Ivy Play to Open for Men's Basketball Against Penn & Yale

Monday, January 5

Princeton, N.J.

7:00 PM

Princeton University

Penn

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Ivy Play to Open for Men's Basketball Against Penn & Yale

January 02, 2026 | Men's Basketball

Game 16: Princeton (4-11) vs Penn (7-6) – 1/5, 7 p.m.
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Game 17: Princeton (4-11) vs Yale (11-2) – 1/10, 2 p.m.
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PRINCETON, N.J. – Ivy League play opens for the Princeton University men's basketball team with home contests against the University of Pennsylvania on Jan. 5 and Yale on Jan. 10.

The Road Back To The Ivy Championship
2025-26 will see the Tigers aim to win a fourth Ivy title in the past five seasons.

Last Time Out
Four double figure scorers pushed the Tigers past Vermont on Dec. 30, 75-69, inside Jadwin Gymnasium in a contest that went to overtime. Four players finished in double figures including Jack Stanton (19), Jackson Hicke (17), Malik Abdullahi (15) and Landon Clark (12).

All-Time Against Penn
The series, which began in 1903, is tied 126-126. It is the first all-time series tie between the Tigers and Quakers since 1905. In Jadwin, Princeton is 69-53 against Penn.

Last Time Against Penn
Princeton overcame the Quakers on Mar. 8, 2025, inside Jadwin Gymnasium, 95-71. CJ Happy recorded 14 points, four rebounds and three assists in the win while Dalen Davis scored eight points on 3-for-3 shooting from the field and 2-for-2 from three.

Mitch Henderson Against Penn
The Tigers are 22-4 against the Quakers under Henderson. He's guided the Tigers to 13 consecutive victories over Penn, with Princeton's last loss occuring on Feb. 6, 2018.

Scouting The Quakers
The Quakers, in Fran McCaffrey's first year as head coach, have a 7-6 record. In their most recent contest, Penn upended NJIT inside the Palestra on Dec. 31, 80-61.

All-Time Against Yale
The Tigers lead the Bulldogs, 153-102, in a series that began in 1902. Princeton has a 90-33 record against Yale in Jadwin.

Last Time Against Yale
The fourth-seeded Tigers fell just short to the top-seeded Bulldogs in the Ivy Tournament semifinals on Mar. 15, 2025, inside the Pizzitola Sports Center in Providence, Rhode Island. Dalen Davis scored 11 points for the Tigers while Jacob Huggins scored four.

Mitch Henderson Against Yale
Henderson has a 10-21 record against the Bulldogs as head coach of the Tigers.

Scouting The Bulldogs
Yale has an 11-2 record in 2025-26. In their most recent game, the Bulldogs fell to #14 Alabama, 102-78, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in Dec. 29. Yale opens Ivy play in Providence, Rhode Island, against Brown on Jan. 5.

The Second-Winningest Coach In School History
With 255 career victories, Mitch Henderson passed Franklin C. "Cappy" Cappon to become the second-winningest head coach all-time at Princeton for wins. Henderson trails only Naismith Hall of Fame member Pete Carril, who ended his career with 514 victories.

The Henderson Era
In addition to being the second-winningest coach in school history, Henderson led Princeton to the Sweet Sixteen in 2023, four Ivy League titles (2017, 2022, 2023, 2024) and two Ivy Tournament championships (2017, 2013). He's coached seven 20-win seasons, 11 wins over high major opponents, four Ivy League Players of the Year, 29 All-Ivy selections, two NBA players (Tosan Evbuomwan '23 and Devin Cannady '20) along with over 20 players to play at the professional level.

Dalen Davis Named Ivy Co-Player Of The Week
On Nov. 17, Dalen Davis was honored as the Ivy League Co-Player of the Week. He shared the award with Cornell's Cooper Noard. On the week, he averaged, 19.7 points-per-game and 4.0 rebounds. Davis also recorded 11 assists and two steals. He also won the award on Jan. 6.

Dalen Davis Making An Impact Early
Dalen Davis has led the Tigers in scoring in 2025-26, averaging 16.5 points-per-game. Davis also has an assist/turnover ratio of 1.3, averages 3.2 assists is shooting 81.8% from the free throw line.

Tying His Career-High
Davis scored 25 points for the second time in his career in the Tigers' win over Bucknell on Nov. 11. He went 8-for-16 from the field, 2-for-4 from three and 7-for-8 from the free throw line, both career-highs, while adding three rebounds and three assists. Davis also scored 25 points in a win at Northeastern Nov. 10, 2024.

Closing In On 100 Made Three-Pointers
With 91 career made three-point field goals, Davis is nine away from 100 makes.

Davis Leading The Backcourt
Dalen Davis, a 2024 Ivy Madness All-Tournament Team selection and a one-time Ivy Player of the Week, is set to lead Princeton's backcourt in 2025-26. Last season he averaged 9.2 points-per-game, 2.0 rebounds along 1.6 assists, and scored in double figures 13 times. During non-conference play last season, he was the Tigers' second-leading scorer and averaged 11.7 points while shooting 38.7% from three.

Strong Start For Jackson Hicke
Through 15 games, Hicke is averaging 13.9 points (ranks 11th in the Ivy League) while shooting 47.2% from the field and 43.5% from three (ranks eighth in the Ivy League). He also averages 5.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and has 13 steals. Hicke recorded career-highs in points (22) and made field goals (8) against Temple on Nov. 26. He also connected on a career-high four three-pointers against No. 25 Kansas.

Three Consecutive 20-Point Games For Hicke
Hicke recorded three consecutive 20-point games from Nov. 25-30. He first scored a career-high 22 points against Bradley on Nov. 25, followed by 20 points against Vermont on Nov. 26 then 20 points against Saint Joseph's on Nov. 30. After the Vermont game, Hicke became the first Princeton player to record consecutive 20-point games since Xaivian Lee scored 24 against Dartmouth on Feb. 22 then 21 at Columbia on Feb. 28.

Hicke's Career Night
Hicke had a career night in Princeton's second game at the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational in Kissimmee, Florida, against Temple. He scored a career-high 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting from the field, 1-for-2 from three and a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line. He also recorded four rebounds, two assists and one steal.

Hicke At The World University Games
Hicke represented the USA in 3x3 basketball over the summer at the World University Games and helped the team win silver.

Malik Abdullahi's Improvement
Malik Abdullahi's game has made a leap as a sophomore. He's averaging 8.7 points on 54.2% shooting (ranks sixth in the Ivy League) and 5.8 rebounds, which also ranks sixth in the Ivy League. He's scored in double figures in six games and scored 15 points or more in the past two.

A Career Night For Abdullahi
Abdullahi recorded career-highs in points (21) and field goals (9) at Temple on Dec. 22 and tied his career-high in steals (2).

Year Two For Malik Abdullahi
Abdullahi, who started 18 games a freshman in 2024-25 and was named Ivy Rookie of the Week on Nov. 18, is primed for a breakout season. Last season he averaged 4.3 points on 57.0% shooting and 2.7 rebounds. On Nov. 10, Abdullahi made the game-winning basket in a victory at Northeastern. Abdullahi also recorded career-highs in rebounds (9) on Nov. 20 against Northeastern and assists (4) on Nov. 26 against Vermont.

Stanton The Starter
Through 15 games Jack Stanton is averaging 11.4 points and 4.1 rebounds-per-game. Stanton is ranked second in the Ivy League in three-point field goals-per-game (2.7) and is shooting 38.3% from three. He's scored in double figures in nine games in 2025-26.

Leading The Ivy League
Stanton's 41 made three-pointers are the most by any Ivy player.

Stanton's Career Night
Against Vermont on Dec. 30, Stanton scored a career-high 19 points. He also tied his career-highs in field goals (six), three-pointers (five) and assists (5).

CJ Happy In 2025-26
CJ Happy has started all 14 games he's played in in 2025-26. He's averaging 8.7 points and 3.1 rebounds.

Happy's Career Night
On Nov. 26 against Vermont, Happy finished with a career-high 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting from the field and 4-for-6 shooting from three, while also recorded three rebounds and three assists. His 22 points and nine made field goals were career-highs, while his four three-pointers tied his career-high.

Happy At The Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational
Happy was a significant contributor for the Tigers during their three games at State Farm Field House. He averaged 13.7 points on 59.3% shooting from the field and 50.0% from three in addition to 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists.

Two Consecutive 20 Point Games For Happy
After his 22 points against Vermont, Happy scored 20 points on Dec. 3 against Monmouth.

Huggins' Impact Off The Bench
Jacob Huggins had a career night in the Tigers' win over Northeastern. He recorded career-highs in points (14), free throws made (10) and attempted (12) while also grabbing five rebounds.

Increased Role For Jacob Huggins
Jacob Huggins was a contributor in 2024-25, appearing in 22 games and starting three. Huggins scored a career-high 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting and tallied two rebounds, one block and one steal in Princeton's season-opening victory over Iona on Nov. 4.

The Newcomers
Princeton welcomes six newcomers for the 2025-26 season; Jacob Hammond, Landon Clark, Jake Sussberg, Sebastian Whitfield, Cash McSweeney and Ryan Mandes.

A Career Night For Clark
Landon Clark, who has played in all 15 games and started 10, was a key part of Princeton's win over Vermont on Dec. 30. He recorded career-highs in points (12), field goals (5) and rebounds (8).

Sebastian's Season-High
On Nov. 18 against Iona, Sebastian Whitfield scored a season-high 15 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field and 4-for-5 from the free throw line. Whitfield also recorded season-highs in rebounds (4) and blocks (2).

A Homecoming For Mike Brennan
Mike Brennan returned to the Tigers' staff as the Ted Athanassiades '61 Association Head Coach ahead of the 2025-26 season. An assistant coach at Cornell during 2024-25, Brennan served as head coach at American from 2013-23 and as an assistant at Princeton from 2000-07. As a player, Brennan was a four-year starter under Pete Carril and helped the Tigers earn NCAA Tournament appearances in 1991 and 1992.

A Different Type Of Homecoming For Mathew Johnson
A native of Columbus, New Jersey, Mathew Johnson returns to his home state as assistant coach of the Tigers for 2025-26. Johnson was on staff at UConn from 2019-2025 and won national championships in 2023 and 2024 with the Huskies.