Some observations about an Ivy weekend that featured an unusually intense marquee matchup, an expected tossup game that played out as such and a consequential upset:
Mike Tony
On the Vine – Jan. 13, 2017
In a special pregame edition of On the Vine, the panel previews Friday night’s Ivy matchups and looks ahead to Saturday night’s slate and beyond. Peter Andrews and Mike Tony are joined by IHO writers George Clark and Rob Browne, with Clark joining in live from Jadwin Gym just prior to Princeton’s tip-off versus Brown.
Ivy Power Rankings – Jan. 9, 2017
1. Princeton (8-6, 1-0)
See Toothless Tiger’s recap for game details, but the team’s 61-52 win over Penn proved they’re a resilient bunch. It’s not easy to withstand a 26-5 run from your archrival, but the Tigers did just that in the second half, hanging on with team-wide superior composure and characteristically clutch play from Devin Cannady. It was Cannady who broke the 44-44 tie following Penn’s gangbusters run and played outstanding defense alongside Myles Stephens down the stretch. Princeton’s defense is more than good enough to carry it to the league’s top slot.
Previewing Penn-Princeton and Harvard-Dartmouth
IHO breaks down the two games comprising Saturday evening’s Ivy conference play-opening slate:
Penn at Princeton, 7 p.m.
Last season: Princeton beat Penn twice by a combined three points, and the Ps’ last meeting at Jadwin Gym on March 12 put a scare into the Tigers, who were outscored 40-23 over the final 14:52 in a 72-71 victory over the Red and Blue. Princeton committed 16 turnovers, its highest amount in Ivy play last season, and then-freshman Penn guard Tyler Hamilton came out of nowhere to provide 11 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in 37 minutes, easily the best performance of his Penn career.
Ivy Power Rankings – Jan. 2, 2017
1. Yale (6-5)
Yale played just one game in the two weeks since the last Ivy Power Rankings, but it was indicative of the kind of performance coach James Jones may extract from his youthful roster come Ivy play. Freshman forward Jordan Bruner enjoyed arguably his best game as an Eli in Yale’s 83-77 loss at Temple, registering a career-high 15 points in just 26 minutes to go along with eight rebounds and four blocks, the third time in his six games that he has collected four blocks. Senior center Sam Downey nabbed 17 rebounds, including nine on the offensive glass, in 33 minutes. Yale committed only 11 turnovers and shot 16-for-19 from the free throw line, suggesting the prototype of a team that thrives on efficiency, superior rebounding and stout perimeter defense. The Elis also lead the conference in three-point field goal percentage, and Yale enjoyed a 3-for-8 long-range performance from freshman forward Miye Oni at Temple to go along with five assists versus just one turnover (not bad for playing his 11th game at a high-major).
Behind Enemy Lines: Q&A with The Juice Online
Cornell will play its first game in two weeks when it visits Syracuse Tuesday evening at the Carrier Dome. Cornell is coming off a 78-62 win over Southeast Missouri State in Las Vegas, and the Orange are coming off an embarrassing 93-60 loss to St. John’s at the Carrier Dome, the worst home loss Syracuse has suffered in Jim Boeheim’s 41 seasons as coach.
To get us prepped for the game, we sat down with our friend Wes Cheng over at The Juice Online to get an Orange scouting report for the upcoming game.
ESPN: Princeton’s Henry Caruso to become graduate transfer
Princeton senior guard Henry Caruso will become a graduate transfer next season, Jeff Goodman of ESPN reported Wednesday.
Caruso was reported out for the year last week with a toe injury, making him the second Tiger this week to be declared out for this season.
Caruso was a first-team All-Ivy selection as a junior last season, leading the Tigers in scoring and rebounding at 15.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and shooting at a 52.7 percent clip. Caruso contributed 9.5 points and 4.3 boards per contest in eight games this season.
The San Mateo, Calif. native joins a long list of Ivy graduate transfers in recent years, including Columbia’s Grant Mullins, Dartmouth’s Alex Mitola, Brown’s Rafael Maia and Princeton’s own Denton Koon.
Fellow Tigers senior Hans Brase was declared out for the year Sunday after sustaining another season-ending knee injury.
Ivy Power Rankings – Dec. 19, 2016
1. Yale (6-4)
Yale’s only game this past week was a 90-59 home romp over Central Connecticut State, but it was emblematic of the unexpected division of labor that’s carried Yale to arguably the top slot in the Ivy League standings. Sophomore guard Alex Copeland went 9-for-11 from two-point range to contribute 23 points along with four assists in 30 minutes, while freshman guard Miye Oni lit up Payne Whitney Gym with 7-for-8 shooting from three-point range en route to 22 points, seven rebounds and three assists in just 26 minutes.
Princeton’s Henry Caruso out for season with toe injury
Princeton senior forward Henry Caruso was reported out for the year Wednesday with a toe injury, making him the second Tiger this week to be declared out for a season that Princeton entered as Ivy frontrunner.
Caruso was a first-team All-Ivy selection as a junior last season, leading the Tigers in scoring and rebounding at 15.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and shooting at a 52.7 percent clip. Caruso contributed 9.5 points and 4.3 boards per contest in eight games this season.
Fellow senior Hans Brase was declared out for the year Sunday after sustaining another season-ending knee injury.
The back-to-back losses of Caruso and Brase leave the Tigers reeling, wiping out 37.9 minutes per game in Princeton’s vaunted frontcourt. Caruso in particular brought a singular offensive presence to the Tigers, equally adept at driving through the lane and hitting from long range. Caruso had narrowly led all Tigers in coach Mitch Henderson’s regular rotation in usage so far this season, and he leaves a significant void at both ends of the floor.
Hans Brase out for year with injury, ending his Princeton career
Hans Brase has suffered another knee injury that has ended his Princeton career, per the Trentonian’s reporting, a year after Brase sustained a torn ACL that ended his 2015-16 season as well.
Brase suffered his most recent season-ending injury at VCU on Nov. 29. The source of his injury was his right knee, per the Trentonian, which also noted he tore his right ACL last season.
Brase started all five contests he played in this season, averaging 6.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.