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Venable's Display of Big Time Game A Bright Spot in Princeton's Setback
By Bill Alden
While the Princeton men's basketball team came up short in its NCAA opening round battle with Texas last Thursday, Tiger junior Will Venable proved he's got the game to lock horns with the college game's best.
The muscular 6'3, 200-pound guard slashed his way through and around the Longhorns defense for a team-high 16 points on 5-for-6 shooting.
Demonstrating his vast array of skills, Venable, also the Tigers' best defender, contributed eight rebounds, three steals, and three assists in Princeton's 66-49 loss to Texas at Denver's Pepsi Center.
Munching on a cookie in the Tigers' locker room as he refueled after his stellar effort, Venable said his heroics were a matter of opportunism rather than design.
"I think it kind of came in the flow," said Venable as he reflected on a night when he was the only Princeton player to score in double figures. "Part of the game plan was to be aggressive but that [his scoring] was not something we talked about specifically."
Venable thought that he and the Tigers collectively gave all they had as the program made its first appearance in the NCAA tourney since a 70-48 loss to North Carolina in 2001.
"I felt that we had a great team effort overall," said Venable, a first-team All-Ivy League performer this year who averaged 10.1 points and 4.8 rebounds a game. "They made their run and we tried to stop them. The heart was definitely there. It wasn't a question of effort, by any means."
Tiger head coach John Thompson III makes no bones about the fact that he depends on Venable to give the team a special effort every night out.
"Will's had a heavy burden all year," said Thompson, whose team finished at 20-8 as it made the second NCAA appearance of his four-year tenure at the helm of the program.
"We ask him to defend the opponent¹s best player and he has a lot of responsibility on offense as well. He's extremely valuable because he's good and productive in so many facets of the game. What he did tonight is what he has done all year."
Venable, who will be joining the Princeton baseball team upon his return from Denver to play his second season with that program, is determined to get another turn at the Big Dance.
"Unless you're the national champion, you are going to end the season with a loss," said the San Rafael, Calif. native whose father, Max, was a longtime major league baseball player.
"It's something that we are thinking about. Coach talked to us about working hard to get back here. We are the same team, except for Eddie, we need to fill his spot and the kind of heart he gave us."
Based on the talent and grit that he showed last Thursday, Venable may emerge as the heart and soul of next year's squad.
