10 letterwinners from last year's team as well as sophomore Harrison Schaen, who was a freshman in 2003-04 before taking the year off from school last season.
Numbers Game The Tigers return just 44% of their scoring and 43% of their rebounding from the 2004-05 season.
Non-Conference Call Princeton finished 9-5 in non-conference play a year ago. Seven of those 14 games came against teams that reached postseason play.
Coach Speak Joe Scott is in his second season as Princeton's head coach and his 10th season overall as a Princeton coach. He was an assistant for eight seasons before spending four years at Air Force.
Helping Out Princeton had assists on 66% of its baskets overall last season (337 of 513) and nearly 70% of its baskets in non-conference play.
Start Me Up Both Scott Greenman and Noah Savage started every game last season. Luke Owings started 19 games due to missing time in midseason due to injury.
More Start Me Up Scott Greenman, Noah Savage and Luke Owings combined to shoot 114-for-280 (40.7%) from three-point range last season. Greenman and Owings were the top two three-point shooters in Ivy league play by percentage.
More Ivy Talk Princeton has won or shared 25 Ivy League titles since official league play began in 1955-56, while Penn has won or shared 23. The other six schools have a combined total of nine titles.
Winning Numbers Princeton became the 14th Division I team to record 1,500 all-time victories early last season. The Tigers currently rank 15th on the all-time list with 1,510 victories in 106 seasons of men's basketball.
PLAYER NOTES & ANECDOTES
Ahoy, Captain Scott Greenman is Princeton's team captain and its only senior in 2005-06.
Long-Range Predictions 279 of Scott Greenman's 406 career field-goal attempts (69%) have come from three-point range.
Double Vision Scott Greenman has 20 career double-figure scoring games; the rest of the Tigers have combined for 22 double-figure scoring games.
Taking Care of It Scott Greenman has 115 assists and 62 turnovers in 57 games the past three seasons.
Bombs Away Luke Owings led the Ivy League in three-point field goal percentage in league games in 2004-05. Owings made 17 of 28 three-point shots (60.7%) in 14 games.
In the Middle Luke Owings, who is 6-6, played center for the Tigers in the second half against Drexel Monday. Owings had five points in the game.
Head of the Class Luke Owings was the valedictorian of his high-school class at Gonzaga College Prep in Washington, D.C.
Drive for Five Noah Savage's five three-pointers against Drexel were the most by a Princeton player since Judson Wallace made five against Brown on March 1, 2003.
Double Trouble Noah Savage had a team-high 15 points against Drexel. It was his ninth double-figure scoring game in 29 games at Princeton.
Accepting Charity Noah Savage shot 85.7% from the foul line last season (36-42), the ninth-best single-season free-throw percentage in school history.
Steel City Guy Geoff Kestler is the all-time leading single-season scorer at Mt. Lebanon High School and led his team to the Pennsylvania AAAA district title game in 2005.
Alexander Was Great Alex Okafor was an All-Bay Area selection by the San Francisco Chronicle in both his senior and junior years of high school. Okafor played 23 minutes against Drexel Monday.
Sargeant-At-Arms Matt Sargeant missed the final seven games of last season with a pelvic injury. Sargeant started nine games as a freshman and led Princeton in scoring with 14 points against Loyola.
Court Time Max Schafer averaged better than 18 minutes per game last season, the most among Princeton's reserve players.
In the Buff Edwin Buffmire averaged 18 minutes per game in Princeton's last three games of 2004-05. Buffmire entered those games having played 25 minutes the entire season.
Unsung Hero Junior Justin Conway earned the team's Friedman Memorial Award in 2005, given to the member of the program who "does his very best every day in every way."
Stritt Talk Michael Strittmatter was named the regional Player of the Year as a senior at Brophy Prep in Phoenix, Ariz., in 2005.
MVP, MVP Jason Briggs was the Narrows League's Most Valuable Player and a first-team all-state pick in 2005.
Been Here Before Noah Levine's Hill School team played a game against the Princeton junior varsity team at Jadwin Gym last season.