Ivy League Play To Open At Harvard For Men's Basketball

Game 15: Princeton (11-4) at Harvard (5-8) – 1/11, 2 p.m.
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PRINCETON, N.J. – Ivy League play opens for the Princeton University men's basketball team inside Lavietes Pavilion in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Jan. 11 against Harvard.

On The Hunt For A Four-Peat
The 2024-25 season will see Princeton aim to win its fourth-straight Ivy League title, its fifth in the past nine seasons and its 31st overall.

One Of The Nation's Top Winning Percentages
The Tigers winning percentage of 76.1% since the start of the 2021-22 season ranks No. 11 in the nation for best winning percentage. Princeton has gone 81-25 in that time span.

Impressive Home Record
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Princeton has gone 42-6 at home for an 87.2 winning percentage.

Impressive Road Record
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, the Tigers ranked fourth in the nation for highest winning percentage on the road (70.7%). Princeton has a 29-12 award since 2021.

Last Time Out
Princeton wrapped up non-conference play with a 92-71 victory over Kean on Jan. 4 inside Jadwin Gymnasium. Philip Byriel led the Tigers in scoring with 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 from three, while Peyton Seals contributed 13 points on 4-for-5 shooting, five rebounds, three steals and two assists. Jackson Hicke added 12 points on 6-for-10 shooting, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.

All-Time Series
The Tigers lead the all-time series against the Crimson, 139-51, in a series that began in 1901. On the road, Princeton leads Harvard 57-36 and at home the Tigers lead 81-15. Princeton leads 1-0 in the only neutral site contest between the programs.

All-Time Series Under Mitch Henderson
Henderson is 12-12 against Harvard as a head coach and has gone 6-0 against the Crimson since the start of the 2021-22 season.

Last Time They Met
Princeton took down Harvard, 66-53, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Feb. 23, 2024. Xaivian Lee recorded a game-high 27 points along wit nine rebounds, six assists and two steals while Caden Pierce finished with a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds to go with three assists and two steals.

Almost The Second-Winningest Coach In School History
With 243 career victories, Mitch Henderson ranks No. 3 all-time at Princeton for wins. With seven more wins he would tie Franklin C. "Cappy" Cappon, who has 250 wins, for No. 2 all-time and with eight would earn the No. 2 spot behind Pete Carril.

National Notice
After his 21-point, 14-rebound performance in Princeton's win over Rutgers on Dec. 21, Caden Pierce was recognized nationally. On Dec. 23 he was named Lute Olson National Player of the Week by collegeinsider.com then on Dec. 24 he was honored as one of five Oscar Robertson Trophy National Players of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA). In addition, Pierce received the Ivy League Player of the Week award for the sixth time in his career on Dec. 23.

Early-Season Watch Lists
Pierce was named to the Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award Early-Season Watch List along with the Lou Henson Mid Major National Player of the Year Award Early-Season Watch List. He was joined by Lee on the Lou Henson Mid Major National Player of the Year Award Early-Season Watch List.

Karl Malone Power Forward Of The Year Top-20 Preseason Watch List
Pierce was one of 20 players named to the Naismith Starting 5 - Karl Malone Power Forward Of The Year Top-20 Preseason Watch List. This prestigious award honors the best power forwards in men's college basketball and is presented by the Basketball Hall of Fame, highlighting the elite talent in the sport.

The 2024 Ivy League Player of the Year
Pierce is averaging 11.4 points on 53.4% shooting from the field, 6.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists through 14 games. His rebound average ranks sixth in the Ivy League and his field goal percentage eighth.

An Active Career Leader
His 24 double-doubles rank No. 19 among active players in NCAA DI men's basketball and his 7.9 rebound average No. 19.

Jersey Jam Most Outstanding Player
Pierce was named Most Outstanding Player at the Jersey Jam after finishing with 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting and five rebounds.

Pierce Milestone Watch
With 902 career points, Pierce needs to score 98 more to reach 1,000. He is also sitting on 75 makes from three, requiring 25 more makes to get to 100.

Generational Rebounder
With 594 career rebounds, Pierce ranks No. 9 all-time at Princeton for most rebounds. To move up to No. 8, he needs 12 more and will pass Spencer Weisz '17, who ended his career with 605.

Lee's 2024-25 Awards
Xaivian Lee was named Ivy League Player of the Week on Dec. 10 and Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) Player of the Week on Dec. 10. He earned the awards after averaging 17.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 7.5 assists the week prior.

Testing The Waters
Lee declared for the 2024 NBA draft but elected to return to Princeton for his junior year. He was one of 45 players selected to attend the NBA G League Elite Camp in May.

Historic Triple Double
Lee became the first Tiger in program history to record a triple double since assists were first recorded in 1974-95 in Princeton's win at Saint Joe's on Dec. 3. Lee tied the team-high in scoring with 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting, had a game and career-high 13 rebounds along with a game and career-high 10 assists.

First Ivy Player To Do It In Years
The last Ivy League player to record a triple double was Yale's Jordan Bruner against Cornell in a double overtime game on Feb. 21, 2020. The most recent Ivy player to record a triple double in a regulation game was the University of Pennsylvania's AJ Brodeur on Nov. 29, 2019, against Arizona.

Historic Assist Numbers
Before Lee, the last Princeton player to have at least 10 assists in a game was Spencer Weisz '17, who had 13 at Liberty on Dec. 10, 2016. His 13 assists against Liberty also marked the last time a Tiger had at least 11 assists in a game, a feat accomplished by Lee on Dec. 21 against Rutgers.

Already Doubling His 2023-24 Assist Total
Through 15 games, Lee has 86 assists. In 29 games in 2024, Lee finished with 108 assists, which ranked No. 18 all-time at Princeton for most assists in a season.

Floor General
Lee became the first Princeton player to record seven or more assists in consecutive games since Tosan Evbuomwan '23 had seven against Bucknell (Dec. 7, 2021) and eight at Lafayette (Dec. 11, 2021). Lee had nine assists against Duquense (Nov. 8) then eight at Northeastern (Nov. 10).

Assist Rate Leader
Lee ranks 15th in the nation in assist rate (38.3), a stat that measures assists divided by the field goals made by the player's teammates while he is on the court.

A Top Offensive Rating
Lee ranks 31st in the nation in offensive rating (111.0), a stat that measures personal offensive efficiency developed by Dean Oliver.

Offensive X-Plosion
Lee has scored 30 points or more three times in his career, including against Texas State (30) on Nov. 22, 2024, Harvard (33) on Jan. 6, 2023, and Northeastern (30) on Nov. 25, 2023.

All-Around Game
Through 15 games, Lee is averaging 15.6 points-per-game, 5.7 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.2 steals with a 2.6 assist/turnover ratio. His assist/turnover ration leads the Ivy League while his assist average ranks second, his scoring average fifth, his free throw percentage (74.3%) ninth and his steal average tenth.

Xaivian Milestone Watch
With 881 career points, Lee needs 129 to reach 1,000. He is also 13 three-pointers away from 100, having made 87 in his career.

A Third Ivy League Player Of The Week In 2024-25
On Jan. 6, Dalen Davis joined Pierce (Dec. 23) and Lee (Dec. 9) as Tigers named Ivy Player of the Week in 2024-25. In Princeton's wins over Akron and Kean, Davis averaged 13.5 points-per-game, 4.0 steals, 3.5 assists and 3.0 rebounds. Against the Zips, Davis buried the game-winning three-point shot in the final moments of the contest.

Picking Up Where He Left Off – And Then Some
After averaging double figures over the final 10 games of his freshman season, Dalen Davis is averaging 11.7 points-per-game, 2.1 assists and 2.1 rebounds. He ranks fifth in the Ivy League in steals-per-game (1.4), sixth in three-pointer field goals (2.3) and tenth in three-point percentage (38.5%)

Davis' Career Day
Davis scored a career-high 25 points against Northeastern Nov. 10, exceeding his previous career-high of 21, set on in the Ivy League Tournament semifinal against Brown on Mar. 16, 2024. Davis' nine made field goals were a career-high, while his four made three-pointer tied his career-best.

Phil-ing It Up
Philip Byriel had a career night on Dec. 3 in Princeton's victory at Saint Joe's, recording career-highs in points (18) and made three-pointers (six).

Byriel Making An Impact
Byriel has started the Tigers' past nine games and is averaging 6.5 points-per-game and 2.4 rebounds in 18.4 minutes. He ranks ninth in the Ivy League in three-point field goal percentage (40.0%) and his 24 three-pointers rank third on the team.

Blake P3ters
Blake Peters is averaging 9.3 points-per-game and ranks seventh in the conference in three-point field goals-per-game (2.3).

Moving Up The All-Time Three-Pointers Made List
With 157 career three-pointers, Peters ranks No. 9 on Princeton's all-time list. Sydney Johnson '97, who made 162 three-pointers, ranks one spot above him at No. 8.

Ivy League Rookie of the Week
Malik Abdullahi was honored as the Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Nov. 18. In 19.9 minutes-per-game, he averaged 9.5 points on 64.3% shooting and 3.5 rebounds in games against Loyola Chicago on Nov. 15 and Merrimack on Nov. 17.

Making An Impact As A Freshman
Abdullahi, who has started nine games, is averaging 5.9 points on 65.5% shooting from the field and 3.1 rebounds.

The Emergence of Jackson Hicke
Over the Tigers past three games, Jackson Hicke has averaged 10.0 points on 72.2% shooting from the field and 75.0% from three along with 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals.

The Class Of 2024
Zach Martini is playing a grad year at Rutgers and Matt Allocco at Notre Dame due to an Ivy rule prohibiting grad students.

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