The Tigers look to continue their success from last season, when they won 20 of their last 25 games. History is not on Princeton’s side, however, as the Tigers will have to overcome a recent trend of losing to Rutgers. The Tigers last beat the Scarlet Knights on Dec. 8, 2004, 53-40 in Jadwin, and Rutgers has won 10 of the last 11 contests against Princeton, including a 58-44 victory last season.
Yet a defeat of Rutgers is certainly within Princeton’s reach. The Tigers return their top five scorers from last season, one of the main reasons the team has been picked as the Ivy League favorite. The Scarlet Knights underwent a tumultuous offseason, which featured the hiring of new head coach Mike Rice and the departure of what was supposed to be the core of the team. Rutgers lost its leading scorer, guard Mike Rosario, in a transfer to Florida, while center Greg Echenique, one of the rising big men in the Big East and Rutgers’ leading rebounder, transferred to Creighton. The Scarlet Knights also lost center Hamady Ndiaye, who graduated and was drafted in the second round of the NBA Draft.
Victory over Rutgers will not come easy, though, as the Scarlet Knights return All-Freshman Big East forward Dane Miller and forward Jonathan Mitchell, who averaged nearly 12 points per game last year.
The key matchups to note are at the forward position, where senior Kareem Maddox, junior Patrick Saunders and sophomore Ian Hummer will share playing time matching up against Miller and Mitchell. If the Tigers can contain Miller and Mitchell and prevent them from putting up big numbers, Princeton should be able to control the offensive pace of the game. This would put the Tigers in a good position, as the Scarlet Knights do not seem to have the offensive capability to outscore the Tigers.
Following the home opener on Friday, Princeton will travel to face Duke on Sunday as part of the College Basketball Experience Classic. Princeton last played Duke in 2007 as part of the Maui Invitational, losing 83-61. Sunday’s game will open the Blue Devils’ season, and it is certain that coach Mike Kryzewski will have his team prepared as it begins its national title defense.
Princeton’s matchup against Duke is the first time the Tigers will face a defending national champion since Princeton’s historic defeat of University of California, Los Angeles, in the 1996 NCAA tournament. Head coach Sydney Johnson ’97, who was a key member of that 1996 team, can convey to this year’s Tigers what it will be like to face the reigning national champions on a national stage. Johnson scored five points in the final minutes to tie UCLA before the Tigers pulled out the upset. Princeton will need a heroic performance similar to Johnson’s if the Tigers are to defeat the Blue Devils and their potent offense.
While Duke lost Jon Scheyer — its leading scorer — as well as two other starters, the team retained forward Kyle Singler and guard Nolan Smith. The duo averaged 35.1 points, 9.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists a game last season. Singler and Smith look to improve upon those numbers in the more up-tempo offense Krzyzewski will use to accommodate the arrival of freshman point guard Kyrie Irving and sophomore transfer Seth Curry.
The key for Princeton in pulling off an upset is controlling the pace of the game. Just as the Tigers defeated UCLA in low-scoring fashion, Princeton must slow down Duke’s offensive pace to contain Singler and Smith. This would force Duke to play solid defense and create offense. If Princeton is unable to do this, the Tigers may find themselves in the middle of a track meet, unable to keep up with Duke’s explosive offense.
While this weekend features two of the tougher opponents on Princeton’s schedule, the Tigers are confident and look to set a high standard of preparation and intensity for the entire season.
“We’ve prepared for these games like any others,” Maddox said. “We know that these are two extremely tough teams, but our goals don’t change. We want our intensity and focus to be there all season, so these games are even more important in terms of setting the tone for ourselves.”
Princeton intends to draw on its experience and focus this weekend in its attempt to defeat big-name opponents on a large stage.
“Duke and Rutgers will be a little bigger and a little more athletic than us, but we have played many teams like that in the past and we know that those advantages can be lessened by playing hard and playing smart,” senior guard and tri-captain Dan Mavraides said. “Both teams like to get up and down the court — they like to push the ball and pressure their opponents — and we are expecting that. We have experience playing against teams with that mentality, and we know how important it is to stay composed and not allow the other team to make us play their game by speeding us up or slowing us down.”
Playing tough non-conference opponents early will be beneficial for the Tigers, as they gain valuable experience that can later be used in pursuit of the Ivy League title.
“It’s going to be extremely helpful to get to play in these big games early,” Maddox said. “We know that we’re going into a hostile environment at Duke, and Rutgers is right down the road from us, so the challenge will obviously be there. Down the road it will be good if we can draw on these experiences in our tough league games.”
Correction: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this article misstated Duke’s ranking.
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