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Monday, November 4
Princeton, N.J.
7:00 PM
Princeton University
1-0,0-0Ivy League
81
vs
80
Iona
0-1,0-0MAAC
1
2
F
Iona
49
31
80
Princeton
37
44
81
Men's Basketball Overcomes 16-Point Deficit To Down Iona, 81-80
November 04, 2024 | Men's Basketball
PRINCETON, N.J. – The Princeton University men's basketball team overcame a 16-point deficit to take down Iona, 81-80, in its season opener Monday night inside Jadwin Gymnasium.
The victory moved the Tigers to 9-1 all-time against the Gaels.
The first half began as a back-and-forth battle, with the two teams trading the lead. A three-pointer by senior Blake Peters put the Tigers up 17-15 with 12:53 on the clock, but an 11-2 run by Iona saw the Gaels take a 35-27 lead with 5:35 remaining in the half. Iona got hot to close the half out and took a 49-37 advantage into halftime.
Iona extended its lead to 60-46 at 14:28, but a Peters three-pointer ignited a 16-0 Princeton run that swung the momentum of the contest. A dunk by Huggins tied it up at 60-60 with 10:39 left to play then a pair of Lee free throws gave Princeton a 62-60 advantage with 9:40 remaining.
An 8-0 run by the Gaels saw Iona surge ahead, 77-73, with 2:51 left to play, but a Lee three-pointer followed by a Lee pull-up jumper then a Pierce free throw put Princeton back in front with 0:33 on the clock, 79-77. Iona completed a three-point play at 0:15 to the lead once more, but with 0:03 remaining Lee drove hard to the basket, was fouled then drained both free throws to put Princeton ahead, 80-79. Princeton withstood a final second heave by the Gaels to secure the 1-0 start to the season.
Up Next
The Tigers face Duquesne in the 2024 Deborah Heart And Lung Center Jersey Jam at CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, New Jersey, at 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 8.
Junior Xaivian Lee, one of the Tigers' four double figure scorers, recorded a game-high 27 points on 9-for-14 shooting and drained the game-winning free throws in the final seconds to seal the win for Princeton. Lee also tied the game-high in assists with six and had four rebounds. Junior Caden Pierce went 7-for-10 from the field for 18 points and had game-high nine rebounds along with a career-high six assists, tying the game-high. Sophomore Jacob Huggins, in his first career start, recorded a career-best 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting and sophomore Dalen Davis added 10 points."Every day at the of practice we shoot free throws for 10 minutes. I tried to pretend it was an empty gym, took my time and thankfully they went in."
— Princeton Men's Basketball (@PrincetonMBB) November 5, 2024
Hear from @xaivianlee after the Tigers' opening night W!#MakeShots ???? pic.twitter.com/2jhHuSQB71
The victory moved the Tigers to 9-1 all-time against the Gaels.
The first half began as a back-and-forth battle, with the two teams trading the lead. A three-pointer by senior Blake Peters put the Tigers up 17-15 with 12:53 on the clock, but an 11-2 run by Iona saw the Gaels take a 35-27 lead with 5:35 remaining in the half. Iona got hot to close the half out and took a 49-37 advantage into halftime.
Iona extended its lead to 60-46 at 14:28, but a Peters three-pointer ignited a 16-0 Princeton run that swung the momentum of the contest. A dunk by Huggins tied it up at 60-60 with 10:39 left to play then a pair of Lee free throws gave Princeton a 62-60 advantage with 9:40 remaining.
An 8-0 run by the Gaels saw Iona surge ahead, 77-73, with 2:51 left to play, but a Lee three-pointer followed by a Lee pull-up jumper then a Pierce free throw put Princeton back in front with 0:33 on the clock, 79-77. Iona completed a three-point play at 0:15 to the lead once more, but with 0:03 remaining Lee drove hard to the basket, was fouled then drained both free throws to put Princeton ahead, 80-79. Princeton withstood a final second heave by the Gaels to secure the 1-0 start to the season.
Up Next
The Tigers face Duquesne in the 2024 Deborah Heart And Lung Center Jersey Jam at CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, New Jersey, at 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 8.
Team Stats
Iona
PU
FG%
.536
.554
3FG%
.462
.308
FT%
.636
.500
RB
33
25
TO
17
10
STL
7
6
Game Leaders
Pts
27
FGM
9
3FGM
3
FTM
6
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballReflections from the Princeton Athletics Class of 2025
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