Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Chaminade
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Chaminade Holds Off Tigers, 74-70, On Final Day of EA Sports Maui Invitational
November 21, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Princeton rained three-point shots Wednesday at the EA Sports Maui Invitational on a day when it actually rained in Maui. But host Chaminade proved to have the answers to that long-range barrage to hold on for a victory.
After a furious late-game comeback that saw the Tigers pull within two after trailing by seven with a minute left, the Silverswords made their final six free throws to hang on for a 74-70 win over Princeton on the final afternoon of the tournament at the Lahaina Civic Center.
Princeton (2-3), which never led in the game, made 15 three-point shots in 29 attempts, including two in the final 27 seconds. Noah Savage's sixth and final three-pointer with 27 seconds left cut his team's deficit to 68-65, and Lincoln Gunn's trey from the right corner after grabbing an offensive rebound with 12 seconds left made it 70-68 Chaminade.
Chaminade point guard Hayden Heiber then made two free throws with 11 seconds left to make it 72-68, and LaMarr Hunt then put the game away with two more free throws with one second remaining after Princeton's Zach Finley scored the final two of his 16 points with three seconds left.
The Silverswords (2-2) had four players in double figures, led by 19 points apiece from Stewart Kussler and Rodrick Johnson, and shot 55% from the field for the game (27 for 49).
"I'd like to congratulate Chaminade not only for being a great host of this tournament but also for playing an excellent game today," said Princeton head coach Sydney Johnson. "Obviously, I'd like to have come out of this tournament with a victory or two, but I'm pleased that we did a lot of better things on the court today."
The Tigers, who trailed 34-29 at halftime, shot 57% in the second half, including 8 for 14 from three-point range. Savage made six of 11 three-point attempts and seven of 14 shots overall for a game-high 20 points, while Finley not only had 16 points but set a Maui Invitational record with seven blocked shots in addition to four assists. Lincoln Gunn had all 15 of his points in the second half, including a big three-point shot with 1:56 left to cut his team's deficit to five points.
"This has been a great experience not only for the kind of competition we've played but for learning how to be ready to play back-to-back games like we do in league play," said Savage.
Seven-foot center Marko Kolaric had 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Chaminade, while Heiber had 16 points and seven assists.
Princeton missed its first seven shots of the game and fell behind 8-0, but the Tigers quickly responded after that, with Savage's hot shooting pulling the Tigers within 10-8 seven minutes into the game. The Tigers were within three points when Matt Sargeant hit from deep to make it 22-19 with four minutes left in the half, but the Silverswords responded with a mini-run to go back ahead by eight on Kolaric's layup with 1:35 on the clock.
The Tigers got back within two early in the second half, but Chaminade then scored six straight points, including a dunk by Johnson, to take a 44-36 lead four minutes into the half.
Princeton was also within two at 58-56 when Finley scored inside with 4:12 remaining, but Kussler and Johnson then scored inside on consecutive possessions to put their team back ahead by eight.
The teams combined for 31 assists and just 11 turnovers.
The Tigers host Seton Hall a week from Wednesday at Jadwin Gym. Game time is 7:30 p.m.