'Prince' hands out men's hoops awards as season winds down

As the men's basketball team draws ever closer to an Ivy League title and a trip to the NCAA tournament, the 'Prince' pauses to unofficially honor the players who have made success possible for Princeton (17-7 overall, 10-1 Ivy League).

Rookie of the Year

Three members of the Tigers' heralded freshman class have made large contributions this season. Forward Harrison Schaen has, as Hubie Brown would say, the biggest "upside," often wowing the crowd with his athleticism. While he may well be the best player in the Ivy League by his senior year, for now, Schaen is still a work in progress.

Forward Luke Owings has also showed flashes of brilliance, coming off the bench several times and boosting the Tigers with his deadeye long range shooting. This past weekend was perhaps his best of the season, when he scored 23 points total against Columbia and Cornell.

But the most indispensable of the Tigers' diaper dandies has been guard Max Schafer. Although the hobbit-haired guard has struggled to hit shots, he drained a huge three that put Princeton up for good in the team's home victory over Brown. More importantly, he has quickly become one of the Tigers' most relentless and physical defenders.

Most Improved

With apologies to junior center Mike Stephens, it is the smallest Tiger who has made the biggest strides this season. Head coach John Thompson '88 often speaks of a "lightbulb" going off in players' heads between freshman and sophomore year — it appears such has been the case for sophomore guard Scott Greenman.

After seeing limited playing time last year, Greenman has started every game for Princeton this season and is perhaps the Tigers' steadiest player. He has quarterbacked the offense with aplomb, as evidenced by his better than two-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio, easily the best on a team that has struggled to hang on to the ball. And he doesn't just pass the rock — no three is too deep for him, as he leads Princeton with 35.

Comeback Player of the Year

There's no doubt who deserves this award. After missing nearly two full seasons with devastating knee injuries and being sidelined with a broken hand all fall, junior forward Andre Logan has returned from his long hiatus to provide Princeton with solid inside play.

Although he is understandably less explosive than he was as a freshman, Logan has nonetheless reestablished himself as a key cog in the Tiger machine, averaging slightly fewer than eight points and five rebounds per contest. He had one of his best games against Cornell on Saturday, posting a double-double with 12 points and 14 boards.

Most Valuable Player

Junior center Judson Wallace should be a lock for All-Ivy recognition, leading Princeton with 14.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. After starting the season on fire, posting career highs in each of the first two games, the co-captain fell into an extended funk. But he snapped out of it with a recently ended streak of five straight 20-point games — the longest such streak for a Tiger since 1977.

But while Wallace's statistics have made him Princeton's most conspicuous star, the true heart and soul of the team has been fiery junior guard Will Venable. Arguably the league's best physical defender, he has repeatedly harassed high-scorers like Brown's Patrick Powers and Yale's Edwin Draughn into horrendous off-nights.

Venable's athleticism also comes in handy on offense, where he often bails out his team with acrobatic drives to the hoop. And while he generally does not look for his own shot, Venable has demonstrated an ability to put the Tigers on his back when they are sputtering offensively. Against Cornell two weeks ago, he nearly singlehandedly led Princeton to victory, scoring a career-high 28 points. He's also been clutch, hitting the game-winning shot at Yale.