Postgame audio - Coach Sydney Johnson, Patrick Saunders & Dan Mavraides:
Patrick Saunders has a strange-looking jump shot - a flat-footed push with a leaning backspin. But when it goes through the basket like it did on Wednesday night, it is a thing of beauty.
Saunders was a perfect 8-8 from the field and 5-5 behind the arc, setting a new career high by halftime and finishing with a game-best 21 in 22 minutes as Princeton defeated Marist 77-58.
Saunders' eight field goals without a miss matched Kit Mueller for the second-best single game shooting performance in program history. Mueller finished 8-8 from the floor on three separate occasions in his career. Barnes Hauptfuhrer still holds the school mark with an incredible 11-11 showing against Notre Dame in 1974.
Saunders' five three pointers in a game without a miss ties marksmen Dave Orlandini, Bob Scrabis and Sean Jackson for second-best in the Princeton record books. Those four gentlemen all sit one make behind current Princeton head coach Sydney Johnson, 6-6 from deep against Columbia in 1997.
"I felt pretty comfortable out there," the newly goateed Saunders said quietly after the game. "I felt like the shots I got were open coming out of the offense. They just ended up falling in."
Sophomore guard Douglas Davis connected four times from deep in five tries for 16 and Dan Mavraides added 14 for the Tigers, who shot 57.4% for the game and were 10-17 on the night from three.
Princeton had 16 assists and a season low seven turnovers.
Candon Rusin’s 16 on 6-7 shooting paced the Red Foxes.
The Tigers hit five of their first six three point shots, took an early 20-9 lead and never trailed in the final game before their traditional two+ week exam break. Princeton’s lead did not dip below eight points in the last 27:12 of play.
Marist initially matched Princeton basket for basket.
Marcus Schroeder drove the left baseline and kicked to Saunders on the left wing for three, which was countered by Daye Kaba sizing up a right corner three over Saunders.
Mavraides' screen cleared room for Saunders to launch his second triple in the left corner, but Kaba was on target as well, hesitating at the top of the key before firing in front of Davis.
Schroeder attacked the basket and passed to Mavraides on the right wing for three. Kaba was long on his attempt to answer and Saunders struck for a third time in four minutes to give Princeton the 12-6 edge.
Rusin entered the action, catching and shooting from behind the arc to make it a one possession game.
"I liked how we shot it and I think we were a bit frustrated by how well they shot it," Johnson said. "We certainly have a focus on trying to have the opponent take tough shots and those probably weren't as tough as we would like them to be."
Princeton shook off three turnovers in as many possessions to score the game's next eight points.
Marist was called for a five second violation trying to inbound the basketball and at the other end of the court Saunders threw a crosscourt pass over the Red Fox zone to Davis for three. Pawel Buczak's hook pass to a cutting Saunders made it an eight point lead and Mavraides pushed the ball beyond Marist's pressure to Saunders setting up in the far left corner for his fourth three of the half.
Their lead down to five on a layup by Sam Prescott, breaking the Princeton press and driving to the basket, Ian Hummer spun in the lane and was fouled by Prescott, making both free throws. On Princeton's next possession Hummer overloaded the Marist zone at the free throw line and found Zach Finley for the bucket inside.
Prescott missed two free throws and after two minutes of scoreless play that saw Princeton tinker with a variety of different lineup combinations as Johnson went deeper into his bench than expected in the opening half, Buczak found Saunders all alone under the basket for a lay-in that made it an 11 point game again.
Marist ran a pick and roll between Rob Johnson and Korey Bauer for a basket with 2:57 on the clock that was answered by a Davis three from the top of the arc.
Bauer took his time before chucking in a dead on three over Tiger reserve center Brendan Connolly to make it 35-26.
Saunders found Maddox inside, who controlled the ball and then shipped it outside to Davis in the left corner for another triple, Princeton's eighth of the half.
Maddox and Finley played very well on Wednesday in extended stretches off the bench, especially in concert with one another. While Maddox's 0-5 from the field does not look impressive, he appeared to have been fouled on two of those shot attempts. Maddox padded his resume with three rebounds, three assists and a steal. Overshadowed by Saunders' epic evening, Finley was 4-4 from the floor and scored twice on post plays that drew fouls from Marist defenders.
"I'm really excited because I felt going into the season that we have a deep team and it turns out that we do have a deep team," said Johnson when asked about the play of these two upperclassmen off the bench. Seven Tigers played more than 10 minutes each and 12 different players each received five minutes or more of playing time.
A driving layup by Schroeder, who regained control in midair and scored as time ran out gave the Tigers a 40-29 advantage at intermission. Schroeder walked directly from his drive to the adjacent Tiger locker room.
Marist trailed despite shooting 57.9% from the floor and 60.0% from three in the first half. Princeton made 54.2% of their attempts and was 57.1% behind the arc. The Tigers had 10 assists and just four turnovers.
As play resumed, Rob Johnson's short baseline jumper off an inbounds pass - his first basket of the game - was answered by a swooping drive for Buczak that began in the left corner.
Rusin stepped on the sideline and Davis made him pay by attacking the iron, stopping cold on his way to the basket and turning around for a short, smooth jumper that boosted Princeton's lead to a game best 13.
Devin Price's deep three and a quick drive by Rusin created an eight point advantage, but Schroeder found Saunders in the left corner off the dribble for his fifth trey and the breathing room that came along with it.
Maddox looked to be fouled on the arm inside. Since a whistle did not stop play, Mavraides collected the loose ball and went straight up from under the backboard. A steal by Mavraides went ahead to Schroeder, who passed back to Mavraides on the dive, a two-on-one break executed just like coaches stress during practice - both players running full speed, making proper decisions and rarely allowing the ball to touch the ground.
The Tigers could not get the lead above 13 until Finley put back a Mavraides drive and was fouled by Prescott.
Princeton freshman guard Jimmy Sherburne's first career point came at the 7:06 mark. Sherburne made his first of two free throws after being fouled on a layup attempt, found by fellow frosh Will Barrett on a cut.
Sherburne didn't waste much time in adding his first career field goal to the proceedings - a layup received on the break after a Davis steal. This bucket gave Princeton their largest lead - 66-47 - an edge matched by the game's final score.
While Johnson adamantly told Mavraides and Saunders "Don't answer that! Don't answer that!" when asked about how Princeton was able to succeed against the Marist zone after struggling against Maine's similar defense on Monday night, afraid of revealing a tactical advantage, the answer appeared to be a mixture of better ball movement, quicker passes, proper decisions on the free throw line and perimeter overloads and most importantly - a bounty of made shots.
Princeton heads into exams having won six out of seven and with their most non conference wins since the 2006-07 season.
Notes:
-The Tigers shot 27-47 (57.4%) from the floor of the McCann Center. The gym's wall-to-wall wood paneling was also witness to 10-17 shooting from behind the arc (58.8%). Princeton was just 2-3 from deep in the second half. The Tigers went 13-18 on free throws (72.2%). Marist was 21-43 for the game (48.8%), 8-15 from three (53.3%) and 8-14 at the line (57.1%).
-Princeton's 77 points were the most by a Tiger team since a six point win at Harvard in January 2009.
-Freshman forward Mack Darrow saw his first playing time of the season in the game's final minute, recording an assist on a pass to Brendan Connolly for the night's final basket.
-Connolly scored four points against Marist, a new career high.
-Rusin may have led Marist in scoring, but he also had five turnovers and no assists.
