Finally was able to watch the replay and was impressed with the level of intensity on both ends from the opening tip displayed by Princeton. Rebounds, loose balls, contesting shots at the rim, moving over screens, hard cuts, ball movement, not forcing shots; it was a disciplined, high-energy and cohesive performance.
Having Dalen Davis back changes the team’s dynamic and confidence level and Jackson Hicke has developed into a Caden Pierce-like offensive threat. Watching Abdullahi’s and Hubbard’s physicality, frustrating Nick Townsend on so many possessions, and Jack Stanton and Landon Clark playing so assertively showed what this team is capable of. Princeton benefitted from playing in front of a great crowd on its home court and Yale shooting poorly. But throughout the game, the Tigers played harder than Yale and when they show up with that level of urgency they will be a tough out.
In the recent “Hard Cuts” video Jack Stanton said “we want to send a message to the league that when they play us they will have a battle for 40 minutes.” They did that yesterday at Jadwin and the challenge will be to maintain that level of intensity for the next 8 weeks.
Playing without Davis, this team looked to each player to make a play, rather than watching the playmaker make the play, which was often the case with Tosan and Xaivian. With Davis back, they (so far) play the same way.
Having seen Jones’ Yale teams bully the Tigers so many times in the past, I was pleasantly surprised by Princeton’s physicality. Some have bemoaned Princeton’s lack of size and muscle over the years but our guys hung with Yalies in the middle last night Tigers had 4 blocks against 0 for Yale and outrebounded the Bulldogs 36-30. Who saw that coming?
On a related note, was it just me or did it look like Townsend lost some weight in the off-season? I made this observation to the guy next to me and, searching for any positive spin I could find pre-game, said I thought him slimming down would help the Tigers.
IMHO, big difference was Abdullahi on Townsend. He got up in his face away from the basket, stayed in front on the dribble, and leaned on him in the post; the deeper Townsend went, the more help was available. Nice job.
100%, we saw the same thing for the women’s team last year when St. Rose went down and now this year they have 5 offensive options every time they come down the court and they are not looking for Maddy to bail them out. If the men can avoid turning Dalen into what Xaivian became last year, they will be a much harder team to guard (and beat).
Aletan taps it ahead to Townsend for a runout layup. Or so it seemed. Instead, both Hicke and Clark rush back and snuff out Townsend at the rim. Clark rips down the rebound. In previous years, they would have conceded the bucket to avoid an early foul. Or only 1 player gets back and Townsend gets the putback.
I’ll also credit the physicality for many of Yale’s 3pt misses. Hicke really made Riley Fox work on both ends. Not a coincidence Fox had an off-game.
With a little under ten minutes left in the game, I said to myself, no matter the outcome, the Tigers played a helluva game and it should grow their level of confidence for the remainder of the season. Like most people here I wasn’t expecting a win going in. I was truly surprised that Yale didn’t try to pound it inside more, especially when their shots weren’t falling.
I agree that Abdullahi defended Townsend very effectively if not unexpectedly. Tigers out scored Bulldogs 33-15 from deep. 14 of 16 FT’s in final 2 and a half minutes. Can’t expect similar results in New Haven but a repeat of the effort will make it a good game. The path to Ivy Madness is a little clearer.
What we are witnessing is the result of a smart coaching staff and a deep understanding of team building. I think Mitch deserves considerable credit for recognizing that Princeton had developed a culture problem, one that emerged quickly through both the success and failures of the past few seasons. There was a noticeable shift where too much attention gravitated toward “star” trajectories rather than sustained team and program success.
Letting Xavian test the NBA process after his sophomore year was a red flag in that regards. That situation introduced real uncertainty into recruiting and player development, because Mitch couldn’t confidently project roster continuity or roles. The constant flirting with greener pastures by your team leaders will eat away at any program. That ambiguity matters at Princeton, where development and cohesion are everything.
To Mitch’s credit, it appears that he identified that drift (see coaching changes) and is now recalibrating toward a more team-first program-centric model - which is ultimately the only sustainable path for Princeton basketball.
I see a team where all 16 kids on the roster are bought into winning and the collective success of the team. Yes there will still be moments in the games where it is get the ball to Daylen and get out of the way but now that is an incredible option to have and not the base offense.
Agreed, Princeton’s identity changed last year and the team we have seen in the last few games feels much more cohesive and balanced and set up for success. Kudos to the players and coaches for sticking together to find that formula. This will not be a dominant team but when they play hard they should be competitive.
I like the symbolism of Dalen reclaiming his preferred jersey number (#3) since he came back from injury. Despite Caden not being on the team, he stuck with #22 to start the season. No longer.
They’ve officially turned the page on Pierce and Lee. This is a new team with a new identity and they can succeed without their two stars, who frankly came up short the past two Ivy seasons.
