M. hoops inconsistent in five games

Before Winter Break even started, everyone knew that the men's basketball team would not be able to judge its five-game performance on record alone. In a three-week span the Tigers faced No. 2 Duke in the famed Cameron Indoor Stadium and No. 7 Oklahoma in Oklahoma City at a "neutral" site.

Sandwiched around those games were matchups with instate rival Rutgers, Lafayette from the Patriot League and Loyola. The prognosticators predicted wins against Lafayette and Loyola, losses against the ranked teams and no line on the Rutgers game.

In that respect, the squad's 1-4 record disappointed some. But, perhaps more importantly, the Tigers' inconsistent play has left many questions about where the team stands a month away from conference play.

Surprisingly, Princeton played its best ball when under the most scrutiny. Both the Duke and Oklahoma games were on national television in hostile environments. And head coach John Thompson's squad exceeded any realist's expectations.

Princeton trailed Duke by just four points at the first media timeout in the second half and stayed close on the Blue Devils' heels until late in the ballgame when Duke finally pulled away for an eighteen-point victory.

Against the Sooners in Oklahoma's capital, the Tigers took a one-point lead into halftime and used a late 10-0 run to give themselves a chance. Senior guard Ed Persia's last-second heave clanked off the front rim for what would have been an overtime-inducing bucket.

Certainly Princeton proved its mettle in those two games, showing that it can compete with national powerhouses and could possibly cause a stir if they win the Ivy League and make the NCAA tournament in March.

But in sharp contrast to those encouragements, in Princeton's only home game of the break against Lafayette the team looked slow, flat and lazy. The offense stagnated, and the team shot miserably from the floor. The defensive game ended in a 47-44 Tiger loss and raised concerns about the team's ability to avoid playing down to its competition.

"We realize we can literally play with anyone in the country," Thompson said. "But at the same time, if we don't dot our i's and cross our t's, we can lose to anyone in the country."

The Ivy League is full of teams that Princeton outclasses on paper. The ultimate success of the team will rest on its ability to capitalize on that advantage night in and night out.