Men's Basketball Comes Back From 14 Down To Dispatch Merrimack, 68-57

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NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Princeton University men's basketball team came back from 14 points down to earn a 68-57 victory over Merrimack inside Lawler Arena Sunday afternoon.

The game was the first in history between the Tigers and Warriors.

Junior Caden Pierce recorded a team-high 18 points on 8-for-14 shooting, a game-high nine rebounds and a game-high four assists. Sophomore Dalen Davis added 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field along with 4-for-6 shooting from three and a career-high five rebounds while junior Xaivian Lee had 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting and three assists. Senior Blake Peters and freshman Malik Abdullahi had eight points each while senior Philip Byriel contributed six points on 2-for-3 shooting from three and a career-high seven rebounds in 17 minutes.

Princeton dominated the rebounding battle, recording a season-high 37 to Merrimack's 23. The Tigers also shot 53.1% from the field, going 26-for-49.

Princeton got off to a strong start, with a Pierce layup followed by back-to-back Abdullahi layups giving the Tigers an 8-2 advantage with 16:03 left in the half. The Warriors responded with a 9-0 run, jumping ahead 11-8 with 11:57 on the clock.

The Warriors would extend their lead to 14 with 6:06 remaining in the half, 31-17. However, there was no quit in the Tigers as a Peters three-pointer ignited a 9-0 run that narrowed the deficit to 31-16 at 3:33. Seven-straight Pierce points tied it up at 33-33 with 0:30 on the clock, but a late Merrimack basket saw the Warriors take a 35-33 lead into halftime.

The Tigers came out of halftime strong, with a Davis three-pointer with 19:03 left to play igniting an 8-0 run that gave Princeton a 43-37 advantage following a Byriel three-pointer at 16:01. A layup by Pierce with 9:11 remaining kept the Tigers ahead by six, 50-44. Shortly after, Princeton would take a double-digit lead, 57-46, after a Davis three-pointer then a pair of Peters free throws with 5:07 on the clock. A corner three by Lee with 4:00 left to play put the Tigers up 12, 60-48.

An alley-oop by Abdullahi saw Princeton lead 64-51 with 2:35 on the clock; the Tigers would then hold on for the 68-57 triumph.

Up Next
The Tigers open the Myrtle Beach Classic against Wright State (3-2) on Nov. 21 in Conway, S.C., inside the HTC Center.

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