Princeton spoils men's basketball's opener
CMU men’s basketball coach Ernie Zeigler commented before Saturday’s game about how much better Princeton is since last year’s 55-53 victory to open the season.
Princeton returned four of its five starters and eight of the ten players that saw action against CMU last year.
The improved Tigers team Zeigler spoke so highly of showed its improvement Saturday at Rose Arena, defeating CMU 71-68.
“They were extremely prepared,” Zeigler said. “You could see the veteran leadership from when we played a year ago from about this time ... I was truly impressed with them.”
CMU, which stresses strong defensive play, struggled to guard the 3-point shot early in the game. Princeton shot 5-of-6 from 3-point range in the first half, putting CMU behind by four heading into the second half.
“We didn’t come out with a good defensive effort,” said senior guard Robbie Harman. “They were knocking down the shots and they were making the plays.”
In the second half, CMU’s defense improved, but the offense struggled for the first part of it. The teams locked up defensively and Princeton’s ability to make the Chippewas use the entire shot clock made the first 15 minutes of the half a back-and-forth type of game.
From there, CMU gradually put itself back into the game. A Harman field goal tied the game 62-62 with 2:53 remaining and, a little bit more than a minute later, senior guard Bitzer gave the team the lead on a pair of free throws.
However, with CMU up one point 68-67 in the final minute, Princeton scored to take the lead and then got a block on the other end, resulting in a free throw and a three-point lead. A desperate 3-point shot by Harman with four seconds remaining missed, and Princeton earned the rebound to end CMU’s comeback.
After shooting 75 percent in the first half, CMU held Princeton to 45.5 percent shooting in the second, outscoring the Tigers 29-28.
Polar performances
Senior forward Chris Kellermann was a force for the Chippewas last year, scoring 28 points and grabbing 13 rebounds against Princeton. This year, he finished with five points and one rebound.
“It’s a definitely a contrast between last year and this year for him ... I think they came out with physicality that they weren’t going to allow him to do things as easily,” Zeigler said.
Marko Spica did not fare too much better — the junior forward finished with two points and zero rebounds.
Zeigler said Princeton did a good job playing physical and playing strong defensively against the post players.
“They did all the tough things that good teams do to win on the road,” he said.
Harman led the team with 22 points and Bitzer finished with 19. Dan Mavraides and Douglas Davis each finished with 16 for Princeton.
Davis had found success each time he has faced CMU. He scored 25 points in the game last season.
“He’s quite a good player,” said Princeton coach Sydney Johnson. “We are very fortunate to have him at Princeton.”
Princeton’s 71 points marks the first time CMU has given up more than 70 points since Jan. 20 against Toledo. Princeton finished the game shooting 58.5 percent and outrebounded CMU 28-27.
“They took advantage of our mistakes and knocked down shots and made us pay for what we did wrong,” Harman said.
The team plays its second home game in a three-game homestand at 7 p.m. today in Rose Arena against Ferris State. The team closes its homestand against Illinois-Chicago at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Rose Arena.
