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Saturday, January 6
Princeton, N.J.
2:00 PM
Princeton University
13-1,1-0Ivy League
89
vs
58
Harvard
9-5,0-1Ivy League
1
2
F
Harvard
32
26
58
Princeton
41
48
89
Photo by: Copyright 2020, Greg Carroccio, All rights reserved.
Lee's Career-High 33 Points Leads Men's Basketball Past Harvard, 89-58
January 06, 2024 | Men's Basketball
PRINCETON, N.J. – A career-high 33 points from sophomore Xaivian Lee powered the Princeton University men's basketball team past Harvard, 89-58, Saturday afternoon inside Jadwin Gymnasium in the Tigers' Ivy League opener.
Lee, whose 33 points came on 13-for-22 shooting from the field and 5-for-11 shooting from three, set career-highs in made field goals and made three-pointers. He also recorded eight rebounds, a career and game-high seven assists and two steals, which also led the game and tied his career-best. The game was Lee's second of at least 30 points in 2023-24 and his sixth of at least 20 points.
Sophomore Caden Pierce recorded his sixth double-double of the season and the 13th of his career with 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting from the field and 7-for-8 shooting from three throw line along with a game-high 10 rebounds. Pierce's seven made free throws tied his career-high and he also tallied three assists. Senior Zach Martini finished with 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field, 4-for-5 shooting from three, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
As a team the Tigers took care of the ball, handing out 18 assists and recording just four turnovers. They also out-rebounded the Crimson, 34-32.
Harvard used an early 7-0 run to race out to a 11-5 advantage with 15:54 on the clock. Lee found senior Matt Allocco for a corner three with 13:01 remaining in the half that made it a one-point game, 13-12, before a layup by Pierce gave Princeton a 14-13 lead at 11:24. The Crimson responded with an 8-0 run and went up 21-14 with 8:48 remaining in the half.
A Pierce layup with 8:20 on the clock led a 6-0 run that made it a one-point game again at 1t 6:13. Shortly after, with 4:02 left in the half, a three-pointer by Martini ignited a 12-0 run that gave the Tigers a 37-28 lead with 1:18 remaining in the half after a Pierce layup. Lee beat the buzzer then Princeton took a 41-32 advantage into halftime.
Princeton got off to a strong start in the second half, with a three-pointer by Peters with 18:32 remaining putting the Tigers up 12, 46-34. Princeton stayed hot, with a three-pointer by sophomore Jack Scott igniting an 11-0 run that saw the Tigers surge ahead, 57-41, with 12:51 left to play following a freshman Dalen Davis three-pointer.
A Pierce layup at 9:09 sparked a 7-0 run that saw the Tigers take a 70-49 lead with 8:04 on the clock, then at 6:17 a Lee free throw led another 7-0 run gave Princeton a 77-50 advantage at 5:36.
Lee connected on three three-pointers inside the final 5:12, and freshman Ryan Duncan connected on a three-pointer with 1:06 left to play as Princeton went on to defeat Harvard, 89-58.
Up Next
The Tigers return to Jadwin Gymnasium on Jan. 16 at 2 p.m. when they host Dartmouth (4-9.)
Lee, whose 33 points came on 13-for-22 shooting from the field and 5-for-11 shooting from three, set career-highs in made field goals and made three-pointers. He also recorded eight rebounds, a career and game-high seven assists and two steals, which also led the game and tied his career-best. The game was Lee's second of at least 30 points in 2023-24 and his sixth of at least 20 points.
Sophomore Caden Pierce recorded his sixth double-double of the season and the 13th of his career with 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting from the field and 7-for-8 shooting from three throw line along with a game-high 10 rebounds. Pierce's seven made free throws tied his career-high and he also tallied three assists. Senior Zach Martini finished with 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field, 4-for-5 shooting from three, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
As a team the Tigers took care of the ball, handing out 18 assists and recording just four turnovers. They also out-rebounded the Crimson, 34-32.
"We know what works for us and we stick to it. Eventually it's going to work out in the end."
— Princeton Men's Basketball (@PrincetonMBB) January 6, 2024
Hear from @xaivianlee after his career-high 33 points in the Tigers' Ivy-opening victory over Harvard!#MakeShots ???? pic.twitter.com/rfLKOZHjKg
Harvard used an early 7-0 run to race out to a 11-5 advantage with 15:54 on the clock. Lee found senior Matt Allocco for a corner three with 13:01 remaining in the half that made it a one-point game, 13-12, before a layup by Pierce gave Princeton a 14-13 lead at 11:24. The Crimson responded with an 8-0 run and went up 21-14 with 8:48 remaining in the half.
A Pierce layup with 8:20 on the clock led a 6-0 run that made it a one-point game again at 1t 6:13. Shortly after, with 4:02 left in the half, a three-pointer by Martini ignited a 12-0 run that gave the Tigers a 37-28 lead with 1:18 remaining in the half after a Pierce layup. Lee beat the buzzer then Princeton took a 41-32 advantage into halftime.
2:57 1st | Princeton 33, Harvard 28
— Princeton Men's Basketball (@PrincetonMBB) January 6, 2024
An 8-0 run!@zachmartini5587 connects on his third three of the contest!
??: https://t.co/CAVNGxY8D4 #MakeShots ???? pic.twitter.com/ROxkpsipPs
Princeton got off to a strong start in the second half, with a three-pointer by Peters with 18:32 remaining putting the Tigers up 12, 46-34. Princeton stayed hot, with a three-pointer by sophomore Jack Scott igniting an 11-0 run that saw the Tigers surge ahead, 57-41, with 12:51 left to play following a freshman Dalen Davis three-pointer.
12:51 2nd | Princeton 57, Harvard 41
— Princeton Men's Basketball (@PrincetonMBB) January 6, 2024
An 11-0 run!@DalenDavis2 connects from long range!#MakeShots ???? pic.twitter.com/Dr64mVGueY
A Pierce layup at 9:09 sparked a 7-0 run that saw the Tigers take a 70-49 lead with 8:04 on the clock, then at 6:17 a Lee free throw led another 7-0 run gave Princeton a 77-50 advantage at 5:36.
Lee connected on three three-pointers inside the final 5:12, and freshman Ryan Duncan connected on a three-pointer with 1:06 left to play as Princeton went on to defeat Harvard, 89-58.
3:32 2nd | Princeton 86, Harvard 56@xaivianlee buries the three from deep and brings his total to 33!
— Princeton Men's Basketball (@PrincetonMBB) January 6, 2024
That's a new career-high!
??: https://t.co/CAVNGxY8D4 #MakeShots ???? pic.twitter.com/0B60AoEgiJ
Up Next
The Tigers return to Jadwin Gymnasium on Jan. 16 at 2 p.m. when they host Dartmouth (4-9.)
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Team Stats
HU
PU
FG%
.434
.492
3FG%
.238
.417
FT%
.636
.833
RB
32
34
TO
13
4
STL
1
7
Game Leaders
Pts
33
FGM
13
3FGM
5
FTM
2
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballReflections from the Princeton Athletics Class of 2025
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