(Photo by Stephen Goldsmith) caption: GOING FOURTH: Brian Halligan of Ivy Inn passes the ball last year in the championship series of the Princeton Recreation Department Summer Men’s Basketball League. Halligan was named the Foreal Wooten Playoff MVP as the squad, previously known as George’s Roaster/Ivy Inn, won its third straight league crown. The team’s quest for a fourth title will be a main focus as the league tips off its 23rd season this Wednesday with a tripleheader starting at 7:15 p.m. at the Community Park basketball courts.

Ivy Inn’s Chase of 4th Crown Is Main Focus As Summer Men’s Hoop Tips Off 23rd Season

Bill Alden

Its name has been shortened but the team will again cast a long shadow over the Princeton Recreation Department Summer Men’s Basketball League.

After having won three straight league titles as George’s Roasters/The Ivy Inn, the battle-tested squad is back for the league’s 23rd season bearing only the latter half of its previous name.

The Ivy Inn team appears poised to add to its legacy as one of the league’s all-time dynasties, particularly with the return of Scott Findlay from a knee injury that sidelined him last summer.

“It is the same group,” said league commissioner and Rec Department executive director Ben Stentz, referring to the squad which is stocked with such former College of New Jersey players as Bobby Davison, Mark Aziz, Brian Halligan, and Findlay.

“Findlay is back; he went through six months of rehab. I heard that he is playing pickup and that he is in shape and looking good. If that is true, that is trouble for the other teams.”

While the other eight teams in the league will be shooting for Ivy Inn as 2011 competition starts at 7:15 p.m. with a tripleheader on June 15 at the Community Park basketball courts, Stentz said the champions can handle that pressure.

“They have had the target on their backs for a couple of years,” said Stentz. “They seem to relish that fact, knowing that everybody wants to knock them off. That is a sign of a championship team. They are so big, they have several guys 6’5 or above. They swallow up other teams. The play smart and they know how to use the clock. They have got to be in their absolute prime; they are young enough to be competitive.”

A young challenger to the Ivy Inn throne could be University Radiology, which boasts such recent Princeton High alums and hoops stars as Brian Dunlap, DeQuan Holman, Skye Ettin, and A.J. Dowers.

“If all these guys are there, they could be good,” asserted Stentz of the squad whose key players led PHS to the Central Jersey Group III sectional finals in 2009.

“They were good high school players, they know what they are doing. They just need that core there.”

New entry, Team T.B., is another squad comprised of former PHS star athletes that could make some noise.

“They have guys like Ben Guervil, Ahmad Best, Brandon Merrill, Taariq Parker, and Alexz Henriques,” said Stentz. “It is an interesting group and it will be interesting to see how they do.”

Such squads as Winberie’s/Miller Lite (known as Princeton Sports Bar and Grill in 2010 when they were the runner-up for the title) and the Pennsylvania Blue Devils, will make things interesting.

“Winberie’s should be in the mix,” said Stentz, noting that the 2011 league will also include Princeton Youth sports (the entry containing current PHS hoops players), YoDom, and SMB.

“They have been on the edge the last couple of years; with some good additions they could be a contender. The Pennsylvania Blue Devils are in the mix, they play good ball. They have a bunch of guys in college and they are in good shape.”

Dr. Palmer/Sportsmedicine will feature some of the league’s older guys. “They are an ode to yesterday; Freddy Young wanted to get a team like those Tiger’s Tales teams that dominated the league,” said Stentz.

“They had some younger legs last year; with the right additions, they are capable of competing for a league title. They are relying on veterans but you need those young legs in this league with the heat and all the running up and down.”

One of the league’s more notable young guys will be Avery Robinson of Ivy Inn, the son of former Princeton star and Oregon State coach Craig Robinson and the nephew of President Obama.

“I want to get President Obama or at least Michelle to come to one of his games,” said Stentz with a laugh.

“Stedman Graham (Oprah Winfrey’s sometime boyfriend) was at some games last year. Maybe we could get President Obama and him to play some one-on-one at halftime.”

Whether or not the president makes his way to the Community Park Courts, the Ivy Inn’s campaign for a title grand slam will draw plenty of attention.

“People are talking about the season getting started,” said Stentz. “There is a lot of talk about whether Ivy Inn can repeat.”

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