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Princeton University Athletics
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/ Men's Basketball
Pete Miller and the seniors will be recognized before Saturday's game against Dartmouth.
Photo by: Beverly Schaefer
Look Back/Look Ahead: Men's Basketball Team Reaches 12-0 Ivy, Aims for More
March 01, 2017 | Men's Basketball
Last Saturday at Cornell, the Princeton men's basketball team reached 12-0 in the Ivy League for the sixth time in its history and gained at least a share of its 27th Ivy League championship. This weekend, they'll look to claim that Ivy title outright as well as wrap up the top seed in the first Ivy League Tournament, complete a perfect Ivy season and extend their winning streak to 17 games, which would be the fourth-longest streak in program history.
You can find more notes and all the info you need for the weekend ahead here.
Looking back:
1. The challenge of history:
Princeton had reached 11-0 eight times before, but three of those times, the perfect run ended there. With Cornell up 10, reaching 12-0 required a comeback like the Tigers haven't had to do very often in Ivy League play this season, as the 10-point deficit matched Princeton's largest during the Ivy season. As they did earlier in February at Dartmouth, Princeton closed the gap and went ahead, leaving Ithaca with a 15-point win and as an Ivy League champ.
2. Locking down Columbia on the perimeter:
Columbia made 10 of 19 from 3-point range including 7 of 12 in the second half in the trip to Princeton earlier in February. The Tigers certainly cut down on that in the rematch, as Columbia went just 3 of 15 from distance. Princeton, meanwhile, went 10 of 27 from 3 on the way to the 64-45 win.
3. Did the Tigers keep Columbia's leading scorer quiet again?
In the first game against Columbia, only Mike Smith was in double figures for the Lions. Columbia has three double-figure scorers on the season in Luke Petrasek, Nate Hickman and Smith, and only Smith and Hickman reached 10. Each did so with little or nothing to spare, with Hickman at 10 points and Smith at 11. No other player had a big night, and the Tigers left Levien with a win for the eighth straight time.
4. Keeping an eye on Gettings:
With Ivy leading scorer Matt Morgan, Robert Hatter and Stone Gettings all averaging double-figure points on the season for Cornell, only Hatter and Morgan were in double figures in the game in Jadwin on Feb. 10. In the rematch, Hatter and Morgan were again the only Big Red players in double figures, with Gettings at seven points. Cornell was 1-6 on the season when Gettings didn't reach double figures, and the second game against Princeton wasn't an exception to that trend.
5. Locking down Cornell on the perimeter:
Cornell went 4 of 18 from 3 in the 69-60 loss to Princeton on Feb. 10, and while the Big Red fared better than that in the rematch, going 7 of 17 (41.2 percent), Princeton made up for that increase in other ways in the 15-point win. Princeton had nearly half as many turnovers as Cornell, 23-12, leading the points-off-turnover stat 20-14. Princeton put in 11 3-pointers and got to the line more often, going 10 of 15 to 7 of 9 for Cornell.
Looking ahead:
1. The challenge of history, again:
Like a pitcher working on a perfect game, the Tigers will head back out for the final inning this weekend. They've needed some spectacular defensive plays, extending the baseball/softball analogy, to keep the perfect run going, including the Steven Cook put-back at Harvard to win by one and the Columbia missed 3 at the buzzer in Jadwin to win by two, and perfect they are. Of the 13 Ivy teams, including five Princeton teams, to reach 12-0, all of them have made it to 14-0. There's also the matter of locking up the No. 1 seed in the Ivy, which Princeton can do in several ways, most directly by winning at least once this season, as well as the chance for head coach Mitch Henderson to put himself in even more rarefied air as the outright third-winningest coach in program history with his next win. Only his former coach, Naismith Hall of Famer Pete Carril, and Franklin "Cappy" Cappon, for whom the head coaching position is named, will have had more wins guiding the Tigers.
2. Replicating what the Tigers did right at Harvard:
The Crimson have only taken fewer than 50 field goal attempts in a game four times this season, and Harvard is 1-3 in those games. One of the three losses was to Princeton. The Tigers also helped keep Harvard relatively cool from distance, as the Crimson went just 7 of 21 (.333), and had seven fewer turnovers than Harvard committed, 17-10. Princeton won the points-off-turnover stat 18-12. Also big was Harvard leaving points at the stripe, going 9 of 16 (.563).
3. Fixing what the Tigers didn't do as well at Harvard:
Princeton didn't shoot so well in Lavietes, going 21 of 56 (.375) from the field, 9 of 32 (.281) from 3 and 6 of 14 (.429) from the stripe. Princeton was also outrebounded 40-32. Those numbers were well below Princeton's season averages, as the Tigers have shot below 40 percent from the field only six times in 25 games, below 30 percent from 3 only five times on the season, and the .429 free throw clip was the Tigers' second-lowest on the season.
4. Shaking off what ailed the Tigers at Dartmouth:
The site was Princeton's most distant Ivy League opponent and it was the team's first game in nearly three weeks. In that Feb. 3 game at Dartmouth, Princeton shot 32 percent (8-25) from 3 and saw Dartmouth hit at a 49.1 percent rate from the field. That was Dartmouth's fourth-best shooting clip of the season, and Princeton's .320 3FG percentage was a bit below the Big Green opponents' median for the season, .348. What helped Princeton leave Hanover victorious was what the Tigers have done well all season: keeping the turnovers low. The nation's leader in fewest total turnovers committed just six in that game compared to 11 for Dartmouth, and Princeton made those turnovers count by winning the points-off-turnovers stat 17-4.
5. Jadwin in March:
For what it's worth, the Tigers haven't lost a March home game since 2008, winning 14 in a row in Jadwin in college basketball's most famous month. That doesn't mean it's been a breeze, though. Of the five March home games in the current seniors' careers, four have been decided by five or fewer points.
You can find more notes and all the info you need for the weekend ahead here.
Looking back:
1. The challenge of history:
Princeton had reached 11-0 eight times before, but three of those times, the perfect run ended there. With Cornell up 10, reaching 12-0 required a comeback like the Tigers haven't had to do very often in Ivy League play this season, as the 10-point deficit matched Princeton's largest during the Ivy season. As they did earlier in February at Dartmouth, Princeton closed the gap and went ahead, leaving Ithaca with a 15-point win and as an Ivy League champ.
2. Locking down Columbia on the perimeter:
Columbia made 10 of 19 from 3-point range including 7 of 12 in the second half in the trip to Princeton earlier in February. The Tigers certainly cut down on that in the rematch, as Columbia went just 3 of 15 from distance. Princeton, meanwhile, went 10 of 27 from 3 on the way to the 64-45 win.
3. Did the Tigers keep Columbia's leading scorer quiet again?
In the first game against Columbia, only Mike Smith was in double figures for the Lions. Columbia has three double-figure scorers on the season in Luke Petrasek, Nate Hickman and Smith, and only Smith and Hickman reached 10. Each did so with little or nothing to spare, with Hickman at 10 points and Smith at 11. No other player had a big night, and the Tigers left Levien with a win for the eighth straight time.
4. Keeping an eye on Gettings:
With Ivy leading scorer Matt Morgan, Robert Hatter and Stone Gettings all averaging double-figure points on the season for Cornell, only Hatter and Morgan were in double figures in the game in Jadwin on Feb. 10. In the rematch, Hatter and Morgan were again the only Big Red players in double figures, with Gettings at seven points. Cornell was 1-6 on the season when Gettings didn't reach double figures, and the second game against Princeton wasn't an exception to that trend.
5. Locking down Cornell on the perimeter:
Cornell went 4 of 18 from 3 in the 69-60 loss to Princeton on Feb. 10, and while the Big Red fared better than that in the rematch, going 7 of 17 (41.2 percent), Princeton made up for that increase in other ways in the 15-point win. Princeton had nearly half as many turnovers as Cornell, 23-12, leading the points-off-turnover stat 20-14. Princeton put in 11 3-pointers and got to the line more often, going 10 of 15 to 7 of 9 for Cornell.
Looking ahead:
1. The challenge of history, again:
Like a pitcher working on a perfect game, the Tigers will head back out for the final inning this weekend. They've needed some spectacular defensive plays, extending the baseball/softball analogy, to keep the perfect run going, including the Steven Cook put-back at Harvard to win by one and the Columbia missed 3 at the buzzer in Jadwin to win by two, and perfect they are. Of the 13 Ivy teams, including five Princeton teams, to reach 12-0, all of them have made it to 14-0. There's also the matter of locking up the No. 1 seed in the Ivy, which Princeton can do in several ways, most directly by winning at least once this season, as well as the chance for head coach Mitch Henderson to put himself in even more rarefied air as the outright third-winningest coach in program history with his next win. Only his former coach, Naismith Hall of Famer Pete Carril, and Franklin "Cappy" Cappon, for whom the head coaching position is named, will have had more wins guiding the Tigers.
2. Replicating what the Tigers did right at Harvard:
The Crimson have only taken fewer than 50 field goal attempts in a game four times this season, and Harvard is 1-3 in those games. One of the three losses was to Princeton. The Tigers also helped keep Harvard relatively cool from distance, as the Crimson went just 7 of 21 (.333), and had seven fewer turnovers than Harvard committed, 17-10. Princeton won the points-off-turnover stat 18-12. Also big was Harvard leaving points at the stripe, going 9 of 16 (.563).
3. Fixing what the Tigers didn't do as well at Harvard:
Princeton didn't shoot so well in Lavietes, going 21 of 56 (.375) from the field, 9 of 32 (.281) from 3 and 6 of 14 (.429) from the stripe. Princeton was also outrebounded 40-32. Those numbers were well below Princeton's season averages, as the Tigers have shot below 40 percent from the field only six times in 25 games, below 30 percent from 3 only five times on the season, and the .429 free throw clip was the Tigers' second-lowest on the season.
4. Shaking off what ailed the Tigers at Dartmouth:
The site was Princeton's most distant Ivy League opponent and it was the team's first game in nearly three weeks. In that Feb. 3 game at Dartmouth, Princeton shot 32 percent (8-25) from 3 and saw Dartmouth hit at a 49.1 percent rate from the field. That was Dartmouth's fourth-best shooting clip of the season, and Princeton's .320 3FG percentage was a bit below the Big Green opponents' median for the season, .348. What helped Princeton leave Hanover victorious was what the Tigers have done well all season: keeping the turnovers low. The nation's leader in fewest total turnovers committed just six in that game compared to 11 for Dartmouth, and Princeton made those turnovers count by winning the points-off-turnovers stat 17-4.
5. Jadwin in March:
For what it's worth, the Tigers haven't lost a March home game since 2008, winning 14 in a row in Jadwin in college basketball's most famous month. That doesn't mean it's been a breeze, though. Of the five March home games in the current seniors' careers, four have been decided by five or fewer points.
Friday, March 06
Friday, February 20
Wednesday, February 04
Tuesday, January 27