M. hoops to likely lose Logan again, faces Rutgers and then travels west

The road to the Ivy League championship just got a little bumpier for the men's basketball team.

A source close to the team who did not wish to be identified confirmed yesterday that junior forward Andre Logan will likely miss the rest of the season due to the continuing problems he has been experiencing with his injured knee.

The source indicated that Logan and the team were still waiting for confirmation and acceptance of the paperwork they were seeking which would allow Logan to redshirt this season. Assuming that the request is granted, Logan would miss the rest of the team's games, but retain two years of collegiate playing eligibility.

The six foot, seven inch wingman first injured his knee when he tore his ACL last year against Harvard. Logan was expected to be 100 percent for the start of the season, but the wear and tear of daily basketball has taken its toll on the Brooklyn native.

Logan played in the team's first three games, but his knee took a beating. He sat out of practice after those early season games to give the leg a chance to rest and recover. In the end, the decision to recuperate now and play later won over the desire to play now at all costs.

Along with losing a leader, the team will miss Logan's consistent production. Last season, he left the team as the leading scorer and rebounder. In his three games this year, Logan averaged 12 points per game, including 16 against No. 8 Oklahoma.

With Logan out, an already challenging schedule of games over winter break becomes that much tougher. Tomorrow night, Princeton hosts Rutgers in the teams' annual Battle of New Jersey. Rutgers (4-2), playing out of the Big East, has given the Tigers (3-2) a tough time in recent years with their speed and tight man-to-man defense.

On top of that, the Scarlet Knights generally make the trek down Route 1 with a large fan contingency, turning an otherwise tame student-less crowd into a raucous house with as many people cheering for the visitors as for the hosts.

The following Wednesday, the team will take on another neighbor in Rider University. The Broncs (2-3) have had a rough stretch as of late, losing its last two games in overtime. On Tuesday, Rider lost to Harvard at home, 85-82, in triple overtime.

After the local games, Princeton will head west to seek out tougher competition. Dec. 22 the Tigers will face the No. 7 Longhorns of Texas, a team that fell in the rankings due to its first loss of the season last week against Notre Dame. Texas (5-1) was ranked second in the country before the loss. The game will be televised nationally at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.

Princeton will then take a couple days off for Christmas as it heads even further west to play in the Cable Car Classic in Santa Barbara, CA.

On the 27th, the squad will take on Texas A&M in the opening match of the four-team tournament. Depending on how the game fares, Princeton will play Santa Clara or Mississippi Valley State in either the championship or consolation game.

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The Tigers finish up the break Jan. 3 when they take on Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. The squad then returns home for one game during reading period when it hosts the University of Maryland-Baltimore County Jan. 7. After that game, the team has 20 days before their next match, as no contests are scheduled during exam period.

Though the Tigers will now have to deal with both a challenging non-conference stretch along with the crippling loss of Logan, junior forward Konrad Wysocki's return from a foot injury will help them immeasurably. Though he has not begun playing yet, Wysocki could return in time to play in some of the team's games over break.