Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps a 76-61 defeat for Princeton (17-9, 6-5 Ivy) versus Dartmouth (13-11, 7-4) at Jadwin Gym Saturday: Audio Player
Jadwin Gym
LISTEN: Princeton men’s basketball tops Harvard, 76-71
Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps a 76-71 win Friday for Princeton (17-8, 6-4 Ivy) over Harvard (9-14, 4-6) at Jadwin Gym:
Audio PlayerPreviewing another epic clash between Columbia and Princeton women’s basketball
Sole possession of first place in the Ivy League is on the line Saturday night when the Columbia Lions’ women’s basketball team travels to central New Jersey to face their biggest rival, the Princeton Tigers, at Jadwin Gymnasium. The game tips off at 5:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN+.
The clash provides Columbia (18-5, 9-1 Ivy) with an opportunity to regain control of the Ivy League regular season title chase after the Lions dropped a hard-fought battle to Harvard last week, 60-54, at Levien Gymnasium in Morningside Heights.
Princeton (18-5, 9-1) can also seize control of the Ivy race with a win and close out its home schedule on Saturday with a 12-0 record. The Tigers are currently riding a 30-game home-court winning streak, the longest such streak in the nation.
Who was the last team to defeat Princeton at home? You guessed it, the Columbia Lions. On Jan. 6, 2023, Megan Griffith’s squad strode into Jadwin Gym and took down the Tigers, 58-55, in an overtime thriller.
Princeton women’s basketball races past Penn, 74-60, for Carla Berube’s 500th win
By now it’s a familiar recipe: Start the game with tenacious defense, add a heavy dose of imposing play in the paint and mix in a strong measure of sharpshooting from the outside.
When Princeton women’s basketball succeeds in combining these ingredients, it’s nearly guaranteed to win, as it did on Saturday afternoon in a 74-60, wire-to-wire putdown of Penn at Jadwin Gymnasium.
The triumph was Princeton’s 13th straight win over its arch-rival and the 500th head coaching win of Carla Berube’s career. Berube is 116-22 at Princeton after posting a 384-96 at Tufts for a career .809 winning percentage.
Yale men’s basketball really is as good as advertised – and maybe better
So much for a nip-and-tuck game with arch-rival Princeton.
And so much for a trap game at Penn in between playing at Princeton and Cornell.
Yale answered those bells emphatically with a 77-70 win at Jadwin Gym and a 90-61 win at The Palestra.
In fairness to Penn, it was a 12-point game with a little under six minutes t0 play and then Yale closed the game out with a 23-6 run. But the game was never in doubt.
If consistency is a virtue, then Yale was more than virtuous. The Bulldogs shot 57% from the filed in both games and held both Princeton and Penn to 34% shooting.
“That’s a really good Yale basketball game,” Yale coach James Jones said. “A really good game from us from start to finish.”
LISTEN: Princeton men’s basketball shuts down Brown, 69-49
Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps a 69-49 win for Princeton (15-6, 4-2 Ivy) over Brown (10-9, 2-4) at Jadwin Gym Saturday:
Audio PlayerYale and Princeton: This era’s Ivy League men’s basketball duopoly
I am old enough to remember the Princeton-Penn hegemony in Ivy hoops.
We’re talking 1965-2015. That’s 50 years. That’s a long time. Names like Carril, Dunphy, Bradley, Petrie, Calhoun and many, many more.
Tommy Amaker entered in 2007 and assisted in disrupting the world order. In 2010, Cornell made a run to the Sweet 16.
Since then, it has been mostly Yale and Princeton.
And the rivalry is very heated.
James Jones and Mitch Henderson could not be more different, personally and stylistically. But since 2016, their hegemony is crystal clear.
Yale has gone 88-28 and Princeton 85-31 in the Ivy regular season. Yale has won three Ivy League tourneys and Princeton two. They have each won two NCAA tourney games.
Little to separate them, but Yale has won 11 out of the last 14.
Princeton and Yale have, as a duo, separated from the pack.
This year, Yale sits atop the Ivy standings at 4-0. Princeton is 3-1 after a home loss to Cornell.
Yale has a league-leading NET ranking of 79 and a KenPom ranking of 75. Princeton sits at 130 and 137, respectively.
“I’m excited about the opportunity,” Yale coach James Jones. “That’s what college basketball is all about.”
And he is correct. The 5 p.m. start at Jadwin Gym will be televised by ESPN2.
Keys to the game:
- Yale senior guard John Poulakidas shooting from long range.
- Princeton senior guard Blake Peters making three-plus treys.
- Yale senior guard Bez Mbeng not picking up two quick fouls guarding Princeton junior guard Xaivian Lee.
- Princeton being able to rebound with Yale, especially on the offensive glass. How vocal an expected sold-out crowd is at Jadwin.
LISTEN: Cornell men’s basketball outlasts Princeton, 85-76
Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark recaps an 85-76 win for Cornell (11-6, 3-1 Ivy) over Princeton (14-5, 3-1) at Jadwin Gym Saturday:
Audio PlayerLISTEN: How Princeton men’s basketball completed another comeback to clip Columbia, 71-67
Ivy Hoops Online correspondent George “Toothless Tiger” Clark reflects on a 71-67 comeback win to remember for Princeton (14-4, 3-0 Ivy) over Columbia (11-5, 0-3) at Jadwin Gym Monday:
Audio PlayerAshley Chea’s buzzer-beater lifts Princeton women’s basketball past Harvard, 52-50, in instant classic
Someone had to be a hero. It turned out to be Ashley Chea.
With Harvard and Princeton knotted at 50 and only 3.7 seconds left on the clock Saturday at Jadwin Gym, Princeton’s sharpshooter guard took an inbounds pass from Skye Belker just beyond the three-point line and was immediately smothered by Harvard’s star guard, Harmoni Turner.
Chea faked a handoff and then spun like a twister to her left to separate from Turner. With one tick remaining, Chea rose up and let loose a long jump shot as the horn sounded. The release was clean as Princeton coach Carla Berube leaned in from the sideline, willing the shot forward.
The ball swished through the net as Chea was mobbed by her jubilant teammates.