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Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
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Dartmouth
Tigers Hang On for 52-49 Win at Dartmouth, Improve to 5-1 in Ivy Play
February 11, 2006 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 11, 2006
Box Score
HANOVER, N.H. - A night after experiencing jubiliation, the Princeton men's basketball team nearly experienced deja vu. But unlike last year at Leede Arena, the Tigers wouldn't let a late-game Dartmouth run end up in a road loss.
Princeton made only one field goal in the final ten minutes of the game, but the Tigers did make nine of 10 free throws in that span and got some huge plays from Justin Conway on the way to a 52-49 win over the Big Green and a fourth straight win.
The Tigers (7-12, 5-1 Ivy), who improved to 7-0 this season when scoring 51 or more points, are just one game back of first-place Penn heading into a meeting with the Quakers Tuesday night.
On a night when the Tigers could never put away the Big Green (3-18, 1-7 Ivy), despite grabbing a 10-point lead with 10 minutes left, Conway made perhaps the biggest plays of all down the stretch. His shot in the lane with 2:47 left broke an eight-minute stretch without a field goal and gave Princeton a 46-40 lead, and his steal with one minute left and Dartmouth down 46-43.
"Justin really won the game for us in a lot of ways tonight," said Princeton head coach Joe Scott. "The steal was probably the biggest play of the game because they were within one possession at that time."
Still, the game wasn't over after that steal. The Tigers couldn't score on their next possession when Calvin Arnold blocked Scott Greenman's layup attempt, and Mike Lang scored in the lane to make it 46-45 with 13 seconds left.
Greenman then made two free throws to make it 48-45, and Princeton fouled in the backcourt with eight seconds left. Mike Giovacchini made just one of two free throws to make it 48-46, and Greenman made two more free throws after being fouled. to make it 50-46. Giovacchini the hit a long three with four seconds on the clock to make it 50-49, but Princeton's Luke Owings made two free throws with 1.9 seconds left. Dartmouth inbounded the ball with no timeouts left, and Lang had a desperation heave from the right baseline, but his shot was long.
"It was important that we were able to always stay ahead and not let the game get tied or have them go ahead," said Scott. "It always put us in position to be the ones with the advantage."
Greenman and Owings each had 16 points to lead Princeton, which shot 15 of 19 from the line for the game, including 11 of 13 in the second half. Greenman made all eight of his free-throw attempts.
Conway, playing center at 6-4, had six second-half points and six assists, the most by a Princeton player this year. He also had four of Princeton's nine steals on the night.
Lang led Dartmouth with 13 points, but he made just 1 of 6 three-point attempts. The Big Green made just 3 of 11 three-point attempts on the game.
Before going on its long drought without a field goal, the Tigers were hot from the field in the second half, extending from a 22-18 halftime advantage to a nine-point lead, 38-29, after Conway's layup with 11:55 left. The Tigers' biggest lead came with 10:04 remaining, when Edwin Buffmire rattled in a three-pointer to make it 41-31.
Princeton made seven of its 15 three-point attempts. The Tigers had just nine turnovers, turning it over fewer than 10 times for the third straight game.
Princeton visits 6-0 Penn, which defeated Harvard Saturday night, Tuesday night at 8 p.m. at The Palestra. The game will be televised by CN8.