Men’s Basketball
1. Princeton vs. Harvard Saturday, Feb. 22: The Tigers will have faced Harvard once already at this point in the season, and a win over the Crimson in this game would be great for their hopes of dethroning the defending Ivy League champs. Harvard was the unanimous pick to win the league in the preseason poll, but the Crimson has not beaten the Tigers in Jadwin Gymnasium in their past 24 encounters there. The game will also air on ESPN3.
2. Princeton vs. Penn Tuesday, March 11:Besides being a huge rivalry game for the Tigers, the final home game of the season could have very important implications for the Ivy League. Princeton will take on a Penn team projected to finish second in the league despite going only 6-8 in league play last season. Last year’s senior class became only the fourth class in the Jadwin Gym era to win all four of its home games against Penn, and now this year’s senior class will try to become the fifth.
3. Princeton vs. Yale Friday, Feb. 28:The Tigers will be looking for revenge when they take on Yale at home this year, as last year’s meeting in Jadwin between the two teams ended with the Bulldogs breaking the Tiger’s 21-game Ivy League home winning streak. The loss was Princeton's only home loss against an Ivy opponent. The Bulldogs were projected to finish third in the preseason poll, so this game will likely have important implications for the two teams.
4. Princeton vs. Columbia Friday, Feb. 7:Princeton'sfirst Ivy home game of the season will come against a Columbia team that they have beaten eight straight times. The Tigers will have already played three Ivy road games by this point, and they will be glad to be return to Jadwin, as eight of their previous 10 games will have taken place on the road. The Lions were picked to finish last in the Ivy League by a very slim margin, obtaining 37 points while Cornell and Dartmouth received 38.
5. Princeton vs. George Mason Tuesday, Nov. 26:The matchup against the Patriots will be the Tigers' fifth game of the season and their third at home. Princeton should be in good form by this point and will have a good test against a George Mason team that is arguably the best non-Ivy team the Tigers will play in Jadwin this season.
Women’s Basketball
1. Princeton vs. Harvard Friday, Jan. 31:The Tigers have gone a very impressive 54-2 in Ivy League play over the past four seasons. Both those losses, however, have come against the Crimson, including a 58-55 loss last year in Cambridge that snapped Princeton’s 33-game conference winning streak. The Tigers were picked to finish first in the Ivy preseason poll, but Harvard is not far behind, and this game will likely be a must-win.
2. Princeton vs. Penn Tuesday, March 11:Before the men’s team takes on Penn in its last game of the seasonTuesdaynight at8 p.m., the women’s team will do the same at5:30 p.m.The doubleheader should be very exciting for Princeton fans, but the Tigers hope that they will have clinched the Ivy League by this point. Regardless, the Quakers, predicted to finish third, will be eager either to play spoiler or to defeat Princeton for the Ivy title.
3. Princeton vs. Marist Sunday, Nov. 17:While the Tigers were almost perfect in Ivy League play last season, five non-conference losses in the first half of the season prevented them from being seeded higher in the NCAA tournament, something that would have been very helpful for a squad that has lost in the first round of the tournament each of the past four years. Marist was among those losses, and a win this year would be huge for the Tigers. Additionally, the game will be Princeton's home opener.
4. Princeton vs. Yale Saturday, Feb. 15:Yale rounds out the top half of the league, the weakest of the four teams that received at least 90 points in the preseason poll. The game will be approximately halfway through conference play and should give us a good indicator of how good a squad the Tigers are by this point.
5. Princeton vs. Delaware Sunday, Dec. 15:Avenging last year's loss to Delaware, like beating Marist, could really benefit Princeton's postseason chances. Last year’s game was the closest game the Tigers played all season, as they lost by a single point. Although Delaware lost a great player in Elena Delle Donne, it is still a strong team, and a Princeton win would be helpful in proving that the Tigers deserve a higher seed in the NCAA tournament.
