NEW HAVEN, CONN. — On Friday night, the men's basketball team found an answer to its inability to hold a second-half lead: don't have a lead.
Yale led wire-to-wire Friday night, cruising to a 56-43 win over a lackluster Tiger team to keep Princeton rooted in the cellar of the conference standings.
The Bulldogs (9-12 overall, 5-3 Ivy League) used a faux full-court press to take the Tigers (12-11, 3-6) out of their offensive rhythm, forcing Princeton to spend precious shot clock seconds just to set up a play. The result was a runaway win for a Yale team that, after trouncing Penn on Saturday night, sits just two games out of first place in the league.
"It was never really a press, never really a trap," Tiger head coach Joe Scott '87 said. "It was just meant to make us take eight seconds out of our offense."
And it worked. Princeton's shooting struggles continued, as the team did not make a field goal for the first six minutes, 11 seconds of the game, until sophomore forward Luke Owings drained a three to bring his team within two.
The Tigers never got closer than that. The Bulldogs outscored Princeton, 20-9, after Owings' three to take a 28-15 halftime lead.
Yale shot 57.9 percent in the first half to Princeton's abysmal 27.8 percent mark, an advantage created by the Bulldogs' end-to-end defense.
"That was the coach's fault," Scott admitted afterward. "We should've addressed it sooner."
The Tigers staged a bit of a second-half rally, trimming the deficit to five with 3:24 remaining on a free throw by senior center Judson Wallace. But following Wallace's free throw, Yale closed the game on an 11-0 run — nine of the points coming from the free throw line — to ice the game.
Both sides of the ball
It wasn't just cold shooting that doomed the Tigers — they struggled all night on both sides of the ball.
Bulldog guard Edwin Draughan tore through the Princeton defense to the tune of 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Yale finished the game shooting nearly 53 percent.
"I knew I'd get mismatches all day," Draughan said of the Tigers' match-up zone defense, "and I knew I could exploit them."
"The defense was horrific in the first half," Scott said. "Draughan's the best player in the league right now. He's a driver, and we didn't play him like a driver."
The problems were exacerbated by Princeton's scoring woes. Wallace and senior guard Will Venable – both All-Ivy players a year ago – combined to shoot 0-9 in the game with five points between them.
Freshman forward Noah Savage tried to pick up the slack, dropping 18 points to lead the Tigers, and senior center Mike Stephens added 10. Savage and Stephens accounted for 10 of the Tigers' 14 field goals.
Freaky Friday
For the fourth time in four Ivy League weekends, Princeton lost its Friday contest, an issue that baffles Scott.
"We have to come up with a way to get ready for Fridays," he said. "I don't think we were ready to compete tonight."
Injuries have plagued both Wallace and freshman guard Matt Sargeant of late, and senior forward Andre Logan's illness meant the Tigers essentially played Friday's game with six healthy bodies. Sargeant sat out, Wallace played only fifteen minutes and Logan played six minutes and scored two points despite not practicing all week.
"I don't even know why I put him in," Scott said with a laugh.
In truth, Scott has bigger problems then injuries. Princeton is on the verge of mathematical elimination in the Ivy race — five games behind Penn with five to go. All that's left now, is to play for the pride of a program that has not finished with a sub-.500 Ivy record since the conference formed before the 1956-57 season.
"We may not win the title, but there's still a lot at stake," Scott said.
It remains to be seen whether his team feels the same way.
Read More
No. 7 women’s lacrosse season ends in NCAA quarterfinals against No. 1 UNC
Hayk YengibaryanWith the loss, the career of senior attacker Mackenzie Blake comes to an end. Blake finished her career with a program-best 231 career goals and three first-team All-Ivy selections.
With the loss, the career of senior attacker Mackenzie Blake comes to an end. Blake finished her career with a program-best 231 career goals and three first-team All-Ivy selections.
No. 3 men’s lacrosse season ends in NCAA quarterfinals after 19–18 loss to No. 5 Syracuse
Hayk YengibaryanWith the win, Syracuse advances to the final four for the first time since 2013. For the Tigers, their season ends along with the career of senior standout attacker Coulter Mackesy.
With the win, Syracuse advances to the final four for the first time since 2013. For the Tigers, their season ends along with the career of senior standout attacker Coulter Mackesy.
Preview: No. 3 men’s lacrosse plays No. 5 Syracuse in NCAA quarterfinals
Hayk YengibaryanShould the Tigers beat the Orange, they will advance to the Final Four for the first time since 2022 as they look to win their first national championship since 2001.
Should the Tigers beat the Orange, they will advance to the Final Four for the first time since 2022 as they look to win their first national championship since 2001.