NIT Begins at Third-Seeded VCU for Men's Basketball

NIT First Round: Princeton (23-6) vs. No. 3 Seed VCU (21-9)
Tip-Off: 7 p.m. EDT
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PRINCETON, N.J. – Postseason play continues on Tuesday, March 15, for the Princeton University men's basketball team at the National Invitational Tournament (NIT), when it takes on third-seeded Virginia Commonwealth University inside the Siegel Center in the First Round.

Last Time Out
Junior Tosan Evbuomwan led the way for Princeton, finishing with a game-high 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting, along with a game-high 11 rebounds, and five assists. His five assists brought his total to 135 assists in 2021-22, moving him to No. 3 all-time on Princeton's single season assist list, and one spot ahead of Franklin C. Cappon-Edward C. Green '40 Head Coach Mitch Henderson, who had 131 assists in the 1997-78 season. Senior Jaelin Llewellyn added 18 points and four rebounds, while senior Ethan Wright finished with 15 points, and four rebounds.

The Tigers also brought their point total to 2316, which stands as the most points ever scored in a season by a Princeton team. The previous season-best was 2311 points, set in 1974-75.

Princeton At The NIT
It will be Princeton's first appearance in the NIT since 2016, and the second appearance under Head Coach Mitch Henderson. In the Tigers' first appearance under Henderson, they came up just short against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, on Wednesday, March 16. Princeton also made the NIT in 2002, 2000, 1999, 1975, and 1972. The Tigers won the event in 1975, defeating Providence in the Championship Game at Madison Square Garden, 80-69.

Tiger-Ram History
The Tigers and Rams have met on one other occasion, November 29, 2016, in Richmond Virginia. On that night, the Rams came out on top, 81-70.

All-Tournament Team
Evbuomwan was voted to the Ivy Madness All-Tournament Team after averaging 20.5 points per game, on 18-for-31 shooting from the field (58.1%). He also averaged 8.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and had two blocks and two steals.

Ivy Player of the Year
Evbuomwan, unanimously voted both Ivy League Player of the Year and First Team All-Ivy League, ended regular season play as the Ivy League leader in assists per game (5.0), and assist/turnover ratio (2.2). He ranks second in the conference in field goal percentage (53.7%), fourth in points (15.8), fifth in steals (1.4), and seventh in rebounds (6.5). Evbuomwan scored a career-high 27 points on 10-for-17 shooting at Cornell University on Friday, February 4, and has handed out a career-high eight assists on two occasions; Saturday, December 11 in the Tigers' win at Lafayette, and Friday, January 15, in Princeton's 76-74 win over Brown. He's had 16 games of five assists or more, and also grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in Princeton's 81-75 victory at Yale on Saturday, February 19. He was named to the 2021 Asheville Championship All-Tournament Team, and his 124 assists so far in 2021-21 currently ranks No. 7 all-time for most assists in a season in school history. He is the third Ivy League Player of the Year coached by Mitch Henderson, joining Spencer Weisz '17, and Ian Hummer '13.

All-Ivy Honorees
Llewellyn earned all-conference honors for the second time in his career, as he was named Second Team All-Ivy League in 2020. In the Tigers' win at the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday, March 6, he joined the 1,000-point club, and he ranks sixth in the Ivy League in points per game (15.8), seventh in assists (2.7), and eighth in three-point field goal percentage (39.6%). Against Harvard University, he scored a season-high 29 points on 10-for-18 shooting from the field, and 4-for-9 shooting from deep as he led the Tigers to a 74-67 victory. Llewellyn was honored as the Ivy League Player of the Week on Monday, November 15, 2021, named to the 2021 Asheville Championship All-Tournament Team, and to the Lou Henson Award Mid-Season Watch List. His 127 made three-pointers rank #16 all-time in school history, and his 50 made three-pointers in the 2021-22 season rank T-#20 for made threes in a season.

Wright earned Second Team All-Ivy League honors for the first time in his career. He's recorded five double doubles on the season, and ranks fourth in the conference in rebounds per game (6.9), third in field goal percentage (50.6%), fourth in three-point percentage (40.0%), sixth in points (14.6), and sixth in three-point field goals per game (2.3). On Saturday, November 28, he scored a career-high 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Tigers' win over Fairleigh Dickinson University. He also knocked down seven three-pointers against FDU, which ranks T-#3 all-time in program history for made three-pointers in a game. On Sunday, November 14, he pulled down a career-high 18 rebounds against the University of Minnesota. Wright was honored as the Ivy League Player of the Week on Monday, November 22, 2021, Monday, December 20, 2021, and Monday, February 7, 2022.

Named Academic All-Ivy League, Friberg ranks second in the conference in three-point field goals per game (2.6), and third in three-point percentage (40.0%). He's also averaged 9.5 points per game so far in 2021-22. In the Tigers' 93-70 win at Penn on Saturday, March 5, he scored a season-high 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field, and 5-for-8 shooting from long range. Friberg's 70 made three-pointers in the 2021-22 season rank T-#10 all-time in school history for made three-pointers in a season, and he currently sits at #14 on the Tigers' list for career made three-pointers, with 41.

National Rankings
Through games 03/12/22

Fewest Fouls: #4, 389
Fewest Turnovers: #4, 285
Fewest Fouls: #4, 395
Three-point field goals per game: #5, 11.0
Three-point field goal percentage: #5, 39.0
Assist/Turnover ratio: #7, 1.55
Field goal percentage: #7, 49.1%
Scoring offense: #8, 80.4
Won-lost percentage: #13, 82.1
Total three-point field goals made: #16, 308
Scoring Margin: #20, 10.9
Assists per game: #26, 15.8

High-Powered Offense
Should the Tigers maintain or exceed their current scoring average of 79.9 points per game, they would set a new school record for highest scoring average in a season. The current of 79.74 points per game was set in the 1971-72 season.

Additionally, the Tigers' 2316 total points in the 2021-22 season is the most points ever scored in a season by a Princeton men's basketball team. The previous record of 2311 points was set in the 1964-65 season.

In The Record Book
Most assists in a season (since 1974-75)
#3, Tosan Evbuomwan, 135 assists (2021-22)

Most three-point field goals made in a season
T-#7, Drew Friberg, 74 (2021-22)
#12, Ethan Wright, 68 (2021-22)
T-#15, Jaelin Llewellyn, 63 (2021-22)
#16, Ryan Langborg, 62 (2021-22)
#22, Drew Friberg, 52 (2019-20)

Most three-point field goals made in a career
T-#13, Drew Friberg, 135
T-#13, Jaelin Llewellyn, 135
#18, Ethan Wright, 118

Most three-point field goals made in a game
T-#3, Ethan Wright, 7 vs. FDU (Nov. 28, 2021)

Most Career Points
#30, Jaelin Llewellyn, 1051

Caught The Coach
With 135 assists in the 2021-22 season, Evbuomwan moved up to No. 3 on the Tigers' all-time sinlge season assist list, and passed Head Coach Mitch Henderson, whose 131 assists in the 1997-98 season now rank fifth all-time in school history.

Historical Wins
Should the Tigers win their next game and bring their win total to 24, they'll tie third-most wins in a season in school history. The Tigers also won 24 games in 1990-91, and 1996-97. The program record for wins is 27, and was set in the 1997-98 season.

Triple Double Watch
Should Evbuomwan, or any Tiger, record a triple double, it would be the first in program history since assists were first recorded in 1974-75.

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