HANOVER, N.H. — The men's basketball team had won 18 of its last 19 contests against Dartmouth, had a better record both overall and in the conference and had better offensive and defensive numbers almost across the board. Every number was stacked in Princeton's favor entering Friday's Ivy League showdown with the Big Green in Hanover, N.H.
Every number, that is, except the final score.
After scoring just 32 points in the first 35 minutes, 30 seconds of the game, Dartmouth (5-13 overall, 2-3 Ivy League) outscored the Tigers (10-7, 1-2) 18-1 over the final 4:30 to shock the once-mighty Tigers, 50-42, and put the Orange and Black's hopes of a second consecutive Ivy League title in jeopardy.
"We wore down," head coach Joe Scott '87 said. "We couldn't maintain the required level of play to win on the road. Home teams don't wear down."
A three-pointer by senior guard Will Venable with 4:57 left gave the Tigers a 41-32 lead, but then the collapse began. Mike Lang, Dartmouth's top scorer, responded with a three-pointer, and three consecutive Princeton turnovers led to three Big Green buckets. With 2:03 remaining, the score was tied for the first time since 0-0.
After Venable missed the front end of a one-and-one, Lang hit two free throws to give Dartmouth its first lead of the game, 43-41, with 1:18 remaining. The Tigers then gave the ball to senior center Judson Wallace — who did not start after being hampered all week by a back injury — who drew a foul but could only make one of two at the line.
Down one, the Princeton defense could not hold. David Gardner, the Big Green's big man who had been frustrated by sagging zone coverage all game long, came through with a spinning layup with 36 seconds remaining for a 45-42 lead.
Needing a three to tie, Venable instead drove to the basket and drew contact from Dartmouth's Johnathan Ball, but he did not get either the foul or the tough layup to fall. The Tigers were forced to foul, and the Big Green iced the game at the line.
"They guarded Venable great," Scott said. "He's a marked man now. He has to figure out how to score when a guy's doing a good job on him."
Princeton led at halftime, 27-18, still showing signs of rust from its disappointing split in last weekend's Ivy-opening games. Venable converted a three-point play a minute and a half in, and the Tigers did not trail again until Lang's free throw late in the second half made it 42-41 in Dartmouth's favor.
Freshman forward Noah Savage led the Tigers with 10 points on four-of-five shooting. Venable and junior guard Scott Greenman each added eight, and Wallace and senior center Mike Stephens each chipped in seven.
Lang shot five-of-11 from the floor and paced the Big Green with 16 points. Chuck Flynn shot a perfect 4-of-4 and finished with 10 points for Dartmouth. Once again, Princeton's vaunted defense failed — the Big Green smoked the net at a 54-percent clip.

Dartmouth outrebounded the Tigers, 24-16, and outscored them, 32-15, in the second half. In the final 20 minutes, the Big Green shot a blistering 63 percent from the field, while the Tigers shot just 29 percent.
Trying to explain how a team that won as many league games last year as Princeton lost — one — could beat his defending-champion squad, Scott shrugged his shoulders.
"We missed foul shots that could've won it for us," he said. "There was no foul called [when Venable drove to the basket in the final minute], and we didn't make the layup. They got the ball inside and scored when they needed to."
"The luck has worn out."