box score
audio - coach sydney johnson
audio - noah savage
It happened again.
Harvard scored the final eight points of regulation to force an unexpected overtime and then ran off the first seven points of the extra frame to send a shocked Princeton team packing. The Crimson, who had seen a five point lead slip away in the final 30 seconds last Friday against Cornell, flipped a familiar script on the Tigers one week later with 2:30 to go, rallying for a 74-67 win.
It was the Tigers' 18th consecutive road defeat.
Using a variety of back-cuts, Princeton had slowly constructed a 53-41 lead that reached its peak on two free throws by Zach Finley with 7:27 left to play. The Tigers were in front 61-53 on two free throws by Noah Savage with 2:29 on the clock.
Second chance opportunities were Harvard's primary offensive weapon at the end of regulation.
After a Marcus Schroeder drive rolled right off the rim with Princeton up six, Dan McGreary's penetration was errant at the other end of the gym. The rebound deflected into the hands of Harvard's Evan Harris who cut the lead to four.
A touchdown pass by Lincoln Gunn was intercepted just beyond mid-court by Harris. McGeary tried to connect a third time from outside the arc, but he was off target. Jeremy Lin tracked down the rebound on the baseline, keeping the Harvard possession alive. Drew Housman's jumper did not go down but Kyle Fitzgerald laid the third try home.
Princeton called time out with :49.5 on the clock, leading 61-59. Senior Kyle Koncz attempted to muscle his way to the basket but could not get the ball up over Kyle Fitzgerald and off the backboard as he drove baseline.
Harvard stopped play as 17 ticks remained. Jeremy Lin, who scored a team-best 20 points to lead four Crimson players in double figures, went to his right on Marcus Schroeder and tied the score for the first time since the 17:12 mark.
With time running out, Koncz got a running start into the lane, attacking from the top of the arc. His one-handed push bounced off the rim but Steuerer squeezed free for a tip that glanced short off the rim. Steuerer had time to ready himself and grab a second putback that could have won the game, but the ball bounced in-and-out as the buzzer expired.
Princeton was going to overtime for the second straight game after letting a second straight double digit lead with less than eight minutes to go evaporate.
The bonus basketball began with Harvard winning the jump ball, then finding Lin in the lane for two. Koncz had a three point attempt that floated wide right for Princeton and the Tigers missed two chances to get the ball back. Lin's free throw jumper bounced off the rim. The rebound came to Housman, who also could not score. Brad Unger grabbed the second offensive board and the ball was rotated by Unger to McGeary behind a deep screen and his three point shot took Harvard's lead up to five.
Gunn was whistled for traveling as he headed from the left wing into the paint, a call that left the Princeton coaching staff speechless. Thirty seconds later Kyle Fitzgerald tipped in a Housman drive and Harvard had scored 15 straight. Of Harvard's 13 offensive rebounds, seven came in the final two minutes of the second half and overtime.
"Some people were [just] watching [on defense]," a stunned Noah Savage - who paced Princeton 22 points on 5-8 shooting and a perfect mark in 11 free throw attempts - said following the game as he searched for a reason why Harvard was so successful on the glass late. "I'm sure if you watch the tape, I was watching one or two of those possessions. It was one of those games where if you just squeeze the ball and grab a loose ball and the game is over."
Six free throws by Savage kept Princeton within two possessions, and the Tigers had a slight window of opportunity with 20 seconds remaining after Housman missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity up 72-67. As Princeton looked for a good shot, a pass by Marcus Schroeder intended for the wing from the top of the key was grabbed with two hands by the defending McGeary. Schroeder fouled McGeary and his two free throws effectively ended the ballgame.
"We're pretty distraught, just because we're not able to do the small things to close a game out," a disappointed Sydney Johnson remarked outside the Princeton locker room. "It's really hard for us. At the point that we need it, we're just not there."
"What can you ask for?," the contemplative senior Savage stated following another tough defeat.
"You're up every game."
"You're up at halftime."
"You're up with nine minutes left to go."
"You're up 10."
"As a player you can't ask for anything more than what these coaches are doing for us. Right now it is on the players to play and make plays."
"They made more plays than we did."
Notes:
-Jason Briggs' three point shot on the left baseline at the 17:38 mark of the first half, created by a Kevin Steuerer drive not only cut Harvard's early lead to 4-3. but it also assured that the Tigers had knocked down a three point shot for the 600th straight game, remaining one of only three DI teams to have hit from outside since the three point shot went into effect.
-Briggs finished with a career-best 11 points, scoring on four backdoor cuts. Briggs and Schroeder were excellent on defense for Princeton as the Tigers erected their double digit lead lead, shutting down Harvard drives and limiting McGeary's quick release catch-and-shoot opportunities.
-A backdoor bounce pass from Savage to Briggs with 4:27 to play was the Tigers' final field goal of the night. The Tigers made all 10 of their free throws in the last nine minutes of action but went scoreless from the floor.
-Princeton was 19-19 from the free throw line on Friday night, tying the school record for highest free throw percentage in a game. These 19 conversions were the most free throws ever made by a Princeton team without a miss. The Tigers had been 18-18 in a game on five previous occasions, last on 12/12/04 versus Monmouth.
-Kyle Koncz was seen limping after the game, suffering an undetermined injury in the second half. Koncz swiped 10 rebounds for his second career double-double, also scoring 14 points.
-Princeton heads to Dartmouth for a 7:00 pm ET tip on Saturday.
