The Tigers capped off a hugely successful 12-day swing to the West Coast and beyond with a workmanlike 77-63 victory over the host Hawaii Rainbow Warriors Monday to conclude their their three games in the Diamond Head Classic. Only a two-point loss to Middle Tennessee State in the tourney opener marred the Tigers road trip record of 4-1. Princeton finished its out-of-conference schedule at 7-7.
Ivy women’s basketball week in review
1. Princeton (9-3)
Win – at Wagner, 58-37
Win – vs St. Joe’s, 63-54 (at Gainesville, Gator Classic)
Win – vs UT-Chattanooga, 59-49 (at Gainesville, Gator Classic)
The Tigers opened up a 17 point lead on Wagner by the second quarter, but the Seahawks got the lead down to five 30 seconds into the second half. An 8-1 run over the next three minutes stretched the lead back to double-digits and the Tigers never looked back. Leslie Robinson, Sydney Jordan and Carlie Littlefield each put up 10 points in the low-scoring contest. Defensively, Princeton held Wagner to a season-low 37 points, including 30 percent shooting and only one three-pointer.
Princeton splits two nail-biters in first two games of Diamond Head Classic
The Tigers came into the opener of this Christmas tournament hosted by the University of Hawaii as slight underdogs to the Blue Raiders of Middle Tennessee State, winners of games in the last two NCAA tournaments, including a monumental upset over Michigan State in 2016.
In a game the Tigers led by as many as seven and never trailed by more than four, it took a big-time play by the Raiders’ great guard, Giddy Potts, to break the last tie with two seconds to go. The final: Middle Tennessee State 69, Princeton 67.
Once again the Tigers played quite well from the outset, leading 28-23 at the break. This was perhaps as good as the defense has shown over a 20-minute stretch all season. The Raiders are very well-coached, boasting a deep, talented roster, featuring size, strength and speed. They fully expect to make another deep run for Conference USA laurels.
Fresh off USC win, Princeton to square off in Diamond Head Classic
(Princeton Men’s Basketball Facebook page)
On Friday, the Tigers open play in the Diamond Head Classic on the beautiful island of Oahu in the 50th state. Their first foe in a “three games in four days” format is the very strong Conference USA representative, Middle Tennessee State, a frequent Big Dance contestant.
Coming in with a record of 7-2, including wins over SEC teams Mississippi and Vanderbilt, the Raiders have their own version of the big three, Nick King, Giddy Potts and big man Brandon Walters. These three play a lot of minutes and score a ton of points. Middle Tennessee State is currently ranked 67th by the esteemed Ken Pomeroy, high enough to warrant a 65 percent chance to beat the Tigers (128th) on a neutral court.
Princeton upsets USC, 103-93, in overtime for biggest Ivy nonconference win of the season so far
The Tigers’ opponent was the preseason top 10 Trojans of Southern California, playing what the Los Angeles Times suggested was a tuneup game. The Tigers may have been offended by this evident lack of respect.
In any event, they responded with their best showing to date, dealing the Trojans a 103-93 beating in overtime. While the #2bidivy movement may not be relevant this season, the Tigers’ performance Tuesday night (and Wednesday morning Eastern Time) at Southern Cal shows why a second NCAA Tournament bid is inevitable.
The Tigers were in control for much of the second half after trailing by three at the end of the first period, 36-33. With under a minute to go in regulation, Princeton still held an 81-74 lead. Trading free throws for threes, the Trojans pulled within two with five seconds to go. A costly Tigers turnover on the inbounds pass resulted in a Trojans lay-in to tie the game at 86-86 at the end of regulation. Frankly, at that point, it looked like the visitors had run out of ammo.
Ivy Power Poll – Dec. 18, 2017
There hasn’t been much Ivy action the past couple of weeks due to finals, but here’s a snapshot of the Ivy League at the moment:
1. Princeton (4-6)
We haven’t seen “Ivy Princeton” yet, so the Tigers are at the top for now. In other words, just keep in mind Princeton has always seemed to overachieve in league play and underachieve in non-league play under coach Mitch Henderson. But Princeton overcame a 16-3 hole against Monmouth with a subsequent 20-2 run last week to pocket a 69-58 victory at Jadwin Gym, building that run the Princeton way: layups and three-pointers that comprised 18 of those 20 points.
The Tigers lit up Cal Poly from downtown Saturday night, and Princeton’s point distribution has been more even in its past two games. Princeton’s got a shot to shred the “non-Ivy Princeton” narrative by upsetting Southern Cal Tuesday.
Princeton shows what it can do from deep, romps over Cal Poly, 80-60
Princeton canned 16 three-pointers en route to an 80-60 victory at Cal Poly Saturday night. Our Toothless Tiger breaks down the Tigers victory.
Ivy women’s week in review – Dec. 16, 2017
1. Princeton (6-3)
Win – at Quinnipiac, 60-46
Loss – at Rutgers, 70-50
In the second of a six game road trip, the Tigers visited Quinnipiac on Saturday afternoon and soundly defeated a Bobcat team that made it to the Sweet Sixteen in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Despite falling behind by six and not scoring a point in the first 5:21 of the game, Princeton rallied to take a three point lead after the first quarter. Down 6 heading into the final frame, the Bobcats used a 9-2 run to take a one point lead with 7:13 to go. The Orange & Black responded by outscoring Quinnipiac 17-2 the rest of the way for the victory. Bella Alarie and Leslie Robinson each posted 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead the way. The Tigers won the game with strong defense, limiting the Bobcats to 19 percent three-point shooting and 36 percent two-point shooting while outrebounding them by 11 percent.
Another turning point for Princeton against Monmouth?
Our Toothless Tiger recaps Princeton’s 69-58 victory over Monmouth Tuesday night, a much-needed nonconference win coming a season after the 2016-17 Tigers used a loss to Monmouth as a turning point, following it up with 19 straight wins.
Former Dartmouth standout Evan Boudreaux to attend Xavier in 2018-19
Former Dartmouth forward Evan Boudreaux announced Monday he will attend Xavier next year, as both a real person and a cartoon, apparently.
Excited to announce I will be attending Xavier University next year! Appreciate everyone who had helped me throughout the process. Looking forward to the next chapter as a Musketeer! pic.twitter.com/musTZoBdtk
— Evan Boudreaux (@EBoudreaux12) December 11, 2017