Last year, Yale got to play a team in Baylor just like it in the NCAA Round of 64, one reliant on veteran bigs and offensive rebounding.
This year, the Princeton Tigers (23-6, 14-0 Ivy) get a NCAA opponent that mirrors themselves too.
Mike Tony
No. 1 Penn defeats No. 2 Princeton, 57-48, earns third NCAA Tournament berth in four years
No. 1 Penn bested No. 2 Princeton, 57-48, at the Palestra Sunday, handing the Quakers the Ivy League Tournament title and their third NCAA Tournament appearance in the past four seasons.
Penn (21-7, 13-1) used a 14-4 second quarter advantage to create separation between itself and the Tigers (16-12, 9-5), who shot just 18-for-64 (28.1 percent) from the floor.
The Red and Blue were led by Michelle Nwokedi, who posted 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Anna Ross, who notched 17 points. Pacing the Tigers were Bella Alarie, who contributed 11 points and 11 boards, and Leslie Robinson, who registered nine points in 27 minutes of play.
Penn swept its three meetings with Princeton this season and has won its last five matchups with the Tigers.
Penn will hold a NCAA Tournament Selection Monday watch party at the Palestra. Doors to the Palestra will open at 6:15 p.m., and admission will be free to all for the show beginning at 7 p.m.
No. 12 Princeton to play No. 5 Notre Dame in NCAA Tournament Thursday
Less than four hours after Princeton defeated Yale to clinch in the Ivy League Tournament final to clinch its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2011, the Tigers (23-6, 14-0 Ivy) learned they will play Notre Dame (25-9, 12-6 ACC) in the NCAA first round Thursday in Buffalo, in the West region.
The matchup will tip off at 12:15 p.m. on CBS, with Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel and Allie LaForce on the call, per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.
The Tigers’ last NCAA Tournament victory came in 1998, when they defeated UNLV in the Big Dance as a No. 5 seed.
Princeton’s last NCAA Tournament appearance six years ago was a 59-57 first-round loss to Kentucky as a No. 13 seed.
Like Princeton, Notre Dame prefers to play a slower pace and shoot a lot of three-pointers, and the Fighting Irish rank first in the nation in free throw percentage and 16th in adjusted offensive efficiency.
Notre Dame lost to North Carolina in the Elite 8 last season at the Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia, and the Fighting Irish also made the Elite 8 the previous season.
Notre Dame is led by junior forward Bonzie Colson, who has averaged 17.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, junior guard and Bridgewater, N.J. native Matt Farrell, who has contributed 14.2 points and 5.5 assists per game, senior forward V.J. Beachem and his 15.0 points and 4.1 rebounds, and senior guard and Medford, N.J. Steve Vasturia and his 13.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.
The Fighting Irish are 9-8 against top 60 KenPom competition and are ranked No. 25 in KenPom. Princeton is ranked No. 59 by KenPom.
Princeton defeats Yale, 71-59, clinches NCAA Tournament berth
16-0.
Princeton cemented itself as one of the Ivy League’s most impressive basketball teams ever with a 71-59 victory over Yale at the Palestra to win the inaugural league men’s basketball tournament, clinching a 16-0 record in league competition and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2011.
Keys to the game: No. 3 Yale vs. No. 1 Princeton
Princeton pulled away late from Yale at Jadwin Gym, 66-58, in January and thumped the Elis, 71-52, in a dazzling display of defensive acumen in New Haven last month.
2016-17 Ivy League Tournament Semifinals roundup
Everybody can take away from the inaugural Ivy League Tournament semifinals what they wish. Anti-tournament folks can point to the folly of a team that finished 6-8 in league play essentially hosting a squad that went 14-0. Pro-Palestra Ivy observers can point to what was a rollicking atmosphere with a mostly full arena during the first men’s semifinal. Pro-tournament, anti-Palestra fans can look to the dip in attendance following Penn-Princeton to make the case for a tourney at a neutral location more geographically equidistant for all the Ivies.
Keys to the games: No. 4 Penn v. No. 1 Princeton, No. 3 Yale v. No. 2 Harvard
No. 4 Penn v. No. 1 Princeton
Princeton collected 61-52 and 64-49 wins over Penn at Jadwin Gym and the Palestra respectively this season, surviving some hot second-half Red and Blue shooting in the former and shooting 14-for-29 from deep itself in the latter.
In both games, though, the Tigers’ stingy defense clamped down on Penn from inside out, holding IHO Ivy Rookie of the Year AJ Brodeur to 16 points in both games combined and harassing Penn’s backcourt.
IHO 2016-17 All-Ivy Awards
The voting for this year’s IHO All-Ivy Awards was more varied and wide open than ever, as well as substantially different from the Ivy League’s awards announced Wednesday. Here’s what the site’s writers combined to come up with …
On the Vine – Mar. 10, 2017
On the Vine welcomes very special guest, Steven Tydings of CSNPhilly.com (and occasionally of IHO), to talk the captivating Harvard-Penn finish and his observations from watching both Penn-Princeton regular season games.
The panel analyzes the Ivy League’s and IHO’s All-Ivy selections and looks ahead to the inaugural Ivy League Tournament with keys to the games and predictions. In addition to Tydings, hosts Peter Andrews and Mike Tony are joined by IHO founder Ian Halpern and IHO writers George Clark and Rob Browne.
On the Vine program alert
Joining hosts Peter Andrews and Mike Tony tonight for a special, Ivy League Tournament preview edition of On the Vine will be Steven Tydings of CSNPhilly.com (and occasionally of Ivy Hoops Online), Ivy Hoops Online founder Ian Halpern and IHO writers Rob Browne and George Clark.
Listen live at 7:45 p.m. EST on Mixlr.