The Princeton offense is back. Well, sort of.
After a season of 15-foot jumpers and missed lay-ups, the men's basketball team got back to what it does best Saturday night in Jadwin Gym against Holy Cross (6-9) in a 52-50 victory. The Tigers (4-7) made backdoor passes resulting in easy baskets, knocked down the three-pointer, and played tenacious defense. Well, sort of.
"We've had games when we went away from our bread-and-butter," head coach John Thompson '88 said. "We stayed with our stuff today, but that team plays defense in a way that's difficult."
In the early going, the Crusaders had no answer for Princeton's scheme. Senior guard Ahmed El Nokali drove to the basket for two easy layups — and the rest of the Tigers' field goals for the first half were either backdoor layups or open three-pointers.
On one possession about four minutes into the second half, the team had five touch passes in about five seconds, finishing with a cut and a layup by junior guard Kyle Wente. It was textbook Princeton offense.
But then Holy Cross went to a matchup zone which befuddled the Tigers and got them out of their rhythm. Princeton started missing open shots and didn't get the easy layups which had keyed first-half runs.
"Even when we were in that lull, we got good shots," Thompson said. "The ball just didn't go in."
With the Tigers needing a spark, Thompson went to the bench and brought in sophomore guard Ed Persia.
"I want to be in the game, especially when the game's on the line," Persia said.
The move worked wonderfully, as the guard had two steals down the stretch and scored seven of the team's final 13 points. Persia hit four free throws with 16 seconds left to keep the Crusaders at bay.
"Eddie was terrific today — he has been for a couple of games with the energy and effort he gives us," Thompson said.
The 52-50 margin was close for a game that Princeton never trailed in and shot better than 50 percent from the floor in both halves.
"We've got to get better at finishing our games," Persia said.
Even so, the victory was a major boost for the Tigers, who were coming off a tough 70-62 loss Dec. 29 to in-state rival Rutgers in Piscataway.
"This win [over Holy Cross] was a big one for us," senior forward Mike Bechtold said. "After Rutgers, we were searching for some answers."
The Scarlet Knights had Princeton questioning itself after they had a 20-2 run in the second half. Bechthold had just made a three-pointer — the first field goal of the half — to give the Tigers a 27-24 advantage. He finished with 16 to lead the team. Rutgers' run was a back-breaker, however, as Princeton got no closer than eight the rest of the way.
The Scarlet Knights blocked nine Tiger shots on the night, including a stretch where they blocked five-ofsix. The other shot was called a goaltend.
The loss dropped the Tigers to 0-6 away from the friendly confines of Jadwin Gym. Princeton's rocky road start bodes poorly for the team.
"For league play, we haven't won a road game and we open up with two on the road," El Nokali said.
Princeton heads to Harvard and Dartmouth this weekend.
The Tigers played a third game over break — against Lafayette Dec. 21 — and it was in Jadwin.
Princeton rode the home crowd to a 67-61 victory. The Tigers trailed 27-25 at the half and 47-45 with eight minutes remaining but shot the lights out late to earn the win.
Freshman guard Will Venable had a career-high 18 points and chipped in five assists and three boards. Fellow freshman Dominick Martin had his best game in a Tiger uniform with 11 points and six rebounds.
Sophomore forward Andre Logan, who has been perhaps the Tigers' most consistent performer this season, had five points, five rebounds, and two blocks.
El Nokali scored 18, as Princeton shot 6-9 from behind the arc in the second half. The Tigers had gone 0-10 in the opening stanza.
So are the Tigers ready for the Ivy League? Well, sort of. They have shown flashes of their potential this year, but still haven't put together a complete game. But their coach is confident.
"Yeah," Thompson said after the win over Holy Cross, "we won. We've been doing a better job with our offense and the group is meshing together."
"We've finished the phase where we're trying to figure things out. The league starts now."
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