An impressive win for Georgetown (8-0), starting the second half on a 21-2 run and dispatching #17 Washington with surprising ease. The Hoyas swept their back-to-back games against Top 25 foes, growing up in the process.
Bragging rights in Virginia's capitol went to VCU, who defeated Richmond (7-2) at the Farm Bureau Insurance Black & Blue Classic, 65-57.
Northwestern returns to action after their exam break, taking on North Carolina A&T.
Around the Ivy League: Penn (0-7) continued to struggle, losing by five at Monmouth. Columbia (5-4) defeated a different winless squad, besting Bryant, 69-57. Army picked up its fourth win over its fourth Ivy opponent this season, defeating Dartmouth (1-6) in Hanover, 59-46.
Georgetown vs. Washington - 2:00 pm ET - Wooden Classic - FSN
MCCC vs. Burlington - 3:00 pm ET
Denver vs. Portland - 4:00 pm ET
Richmond vs. VCU - 7:30 pm ET - Black & Blue Classic
Oregon State vs. Nebraska - 8:00 pm ET - FSN Midwest
Columbia vs. Bryant - 1:00 pm ET
Army vs. Dartmouth - 7:00 pm ET
Penn vs. Monmouth - 7:00 pm ET
Mercer County Community College (4-7) defeated Essex 72-57. Two Vikings picked up double doubles - Isaiah Andrews had 10 points and 10 boards while Paco Boussougou scored 15 and grabbed 10 rebounds.
A 21 point, six rebound Eurocup game for Judson Wallace as Benetton bested Dynamo Moscow, 86-74.
"Outside The Limelight" author Kathy Orton is interviewed by Talking with Tim, where she briefly mentions what Princeton assistant Scott Greenman thought of her book.
Dana O'Neil from espn.com profiles Harvard senior standout Jeremy Lin.
For the second installment of the popular Know! Your! Foe! series, I exchanged emails with Brad from the self-explanatory blog UNCG Basketball Fan. Brad was kind enough to answer my many questions about Princeton's next opponent - the University of North Carolina Greensboro Spartans.
How does this year's UNC Greensboro team differ from the one that visited Jadwin Gym last season?
This team really doesn't resemble the one that played Princeton last season. Even though there were no seniors on the roster, UNCG lost three players in the off season to transfer. However, they have been replaced by freshmen that are very talented. ECU transfer Brandon Evans is also eligible after sitting out last year. So, basically the entire UNCG back court rotation is different from last season.
The Spartans are coming off a 67-64 Southern Conference loss to the College of Charleston on Monday night. UNCG had two chances to tie in the final 13 seconds. Tell me about the game.
I hate to admit that this game wasn't quite as close as the score would make it seem. UNCG had two chances to tie, but that was only after a furious comeback over the last few minutes. Charleston led by 8-10 points through most of the game. With about 6 minutes to go, UNCG went to a half court trapping defense and Charleston looked stunned. They turned it over on something like six of their next eight possessions and let the Spartans trim a 13 point deficit down to three. Both shots to tie were pretty good looks taken by good shooters. They just didn't fall.
Greensboro outrebounded CoC by 20 (49-29). How in/out of character was this performance on the glass?
Well this particular rebound effort was extraordinary. However, the Spartans have been doing a very good job job on the boards all year. Even though they have been undersized in every game (minus maybe Samford), only Duke has dominated the Spartans on the glass. The main reason for this is that UNCG guards are going for rebounds a lot harder than recent years. Also, power forward Ben Stywall's 6'-5" frame seems to fool opponents into thinking he's too small to rebound. However, he just seems to be in the right position every time.
While 2-5 so far this season, Greensboro has played a very tough non-conference schedule, starting their season at Duke, at Virginia Tech and opening their new arena against Clemson. How has the team exceeded your expectations and how has the team struggled in areas you did not expect?
This team has played better than most of fans would have expected. Granted, when you go 5-25, there's really not many expectations. However, this team has had some success in the really tough schedule. It took a late run for Virginia Tech to defeat the Spartans. In six of the seven games (Va Tech excluded), UNCG has gone on big second half runs. Last year's team had a problem with hanging their heads when facing a big deficit. It's good to see it's not a problem this year.
This team has really struggled at getting off to good starts. Other than the two wins, UNCG seems to dig itself big holes right off the bat. I'm not sure if it's nerves or inexperience, but for some reason the Spartans just can't seem to make a basket the first five minutes of games.
Last year UNCG struggled to a 5-25 record. How has the team improved from a year ago?
The guard play is light years ahead of where it was all last season. Last year, UNCG lacked a guard that could drive to the basket or a PG that could score when left open. All three new guards (Evans, Kyle Randall & Korey VanDussen) have the ability to not only hit open shots, but to score 15+ points a night if needed. Also, several role players (Pete Brown & Kendall Toney) have stepped up and taking leadership roles.
What do the Spartans need to do to beat Princeton?
It's funny how my answer to the next two questions is the exact same. UNCG just needs to hit shots. Both of the Spartans wins have came on good shooting nights. Unfortunately, the Spartans haven't shot the ball particularly well at home. When playing a team like Princeton, it's important to make every possession count. I don't think UNCG can shoot less than 40% and have any chance to win.
What needs to happen for the Tigers to defeat UNC Greensboro?
Again, hit shots. UNCG will probably use a similar strategy to the one they used against Samford. Which means a combination of 2-3 and 1-3-1 zone. The strategy worked because Samford couldn't make enough three point attempts to force Coach Dement out of the zone. If Princeton can hit enough threes to force UNCG into going to the man-to-man defense, the Tigers will probably have success against the young Spartan guards.
The Spartans are still looking for their first win in their new building. How is the Greensboro Coliseum?
Wow. It's been an awesome experience for the UNCG fans who have been on board with the program for a while. Coliseum officials are really pulling out all of the stops with promotions to make this move work. The move was the first major decision by Dr. Linda Brady when she became chancellor last fall. She basically has made men's basketball our new athletic flagship (previously soccer). There are a lot of positives so far. UNCG sold over 1,300 season tickets this year. Last year, I believe they sold 300-400. Also, it seems to be helping with recruiting as G has signed four players for next season. The big problem now is wins. It seems like the players haven't became comfortable playing the building yet. That should get better with time.
Greensboro recently played Samford, a team that runs several "Princeton" sets, and UNCG recorded their biggest win over a DI school in program history, a 73-40 rout. It was a close game before a 40-9 run. What went right this time out?
It was the "perfect storm" for UNCG. The Spartans led by 4 early in the second half when they hit a three pointer, got a steal and then a three point play. After that Samford really just seemed to hang their heads and quit. The Spartans spent the rest of the game in a 2-3 zone and Samford was content to just shoot (and miss) three. Add that to the fact that UNCG was really shooting well and you can see the results.
Thanks for your time, Brad! Princeton and UNC Greensboro tip off at 1:00 pm ET on Sunday afternoon in North Carolina. If you cover a team the Tigers will face down the line, let us know. We'd love to talk with you.
Tigers head coach Sydney Johnson and princetonbasketball.com editor Jon Solomon met at Jadwin Gym this afternoon to record their weekly interview. Audio from their Q&A runs 14:00+ in length.
Johnson and Solomon discuss a number of topics, including Princeton's offensive struggles versus Rutgers, the Tigers' defensive strategy against the Scarlet Knights' Mike Rosario and Greg Echenique, if last week's meeting was the last between Princeton and Rutgers for the foreseeable future, the team's second half success versus Lafayette, Princeton's improved help defense and if it is really just as simple as "making shots." They also preview this week's games against UNC Greensboro and Monmouth.
In advance of Sunday's game, I did a Q&A with the web site UNC Basketball Fan, which I hope you will read. The reciprocal preview of the Spartans will run on this site on Friday morning.
Princeton recruit Ben Hazel led Good Counsel with 22 points as the Falcons defeated Georgetown Prep, 78-59. You can watch some of Hazel's highlights here.
Madison Square Garden announced its "All-Time Top 10 College Basketball Moments" on Wednesday. Bill Bradley scoring 41 points in a 1964 loss to Michigan was third on this list.
The latest Schuylkill 16 is out. Princeton sits in 10th place through five weeks of voting.
Around the Ivy League: Harvard (7-2) knocked off Boston College for the second straight year, 74-67. Yale (4-6) beat winless Bryant by 15.
Around the Ivy League: Penn (0-6) continues to struggle, unable to beat Albany at home. Columbia (4-4) made 60.7% of their shots in a 102-91 sprint past Wagner.
Postgame audio - Coach John Thompson III, Austin Freeman & Greg Monroe:
It was a team effort that led Georgetown to a seven point victory over #22 Butler in the opening game of the 2009 Jimmy V Classic, but the stat line of sophomore center Greg Monroe couldn't avoid standing out.
Monroe's career highs of 24 points and 15 rebounds helped the Hoyas build an eight point halftime lead and generate a 52-35 advantage on a Hollis Thompson three point shot with 13:35 left in the game.
Behind Gordon Hayward's outside shooting and repeated drives into the paint that drew fouls, the Bulldogs were able to gradually cut the Georgetown lead down to as low as seven on four occasions late in the second half before the Hoyas created some distance at the free throw line. Hayward had 24 and eight in defeat.
Austin Freeman made his first four three point shots and finished with 18 for Georgetown.
The Hoyas passed their first real test, not just of the season, but of a week designed by head coach John Thompson III to mimic the difficulties of Big East play. This weekend Georgetown travels west to Anaheim to play Washington in their second straight meeting versus a Top 25 foe.
Georgetown vs. Butler - 7:00 pm ET - Jimmy V Classic - ESPN
Morris vs. MCCC - 7:00 pm ET
Cal State Northridge vs. Denver - 9:00 pm ET
Columbia vs. Wagner - 7:00 pm ET
Albany vs. Penn - 7:00 pm ET
Georgetown and Butler meet at Madison Square Garden tonight in the first half of the Jimmy V Classic doubleheader. I'll be on press row with Twitter reports during the game and player/coach audio available afterwards.
Denver hosts Cal State Northridge at Magness Arena.
Pioneers coach Joe Scott talks to the Denver Post about going to school with future first lady Michelle Obama.
Northwestern freshman guard Drew Crawford has entered the blogging world.
To the surprise of no one, Douglas Davis represents Princeton on the Ivy Weekly Men's Basketball Report.
The Frederick News Post reports on the Frederick/Mercer game at the Verizon Center.
Around the Ivy League: Vermont scored the game's last 10 points and beat Yale (3-6) in New Haven. 72-60. Brown (4-7) lost their cross-town meeting with Providence College, 78-62.
princetonbasketball.com was founded on April 28th, 1998 in an attempt to provide fans of the Princeton Tigers and Ivy League basketball with the best on-line source for up-to-date news and information. We have since expanded to launch a companion site, Georgetown Basketball News.
As these sites have continued to grow we have increased our coverage to include additional teams with Princeton connections - the Richmond Spiders, Denver Pioneers, Oregon State Beavers, Fairfield Stags and Mercer County Community College Vikings - plus former Tigers playing professional baseball and basketball all over the world. This site is not directly affiliated with the Friends of Princeton Basketball, Princeton University or the Princeton athletic department.
Sun. 11/10 vs. Florida A&M
Sat. 11/16 at Butler
Wed. 11/20 vs. Lafayette
Sat. 11/23 at Rice
Tue. 11/26 vs. George Mason
Sat. 11/30 at Bucknell
Sat. 12/7 vs. FDU
Wed. 12/11 at Rutgers
Sat. 12/14 at Penn State
Fri. 12/20 vs. Portland*
Sat. 12/21 vs. Pacific*
Tue. 12/31 vs. Kent State
Sat. 1/4 at Liberty
Sat. 1/11 at Penn
Sun. 1/26 vs. Kean
Fri. 1/31 at Harvard
Sat. 2/1 at Dartmouth
Fri. 2/7 vs. Columbia
Sat. 2/8 vs. Cornell
Fri. 2/14 at Brown
Sat. 2/15 at Yale
Fri. 2/21 vs. Dartmouth
Sat. 2/22 vs. Harvard
Fri. 2/28 vs. Yale
Sat. 3/1 vs. Brown
Fri. 3/7 at Cornell
Sat. 3/8 at Columbia
Tue. 3/11 vs. Penn
2,503 - B. Bradley, 1962-65
1,625 - I. Hummer, 2009-13
1,550 - D. Davis, 2008-12
1,546 - K. Mueller, 1987-91
1,451 - P. Campbell, 1959-62
1,441 - C. Robinson, 1979-83
1,428 - B. Earl, 1995-99
1,365 - B. Scrabis, 1985-89
1,321 - G. Petrie, 1967-70
1,292 - H. Haabestad, 1952-55
1,277 - G. Lewullis, 1995-99
1,239 - B. Taylor, 1970-72
1,207 - S. Goodrich 1994-98
1,133 - F. Sowinski, 1975-78
1,130 - R. Hielscher, 1991-95
1,122 - C. Thomforde, 1966-69
1,099 - T. Manakas, 1970-73
1,090 - J. Wallace, 2001-05
1,088 - C. Belz, 1956-59
1,079 - B. Hauptfuhrer, 1973-76
1,076 - B. Roma, 1976-79
1,071 - C. Mooney, 1990-94
1,064 - A. Hyland, Jr., 1960-63
1,062 - L. Brangan, 1957-60
1,057 - A. Hill, 1973-76
1,054 - D. Mavraides, 2007-11
1,044 - S. Johnson, 1993-1997
1,031 - J. Hummer, 1967-70
1,010 - W. Venable, 2001-05
