Princeton (3-4) @ UNCG (2-5)

When: Sunday, December 13 1 pm
Where: Greensboro Coliseum (7,617/23,500)
TV: None

Princeton Athletics
Princeton Blog
Ivy League Forum

Daily Princeton Preview


Spartan Notes:
- Last time out, UNCG missed two potential game tying 3 pointers in the final 20 seconds and fell to preseason SoCon favorite College of Charleston 69-66. The Spartans were led by Ben Stywall's 21 points and 14 rebounds.
- Mondays game was Stywall's second straight double-double. He scored 11 points and pulled down 15 rebounds against Samford on Saturday.
- According to an N&R article, guard Mikko Koivisto has been battling a hip strain for the past 2 games.
- UNCG is still winless in its new home, the Greensboro Coliseum. So far the Spartans have dropped games to # 22 Clemson, East Carolina and Charleston.
- Stywall is leading UNCG in scoring (12.9) and rebounding (9.3). Kyle Randall leads in assists (2.6).
- For the season, UNCG is shooting 39.6% from the field, 36.3% from behind the arc and 69.4% from the free throw line.

Tigers Notes:
- In their last game, Princeton overcame a 2 point halftime deficit to beat Lafayette 62-48. Douglas Davis paced the Tigers with 21 points.
- Princeton defeated UNCG 65-55 at Jadwin Gym last season. It was a poor shooting night for both teams. UNCG shot 29.6%, while Princeton was only slightly better at 38.2%. Davis (15 points) and Dan Mavraides (17 points) lead the Tigers.
- Princeton has 9 players that average playing more than 13 minutes a game.
- Davis leads the team in scoring (13.1). Marcus Schroeder leads in rebounding (4.0), assists (2.4) and minutes played (36.0).
- For the season, Princeton is shooting 40.2% from the field, 35.2% from behind the arc and 76.5% from the free throw line.

My Thoughts:
First off ... UNCG, please don't use the foul strategy to get back into this game. I couldn't overlook the fact that this team shoots over 75% from the free throw line. This was the one decision that Coach Dement made last year that caused to me to lose my mind. We turned a 1 possession game into a 10 point loss.

I think UNCG can take advantage of the Tigers being a very weak rebounding team. The Spartans are averaging almost 8 more boards a game than Princeton. However, Davis made seven 3 pointers in Princeton's last game. UNCG will have to play better perimeter defense than they have in their last 2 home contests.

I'm afraid the biggest factor on Sunday may be the crowd. With forecasters calling for some winter weather tonight, there might be very few people in attendance for a 1 pm Sunday tip off. The Spartans are going to have to bring their own intensity to the Greensboro Coliseum and not depend on crowd noise to help. If so, I think UNCG can be successful.

Go Spartans !!!