Men's Basketball Opens 2021-22 Season Tuesday Night

Tuesday, November 9

Princeton, N.J.

7:00 PM

Princeton University

Rutgers-Camden

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Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

Men's Basketball Opens 2021-22 Season Tuesday Night

November 08, 2021 | Men's Basketball

Game One: Princeton (0-0) vs. Rutgers-Camden (0-0)
Tip-Off: 7 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+ | International Feed
Listen: Varsity Network App | Princeton Sports Network
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Princeton, N.J. – The Princeton University men's basketball team will open its season on Tuesday, November 9, at 7 p.m. inside Jadwin Gymnasium against Rutgers University-Camden.

The Squad
Princeton returns 11 from its 2019-20 roster; seniors Jaelin Llewellyn, Drew Friberg, Ethan Wright, Max Johns, Elijah Barnes, Max Johns, and Charlie Bagin, along with juniors Tosan Evbuomwan, Keeshawn Kellman, Ryan Langborg, Jacob O'Connell, and Konrad Kiszka. Newcomers include sophomore trio Matt Allocco, Zach Martini and Leyi Adebayo and the Tigers' freshmen consists of Mason Hooks, Garrett Johnson, Darius Gakwasi, Blake Peters, and Philip Byriel.

The Schedule
The Tigers will play 13 non-conference and 14 Ivy League games, with 14 contests taking place inside Jadwin Gymnasium.

Along with playing in the Asheville Championship in a field that includes South Carolina, Minnesota and Western Kentucky, the Tigers will also take on a pair of teams that played in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, Oregon State and Drexel.

Last Time They Met
The Tigers and Scarlet Raptors most recently met on Sunday, January 26, inside Jadwin Gymnasium in a game that saw Princeton prevail, 87-41. Keeshawn Kellman went 9-for-11 from the field to lead all scorers with a career-high 20 points, while Elijah went a perfect 4-for-4 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line to add a career-high 10 points and six rebounds.

Promotions
Tuesday night's game vs. Rutgers-Camden will be a Salute to Service game. Fans who purchased tickets have then been prompted to donate a Seats for Service ticket. These tickets have then been provided to local active and retired service members, to attend the game for free. Other initiatives include:

Red, white, and blue bottle opener for the first 500 fans
ROTC t-shirt toss
ROTC cadets scrimmage at halftime

Llewellyn's Leap
In 2018-19, Jaelin Llewellyn became the first Princeton men's basketball freshman since 2007 to lead the team in assists. In 2019-20, he took his game to another level and was an All-Ivy League Second Team honoree, and was named Ivy League Player of the Week on January 6, 2020. Starting all 27 games, he led the Tigers and ranked seventh in the conference in scoring with 15.3 point per game. His .780 free throw percentage ranked fifth in the Ivy League, and Llewellyn eclipsed the 20-point mark on seven different occasions. He averaged 20.0 points per game on .462 percent shooting from the field, .440 percent from three and .880 percent from the free throw line along with 4.4 rebounds per game with a 1.5 assist/turnover ratio in the final seven games of the season, including a career-high 30 points against Cornell on Mar. 7.

Swingmen
Drew Friberg played in all 27 games and made 13 starts in 2019-20, and his 52 made three-pointers and 33 steals were team-highs. Friberg's 8.3 points per game also ranked fourth on the team. On Dec. 1, 2020, at the Barclay's Center against Iona, he scored season-high 22 points, made a season-high six three-pointers and handed out a season-high three assists.

Ethan Wright played in 26 games in 2019-20, and made 17 starts. He averaged 7.2 points per game, and had a season-high 21 points, made a season-high nine field goals and handed out a season-high four assists against Brown on Feb. 21.

Stepping Up
Tosan Evbuomwan, who did not play organized basketball until age 15, and was previously a member of the Newcastle United Soccer Junior Academy, made an impact as a freshman in 2019-20. He appeared in 26 games, starting 10, and was honored as the Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Jan. 13, 2020. On Feb. 14 against Yale, Evbuomwan scored a career-high 11 points.

Ryan Langborg also made a name for himself as a freshman in 2019-20, and was honored as Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Dec. 1, 2019. He appeared in 20 games and started nine, scoring a career-high 13 points and knocking down three three-pointers at Indiana on Nov. 20, 2019.

International Experience
Three current Tigers represented their respective national teams in 2021. Tosan Evbuomwan was selected to the England 3x3 Training Camp Squad, and also represented Great Britain in the U23 3x3 League of Nations Tournament in Israel. Leyi Adebayo represented Australia at the U19 FIBA World Cup, and Jacob O'Connell represented Slovakia at the FIBA U20 European Championships, where he averaged 15.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game.

#PrincetonPros
Eight Princeton men's basketball alumni currently play basketball in the professional ranks; Devin Cannady '20 (Lakeland Magic), Richmond Aririguzoh '20 (Harko Merlins Crailshem), Myles Stephens '19 (Kangoeroes Basket Willebroek), Amir Bell '18 (Hapoel Be'er Sheva), Spencer Weisz '17 (Hapoel Haifa), Hans Brase '17 (Hamburg Towers, and Ian Hummer '13 (AEK Athens).

Cannady signed with the Orlando Magic in April 2021 and made an impact during his time with the Mafic, scoring 17 points against the New Orleans Pelicans on May 22. Previously, he was named 2021 NBA G League Finals MVP after leading the Lakeland Magic to the G League title after scoring 22 points, pulling down six rebounds and having out four assists against the Delaware Blue Coats on March 11.

Princeton's Schedule Over The Years
The Tigers have become known for playing a tough schedule and inside some of the most iconic arenas in college basketball and professional sports. In 2021-22, the Tigers will play at Gill Coliseum, home of Oregon State, and Harrah's Cherokee Center in Asheville, North Carolina, as part of the nationally televised Asheville Championship. In 2019-20, the Tigers played inside the new home of the Golden State Warriors the Chase Center, the Barclays Center, and Assembly Hall when the Tigers met Indiana for the first time since 1997. The Tigers' also played inside PPG Paints Arena, home of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. Over the past four years Princeton's schedule has included contests inside Cameron Indoor Arena, Madison Square Garden, the base at Pearl Harbor for the 75th anniversary of the attack there, Arizona State's home Desert Financial Arena, Hinkle Fieldhouse, American Airlines Arena and BYU's home the Marriott Center.

Fan Reminders: Fans must follow the COVID-19 protocols. All fans must be masked, and fans 12 and up must be vaccinated and provide attestation. See the COVID-19 protocols page for more info.