Penn versus Princeton: Renewing a rivalry

The Penn men's basketball team heads to Princeton to play for first place in the Ivies. It doesn't get any bigger than this for the Penn basketball team. Twenty-three games have been played as a mere prelude to this game, and all future games will be affected by its outcome. When the Quakers travel to Jadwin Gymnasium tonight, they will enter the Tigers' den to face Princeton, eighth-ranked in the CNN/ESPN poll. The Ivy League lead will be in the balance. The math is very simple for Penn. Win this game and the Quakers (14-9, 7-1 Ivy League) will be tied atop the standings with Princeton (20-1, 8-0). If the Quakers lose, however, they will be forced to rely upon one of their fellow league members to take down the Tigers. So far, the Ivy League teams have only served to pad Princeton's victory total, falling by an average score of 74-49. "This is the biggest game of the season because it is the one right in front of us," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "It's the most important game because we have to win it to maintain control of our own destiny." Penn almost saw the Ivy League title slip farther away when it found itself down by 20 late in the game to Yale over the weekend. As Penn forward Jed Ryan said, the Princeton game seemed like it would be a lot less important. Yet the desperate comeback by the Quakers has allowed tonight's match-up to maintain its luster, while also boosting the Quakers' confidence. "The comeback shows that we can overcome adversity," Penn guard Michael Jordan said. "We don't want to be in the situation again, but it shows the character the team has." However, last season Penn fell twice by double digits to Princeton. While the Quakers' offense was solid in both games, the Tigers used their infamous back door cuts to shoot over 60 percent from the field in both contests. With the Tigers boasting the nation's top scoring defense, it's imperative that Penn shut down the Princeton offense. "I wouldn't say we need to play the perfect game to win against Princeton," Ryan said. "I would say that we need to play the perfect game defensively." In order to stop the Tigers, Penn has to shut down all aspects of a Princeton offensive system that the team knows all too well. The Tigers are willing to patiently work the ball around the perimeter for the best possible shot, as shown by their 61 percent shooting within the three-point line. Princeton also takes half of its shots from beyond three-point range, averaging nine threes made a game -- yet the Tigers have shown a slightly different offensive philosophy under second-year coach Bill Carmody. "The system is the same as it was under [long time Princeton coach Pete] Carril," Dunphy said. "But the speed of play has picked up a little bit." Princeton's offensive production is spread amongst the Tigers' five starters, each of whom average between eight and 14 points per game. Junior forward Gabe Lewullis leads the Tigers with 14 points and five boards per game, while junior guard Brian Earl averages 13.5 points per game and three trifectas per contest. Yet what makes the Tigers so difficult to defend is their ability to interchange players and positions throughout the game. "They all do the same things," Ryan said. "Right now they have the five best guys for their system." The most difficult matchup for the Quakers could be Princeton's 6'10" center Steve Goodrich, who figures to be matched up against shorter defenders during the entire night. Goodrich averages 11.6 points per contest, but is arguably the Tigers' best player because he complements his low-post game with pin-point passing and the occasional three-pointer. Dunphy will call on a variety of players to stop Goodrich -- the first being defensive stopper George Mboya, who will receive a rare start. "They've had some tough breaks [with injuries to their big men]," Goodrich said of the Quakers. "At the same time, they are all physical guys despite being undersized." On the offensive side, Penn will try to counter with its own balanced attack. Jordan continues to lead the Quakers with 16 points per game, but sophomore swingman Matt Langel has emerged in recent weeks to average 19 points over the past seven games. Langel's 58.6 percent shooting on three-pointers tops the country, as the Quakers are hitting 43 percent of their treys as a team. "They can shoot the heck out of the ball," Carmody said. "They are a very veteran team and they are a very balanced team." Princeton has shut down its opponents better than any team in the country, yielding only 49.9 points per game -- silencing opponents' three-point threats, forcing only 30 percent shooting from downtown. The Quakers, who often live and die by the three, could find some needed scoring help from Ryan, who appears ready to play after breaking his right pinky finger 11 days ago. "I'm ready to go now, I'm almost at full speed," Ryan said. "[The injury] doesn't affect my ability to shoot. I was supposed to be out four weeks, so it's been a quick recovery." Ryan has been spurred on by the hope of playing in the biggest game for Penn since these two teams met in a one-game playoff for the Ivy title in March 1996. While the two teams have combined for 27 of the last 29 Ivy League titles, this year's game is receiving more attention because of Princeton's lofty ranking. Yet even Goodrich and Carmody are willing to admit the ranking is inflated. This year's team may not be the best in recent Ivy League years. "Its hard to be better than the Penn teams from 1993-1995," Carmody said. "This team hasn't even won the league yet, so I can't start to measure it." In Ivy League play, the regular season title means everything. The Tigers may be ranked, but a Penn win tonight would make all things equal.

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