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Vol. LXIV, No. 11
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Wednesday, March 17, 2010
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Vol. LXIV, No. 11
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Wednesday, March 17, 2010
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(Photo by Stephen Goldsmith)
PICTURE THIS: The four seniors on the Princeton University men’s basketball team and head coach Sydney Johnson display the framed pictures given to the players as part of the Senior Day festivities when the Tigers hosted Penn on March 9. The four seniors, from left, Pawel Buczak, Nick Lake, Marcus Schroeder, and Zach Finley, helped the Tigers top Penn 68-56. The win improved Princeton to 20-8, a vast improvement on the 6-23 mark posted just two winters ago. The Tigers’ superb season landed them a bid in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) where they will host Duquesne (16-15 overall, 7-9 Atlantic 10) on March 17 with the winner advancing to a second-round contest on March 22. |
After the Princeton University men’s basketball team topped arch-rival Penn last week, Tiger head coach Sydney Johnson got emotional as he reflected on his quartet of seniors.
“We have had a heck of a turnaround,” said Johnson, whose team’s 68-56 win over Penn gave the Tigers a final regular season record of 20-8 overall and 11-3 in Ivy League play, a vast improvement on the 6-23 mark posted just two winters ago.
“We have had four seniors who have spearheaded it for the most part. They have been tremendous to the point where it makes you weep in terms of everything that they have gone through to get us to this point. I am really happy for them.”
A lot of college kids head down to Florida to get some rest and relaxation over spring break.
This weekend, a contingent of 12 Princeton University women will be traveling together to Tallahassee, Fla. but they won’t be there to lounge around and soak up rays.
Instead, the group of buddies, the Princeton women’s basketball team, will be in the Sunshine State looking to take care of business as the program makes its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament.
Cheryl Stevens climbed up Mt. Kilimanjaro last summer in training for her senior season with the Princeton University women’s basketball team.
This winter, the 6’2 senior from Canyon County, Calif. helped Princeton reach new heights as the Tigers went 26-2 overall and 14-0 in Ivy League play and earned their first-ever bid to the NCAA tournament.
The win total is not only a program record, it is the most games ever won by an Ivy women’s team in a single season.
Throughout the winter, it appeared that the Hun School boys’ basketball team had Peddie’s number.
Hun won all three regular season meetings with the Falcons and took a 42-35 lead into the fourth quarter of the state Prep A semifinal clash between the rivals late last month.
“Absolutely thought we were in good shape,” said Hun head coach Jon Stone, recalling the team’s mindset as they headed into the final eight minutes of regulation.
But when it counted most, Peddie turned the tables on the Raiders, outscoring them 20-11 to end Hun’s season with a 55-53 defeat.
Starting the season without two of its key players out due to knee injuries, the Stuart Country Day School basketball team was a bit out of synch in the early going.
Indeed, the Tartans got off to a 2-5 start as they adjusted to playing without the sidelined Jasmine Smarr and Amber Bowman.
But with senior point guard Diamond Lewis shouldering a greater share of the load and Smarr returning to action with eight games left, Stuart found a rhythm.
The Tartans ended the season with a 56-33 win over Princeton High and a 53-41 triumph over Allentown in its finale to push its final record over .500 at 10-9.