SHAKE AND BLAKE: Princeton University men’s basketball player Blake Peters dribbles upcourt in recent action. Last week, senior guard Peter scored 14 points off the bench, including some key 3-pointers, to help Princeton defeat Monmouth 71-67. The Tigers, who improved to 8-4 with the win in the December 10 contest, face Rutgers on December 21 at the Prudential Center in Newark. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Blake Peters acknowledged that the Princeton University men’s basketball team didn’t play its best as it edged visiting Monmouth 71-67 last week.

“I think most players would like to blow teams out, to do that you have to play extremely well; I don’t think we did tonight,” said senior guard Peters, who scored 14 points in 31 minutes off the bench in the December 10 contest as the Tigers improved to 8-4.

“It is very stressful playing in those type of games but at the same time it is fun. It is needed to a certain extent because when we go into the league, there is going to be six or seven games like that. So we view that as practice. Their record (now 1-10) is what it is, tonight they certainly played a lot better than what their record would suggest.”

Peters came through under stress, hitting a pair of 3-pointers in the last five minutes in the contest, including one with 1:03 left in regulation that put Princeton up 65-63 and the Tigers never trailed after that.

“Honestly, I think guarding Bashir (Monmouth star Abdi Bashir Jr.) really helps keeping me locked in,” said Peters, who hit 5-of-9 shots from the floor against the Hawks, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. “I appreciated the coaches for letting me do that. It gives me a lot of confidence that they believe in me to guard someone like that. I think when the team is locked in defensively that translates into offense.”

Junior guard Xaivian Lee conceded that Princeton was not locked in on offense through much of the game.

“I also thought we need to do a lot better on offense,” said Lee. “On a lot of possessions we got good looks and we just missed a lot of shots that we usually make in certain key moments. We finally get a good one and it back rims. I feel like that is happening all of the time. I thought, as a team, we did a good job of staying composed.”

Lee displayed his composure, ending up with 23 points, six rebounds, and six assists.

“In a game like that last year maybe I would back rim three and I would shut down a little bit,” said Lee. “I was happy to see myself still be able to take control and stay confident at the end of the game. My teammates and the coaching staff trusts me to make those plays. There was a lot we could have done better but I thought we executed down the stretch for sure.”

While Princeton head coach Mitch Henderson agreed that the Tigers could have played a lot better, he liked the way they pulled out the victory.

“We would have liked that game to have gone a little more in our favor, but that doesn’t mean that it is still not a good win,” said Henderson. “We executed down the stretch and we were fortunate. They are 1-10 but they have played no home games, not one.”

The Tigers, though, need to execute on a more consistent basis.

“I didn’t recognize us tonight in a lot of ways, that starts with me,” said Henderson. “We are going to have to trickle it down so I can help them more and it is more clear. Offensively I can help them. It starts with the offense and connectedness in the way we play. I would like to see the ball pop more. We are playing together more, we have been really successful with that.”

Henderson credited Lee and Peters with making big plays in the win over the Hawks.

“Xaivian’s kick-outs and Blake’s threes saved us,” said Henderson. “That won the game for us, those were gigantic threes.”

With Princeton facing a talented Rutgers (7-4) squad on December 21 at the Prudential Center in Newark, Henderson knows that his team will need a gigantic effort to top the Scarlet Knights as the Tigers return to action after an exam hiatus.

“We are in exams so they are going to be studying a lot, we will see them hopefully soon,” said Henderson. “We have got a lot of important exams coming up. It was Dean’s Day, guys are turning in their papers on Friday. This is it and we have Rutgers in 10 days. We know that they are really good and a really talented team. We are glad to get a win today. We will be ready in 11 days; these guys will be ready to go.”

Peters, for his part, believes the Tigers will be ready for a battle as they take on a Rutgers squad that features NBA prospects Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey along with former Princeton standout Zach Martini.

“The New Jersey games, people get up for, especially when people play us,” said Peters “They give us their best shot. Against Rutgers, we have to play three or four guys like Bashir or much better. We are ready for that challenge.”