Our George “Toothless Tiger” Clark weighs in on Princeton men’s forward Caden Pierce being named Ivy Rookie of the Week after coming through in the clutch in the Tigers’ overtime win over Dartmouth Saturday:
Yale men boosted by stellar on-ball defense from Mbeng
A few things had to go well for Yale to beat Penn last night at John J. Lee Amphitheater and keep its Ivy League title hopes alive.
They did.
Sophomore guard Bez Mbeng played lockdown defense on Penn’s dynamic Jordan Dingle in the second half, holding him to nine points after intermission en route to Yale’s 70-63 win over Penn.
”I love guarding the best player on the other team,” Mbeng said.
”Bez is the best on-ball defender I’ve ever coached,” Yale coach James Jones said, offering high praise in his 24th year at the Bulldogs’ helm after coaching other standout defenders like Trey Phills and Jalen Gabbidon. “He did a fantastic job in the second half on the league’s best offensive player and one of the best in the nation.”
Princeton men outlast Dartmouth in 93-90 overtime thriller
Ivy Hoops Online writer George “Toothless Tiger” Clark reflects on an instant classic in which the Princeton men pulled out a 93-90 overtime victory over Dartmouth at Jadwin Gym Saturday, including clutch plays by Princeton freshmen down the stretch and one of the most impressive performances by a visiting player that our Toothless Tiger has ever seen:
Three Quakeaways from Penn men’s loss at Yale
Penn squandered a golden opportunity to gain position in the race for Ivy Madness on Saturday after another brutal second-half offensive performance led to a 70-63 loss at Yale.
The Quakers (9-11, 2-4 Ivy) lost despite a 27-point performance from superstar Jordan Dingle in which the guard hit six three-pointers. After a nice hook shot from Penn sophomore forward Nick Spinoso tied the game at 49 coming out of the under-12 media timeout in the second half, the Red and Blue promptly committed turnovers on their next seven offensive possessions over nearly four minutes of game time.
Dingle, as great as he was on Saturday, committed turnovers on three of those trips, including an offensive foul.
Despite that brutal stretch, Penn still nabbed a 54-53 lead with roughly 5:50 remaining after guard George Smith hit an open three-pointer off an inside-out feed from center Max Lorca-Lloyd. But Yale (13-6, 3-3) immediately responded with a go-ahead jumper from junior guard August Mahoney.
Mahoney would later stick the dagger in the Red and Blue with roughly 90 seconds left. After Dingle hit a tough three to draw Penn within 62-60, Mahoney responded out of a Bulldogs timeout with an and-one finish over Spinoso which extended the Yale lead to five and effectively ended the game.
The Quakers lost a game which KenPom and Vegas expected them to lose. But the way they got there should leave fans with reason for both consternation and hope.
Princeton women pull away in 79-59 win at Dartmouth
Ivy Hoops Online writer George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps the Princeton women’s 79-59 win at Dartmouth, a harder-fought battle than many might have expected between the Tigers (13-5, 4-2 Ivy) and the Big Green (2-18, 0-6):
Abbey Hsu’s seven three-pointers propel Columbia women past Brown, 94-74
Columbia women’s b opened a five-game home stretch with a 94-74 victory over Brown (8-10, 1-5 Ivy), powered by a dominant performance from junior guard Abbey Hsu Saturday afternoon.
Brown (8-10, 1-5 Ivy) welcomed junior guard Kyla Jones back to the starting lineup after missing both games against Princeton and Yale last week.
Columbia (16-3, 5-1) outscored the Bears 19-8 to close out the first quarter with a 28-17 edge.
Harvard men ride hot hands to 95-89 win over Cornell
The Achilles heel of the Cornell men finally felled them Saturday afternoon at Lavietes Pavilion.
The Big Red allowed the Harvard Crimson to shoot 60% from the field as they fell 95-89 for their first Ivy League road loss of the season.
Cornell (14-5, 4-2 Ivy) showed its typical full-court pressure, but it didn’t faze Harvard (12-8, 3-3). The Crimson attacked the rim, scoring 42 points in the paint and 10 off the fastbreak.
Senior standout Chris Ledlum showed why he’s one of the best in the Ivy League, scoring 24 points and hauling down nine boards to lead the way. Senior guard Idan Tretout tallied 17, junior guard Sam Silverstein notched 16, junior forward Justice Ajogbor pitched in 12 and senior guard Luka Sakota added 10.
Princeton women’s St. Rose steps up to earn Ivy Rookie of the Week honor
Our George “Toothless Tiger” Clark reflects on the standout week that earned Princeton first-year guard Madison St. Rose Ivy Rookie of the Week recognition Tuesday:
Egger, Clark shine for Yale women as they best Brown, stay tied atop Ivy standings
Few Ivy observers would have been surprised after the 2021-22 season to see Yale women’s basketball perched near the top of the Ivy League standings in 2022-23. After all, unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection Camilla Emsbo, the league’s most dominant center, would be returning for her senior season.
Then came the summer announcement that Emsbo would miss the entire season due to injury.
But Yale has persevered under first-year coach Dalila Eshe and kept its momentum going with a 72-59 victory at Brown Monday afternoon.