November 22, 2023

PU Men’s Water Polo Edges Harvard in NWPC Final, Now Heading to NCAAs Aiming to Win National Title

CRIMSON TIDE: Princeton University men’s water polo player Yurian Quinones pressures a Harvard player in regular season action. Last Sunday, senior Quinines scored a goal and helped key a stifling defensive effort as Princeton defeated Harvard 8-5 in the final of the Northeast Water Polo Conference (NWPC) tournament at Cambridge, Mass. The triumph gave the Tigers their third straight NWPC title, a program first. Princeton, which improved to 27-5 with the win over the Crimson, will now compete in the NCAA tournament where they are seeded fourth and will face UC Irvine in a first round contest on December 1 at the Uytengsu Aquatics Center at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Justin Feil

The Princeton University men’s water polo team came into the season with the goal of returning to the NCAA Championship field to win it all.

It is an enormous goal that came with the assumption that the Tigers would win another Northeast Water Polo Conference (NWPC) Championship to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAAs. The Tigers had manhandled conference rival Harvard in their first meeting of the season, 17-11, even without one of their top players.

The NWPC title became a little less certain when Princeton lost 14-13 to Harvard in double overtime in their regular-season meeting on October 29 three weeks before the NWPC tournament.

When both Princeton and Harvard won their NWPC semifinals Saturday, it set up a rubber match that meant a lot more than just who would win the season series.

Princeton went into the final treating the game as a qualifying game for NCAAs.

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With Freshman Goalie Smith Coming Up Big, Tiger Men’s Hockey Edges Cornell 2-1 in OT

Princeton Men’s hockey hosts Cornell on November 18, 2023.

KING ARTHUR: Princeton University men’s hockey goalie Arthur Smith guards the crease in recent action. Last Saturday night, freshman Smith made 36 saves to help Princeton defeat Cornell 2-1 in overtime. The Tigers, now 3-2-1 overall and 3-2-1 ECAC Hockey, play a two-game set at Ohio State on November 24 and 25. (Photo provided courtesy of Princeton Athletics)

By Bill Alden

Arthur Smith has fit in quickly with the Princeton University men’s hockey team as he has joined the program this winter as a freshman goalie.

“The older guys do a really good job of doing the right things all of the time,” said Smith.

“It doesn’t really feel like I am a freshman, it feels like I am just a new person in the culture. They do a good job of making sure that we are all held to the same standard, it doesn’t matter if you are a freshman, sophomore, junior, senior.”

Last Friday, Princeton didn’t live up to its standard as it fell behind 5-1 to visiting Colgate midway through the second period. Smith came on in relief at that point and calmed things down, making eight saves as the Tigers fought back before falling 6-3.
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Opportunistic Princeton Football Forces 7 Turnovers To Defeat Penn 31-24 in Season Finale, End Fall at 5-5

WIZARD OF OZ: Princeton University linebacker Ozzie Nicholas celebrates after a big play in a game earlier this fall. Last Saturday, senior star Nicholas ended his Princeton career on a high note, making eight tackles and recovering a fumble to help the Tigers defeat Penn 31-24 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia in the season finale. Princeton ended the season at 5-5 overall and 4-3 Ivy League. Nicholas, for his part, led the Tigers and the league with 104 tackles. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

After the Princeton University football team suffered a heartbreaking 36-28 double overtime loss to Yale in its home finale on November 11 to get eliminated from the Ivy League title race, it could have gone through the motions as it ended the fall at Penn last Saturday.

But in the wake of the defeat to Yale, Princeton senior quarterback Blake Stenstrom vowed that the Tigers would go out in 2023 with a bang, not a whimper, as they faced the Quakers at venerable Franklin Field in Philadelphia.

“If this team is the team I believe it to be we are going to come out and we are going to attack practice regardless of what awaits us,” said Stenstrom. “Guys are going to fight and go out on a high note. There were a lot of tough ones this season and at the end of last season, and guys have never quit.”

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With New Coach Dubuque Bringing Energy, PU Wrestling Finishes 3rd at Navy Classic

STOUT DEFENSE: Princeton University wrestler Luke Stout, right, battles a foe in a bout last winter. Last Saturday, junior Stout placed first in the 197-pound weight class at the Navy Classic in Owings Mills, Md. Stout’s heroics helped Princeton finish third in the team standings at the event, which was won by Nebraska. The Tigers, who are being guided by new head coach Joe Dubuque, are next in action when they host Indiana on December 3 at Jadwin Gym in their first dual of the season. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Joe Dubuque was thrust into a whirlwind when he took the helm of the Princeton University wrestling program in mid-September.

With head coach Chris Ayes unexpectedly leaving Princeton to guide the Stanford program, longtime assistant Dubuque was promoted to guide the Tigers.

“The time was a little hectic when I got the job, three days later we had our largest recruiting visit so that was a little stressful,” said Dubuque, speaking recently at the program’s media day. “It was doing some new things that I wasn’t in charge of before while also doing the things I was in charge of prior. The first two weeks were stressful. Now I feel like I have my legs under me.”

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Saving its Best for Last in a Difficult Campaign, PDS Boys’ Soccer Advanced to Non-Public B Semis

COMING THROUGH: Princeton Day School boys’ soccer player Penn von Zelowitz, right, goes after the ball in game this fall. Junior von Zelowitz starred as 10th-seeded PDS made an improbable run to the semis of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) South Jersey Non-Public B Tournament. Von Zelowitz scored the winning goal as the Panthers upset second-seeded Doane Academy 1-0 in overtime in the quarterfinal round. PDS went on to fall 4-0 at third-seeded St. Rose in a semifinal contest to finish the season at 3-16-1. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Having gone winless as it headed into mid-October and not getting invited to the Mercer County Tournament due to its poor record, the Princeton Day School boys’ soccer team underwent some soul-searching as it looked ahead to the homestretch of the season.

“We had a pretty big meeting around the time when we found out we didn’t make MCTs for the second year in a row,” said PDS head coach Brian Thomsen. “We talked to the boys a lot, about what we can do moving forward to make sure it is a meaningful experience the last three or four weeks.”

The Panthers responded by topping Nottingham 2-1 on October 18 to get their only regular season win and then produced an unlikely run to the semis of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) South Jersey Non-Public B Tournament.

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Wilberforce Cross Country Teams Made Strides, As Brox Won Non-Public Boys, Girls’ Team Took 2nd

SPECIAL FORCE: Members of the Wilberforce School boys’ cross country team show off the medals they earned at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Non-Public B championship meet earlier this month. The Wolverines took third in the team standings at the meet, led by senior Caleb Brox who placed first individually. Freshman Micah Brox placed seventh, while freshman Elias Edwards came in eighth. Pictured, from left, are Philip Schidlovsky, Henry Jepson, Elias Edwards, John David, Caleb Brox, Micah Brox, and Andy Pratt. (Photo provided courtesy of Lois Szeliga)

By Bill Alden

As the Wilberforce School cross country runners competed in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Non-Public B championship meet earlier this month, Caleb Brox achieved a historic double for the Wolverine boys while the girls’ squad fell agonizingly short of making history of their own.

Senior Brox pulled away from the pack to place first individually in the Non-Public B boys’ race, making it two titles this fall as he had previously placed first in the Mercer County championship meet in mid-October.

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November 15, 2023

Something to Shout About

SOMETHING TO SHOUT ABOUT: Princeton High boys’ soccer players, from left, Nick Matese, Jamie Reynolds, and Nicholas Holmelund, celebrate after PHS defeated Kearny 3-2 in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Group 4 state final last Saturday at Franklin High. It was the program’s first state title since 2012 and fourth overall. For more details on the championship run, see page 27. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Voters, Candidates Reflect on Election Results

By Donald Gilpin

In a closely contested Princeton Public Schools (PPS) Board of Education (BOE) election, two challengers, Eleanor Hubbard and Adam Bierman, and an incumbent, Beth Behrend, have won the three available seats, defeating two-term incumbent Michele Tuck-Ponder and challenger Rene Obregon Jr.

Provisional and late mail-in ballots are still being counted, and the outcome will not be official until November 22, when Mercer County Clerk Paula Sollami Covello intends to certify the results.

Hubbard was the top vote-getter with 4,120 votes (24.98 percent), followed by Behrend at 3,369 (20.43 percent), Bierman at 3,276 (19.86 percent), Obregon 3,215 (19.49 percent), and Tuck-Ponder 2,514 (15.24 percent). more

Planning Board Extends Opportunity to Comment On Proposed Master Plan

By Anne Levin

After hearing from more than 30 of the approximately 160 people who signed on to the November 9 public hearing held over Zoom about the proposed Master Plan, the Princeton Planning Board opted to continue the hearing to its next meeting on November 30 before making a decision on whether to vote in favor of the plan.

In the meantime, the Master Plan is the focus of a meeting on Saturday, November 18 of the non-governmental community group Princeton Future, being held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Community Room of Princeton Public Library. The meeting, also available virtually at princetonlibrary.libnet.info/event/9547479, is billed as a conversation rather than an opportunity for comments limited to three minutes, as is the format at municipal meetings. more

Kathie Foster Named Acting Superintendent For Princeton Public Schools

By Donald Gilpin

Kathie Foster (Princeton Public Schools)

Kathie Foster has been appointed acting superintendent of the Princeton Public Schools beginning November 14, during the leave of absence of Superintendent Carol Kelley, whose resignation goes into effect August 31, 2024.

Foster, who served as interim principal at Princeton High School (PHS) from March through September this year and as the district’s interim assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction from December 2021 through June 2022, was officially appointed acting superintendent by a 9-0 vote of the Board of Education at a special meeting lasting less than 10 minutes on Monday, November 13. She will be paid a per diem rate of $1,100.

“We know Kathie to be a kind leader, a creative problem-solver, and an effective communicator,” the BOE wrote in a November 8 email to the PPS community. “We are confident that Kathie will keep the best interests of all students at the forefront, and that she will provide experienced and steady leadership to all administrators and staff.”

Foster, who served as superintendent of schools in Robbinsville from 2016 until her retirement in 2020, stepped in as PHS interim principal in March just before spring break, following the sudden dismissal of Frank Chmiel. more

Three Decades of Cultivating Community Connections Are Focus of Small World’s Anniversary Celebrations

COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: A Princeton institution since 1993, Small World Coffee celebrates its 30th anniversary next month with special events and offerings at its Witherspoon Street location, shown here, and its Nassau Street store, as well as several locations throughout town. (Photo courtesy of Small World Coffee)

By Anne Levin

Last September, Small World Coffee co-founder Jessica Durrie read a column in the New York Times about the surgeon general’s report on loneliness in America. The report cited loneliness as an epidemic — more dangerous to health than obesity, smoking 15 cigarettes, or downing six alcoholic drinks in a day.

The column, by Nicholas Kristof, made Durrie profoundly sad. Since its inception three decades ago, Small World has valued the cultivation of community connections as much as the creation of perfect house blends. The 30-year anniversary of the company was coming up, and she knew she had found a theme. more

Website Created by Lawrenceville School Student Offers Tools to Help Those with Parkinson’s Disease

By Anne Levin

Rian Julka

Five years ago, Rian Julka’s mother was diagnosed with an aggressive form of Parkinson’s disease (PD). When the pandemic forced the family into lockdown a few years later, Julka — then a middle school student at New York City’s Trinity School — knew that her condition made his family especially compromised.

Julka put together a spreadsheet to help his mother. Through social media, the spreadsheet evolved into a resource for people all over Manhattan who were coping with lockdown. The spreadsheet helped them find what they needed, and post what they could offer others. Word got out, and local press outlets picked up the story. While still in middle school, Julka was recognized for his efforts by Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.

Since then, the family has moved from Manhattan to Princeton. Julka is a junior at The Lawrenceville School.

The spreadsheet became the inspiration for moversandshakers.info, a website developed by Julka that offers Parkinson’s patients information on medical research, clinical trials, and tips to slow down progression of the disease. The site also sponsors a podcast that is hosted on Apple and Spotify.  more

Many Events Are Underway at HomeFront for Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week

By Donald Gilpin

“I’ve been here for nine years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said HomeFront Development and Engagement Director Meghan Cubano, reflecting on her organization’s recent work with thousands of local clients who are suffering from hunger and homelessness.

“Want to help? You can help,” was her theme and the headline of a recent HomeFront flier for Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, which is currently underway at HomeFront and around the country. HomeFront is offering a variety of different events and opportunities at its Lawrenceville and Ewing locations to get informed and to volunteer over the next few days and into the holiday season.

Cubano described the waiting room at HomeFront’s Lawrenceville headquarters, packed with hungry Central New Jersey families waiting for food. “We’re serving about 200 families in four-hour shifts throughout the week,” she said. “In the past year there have been more than 21,000 visits to our choice food pantry, people looking for groceries, produce, meat, dairy, diapers, baby wipes. It’s really about meeting those basic needs.” more

Thoughts on “Now and Then” and the Beatles

By Stuart Mitchner

Approaching the “last Beatles’ song,” my first thought is how well the title “Now and Then” fits the occasion. The dominant line, “It’s all because of you,” works for people who have lived more than half a century with the group as I have, as well as our generation’s children and grandchildren, like the 23-year-old who says “I was 1 when George Harrison died” in a November 3 New York Times article about Gen Z Beatles fans on TikTok.

The Romance

In last Sunday’s Times (“At the Heart of the Last Beatles Song, A Love Story”), Ian Leslie views “Now and Then” in the context of the book he’s writing about Lennon and McCartney’s “love story in songs.” While he seems to agree that “their love story is “our love story, too” and that  “their songs still permeate our lives,” Leslie views “Now and Then” as a song based on Lennon’s last words to McCartney in the hallway of the Dakota, “Think about me every now and then, old friend.” However, highlighting the romance inevitably distracts from the fact that the song and the official video with its doctored clips of Beatles “now and then” is being presented to the world as a technologically achieved Beatles reunion. While George Harrison’s searing guitar was the defining force in the 1994 “reunion” that produced “Free As a Bird,” this time it’s Paul who “came up with a slide guitar part played on a lap steel guitar,” according to the liner notes, “in homage to George,” who had dismissed “Now and Then” as “rubbish” when they first tried to work with the demo in the late nineties. more

Princeton Symphony Orchestra Presents Choral/Orchestral Classic

By Nancy Plum

Princeton Symphony Orchestra returned choral music to its repertory this past weekend with a performance of a newly-reimagined edition of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s popular Requiem. Since Mozart’s untimely death in 1791 left the work incomplete, scholars have attempted to second-guess the composer and provide an alternative completion adhering to Mozart’s intent and historical character. Conductor Rossen Milanov and Princeton Symphony Orchestra brought this rendition of Mozart’s immortal masterpiece to Richardson Auditorium this past weekend, with composer Gregory Spears’ addition of three new movements to the mass for the dead. Joining the Orchestra for Saturday night’s performance (the concert was repeated Sunday afternoon) were four vocal soloists and Westminster Symphonic Choir.

Princeton Symphony Orchestra paired the Requiem with a 21st-century work inspired by a string quartet of Mozart contemporary Franz Joseph Haydn. Caroline Shaw’s 2011 Entr’acte for string orchestra incorporated contemporary musical effects into a classically-structured piece, including passages reminiscent of J.S. Bach. Milanov led the Orchestra in a feathery opening to Shaw’s one-movement work, allowing the music to quickly become powerful while maintaining a lean quality. Concertmaster Basia Danilow and principal cellist Alistair MacRae played an intense duet against relentless pizzicati of the other players, and MacRae’s graceful lute-like playing delicately brought Shaw’s unique and appealing work to a close.  more

Holiday Favorites, Sing-Along At Annual PSO Concert

HOLIDAY TUNES: Vocalist Morgan James is the soloist at the Princeton Symphony Orchestra’s (PSO) annual Holiday POPS! Concert on December 16 at Richardson Auditorium. Shows are at 3 and 6 p.m.

Vocalist Morgan James joins the Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) at the orchestra’s December 16 Holiday POPS! Concert, taking place on December 16 at 3 and 6 p.m. at Richardson Auditorium. Morgan will sing holiday favorites, while the Princeton High School Choir carries the traditional carol sing-along, inviting the audience to join in.

The program includes Steve Allen’s “Cool Yule” and Mariah Carey’s version of “All I Want for Christmas,” plus jazz-infused versions of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” Leroy Anderson’s ” Christmas Festival “and “Sleigh Ride” are also included. John Devlin returns to the PSO from West Virginia’s Wheeling Symphony Orchestra to conduct both performances.  more

PHS Spectacle Theatre Brings “Gatsby” to Stage

GATSBY GLAMOUR: Princeton High School’s production of “The Great Gatsby,” adapted by Gary Peterson, is on stage this weekend at the school’s Performing Arts Center on Moore Street.

A stage adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic novel The Great Gatsby will be performed by the PHS Spectacle Theatre at Princeton High School’s Performing Arts Center this weekend. Shows are Thursday-Saturday, November 16-18 at 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, November 19 at 2 p.m. more

Holiday Variety Show From Cirque du Soleil

GRAVITY DEFYING: Cirque’s holiday show, coming to New Brunswick’s State Theatre New Jersey, is filled with acrobats, contortionists, and aerialists.

State Theatre New Jersey presents “A Magical Cirque Christmas — A Holiday Variety Show” on Friday, December 1 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $39-$99. 

This production features world-class acrobats, contortionists, and aerialists performing to a holiday musical score. Featured acts include Jonathan Rinny (rolla bolla, unicycle, juggling performer) and Aryn Shelander (contortionist and aerial foot archer). Rinny is a fourth-generation circus artist. Shelander is trained in Mongolian contortion and is the creator of aerial archery.  more

Annual “Festival  Of Trees” Returns to Morven Museum

“FESTIVAL OF TREES”: Morven’s annual winter exhibition is on display through January 7. The museum’s Winter Garden Party fundraiser will take place on Thursday, November 30 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Morven’s annual winter exhibition, “Festival of Trees,” is back now through January 7.  A Princeton holiday tradition, visitors will enjoy the museum’s elegant galleries, mantels, and porches festively decorated for the holidays by local businesses, garden clubs, and nonprofit organizations.

The 2023 “Festival of Trees” decorators include Contemporary Garden Club of Princeton, HomeFront’s SewingSpace Program, Lawrenceville Main Street Landscaping Committee, Mount Laurel Garden Club, Neshanic Garden Club, Nottingham Garden Club of Hamilton Township, Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad, Princeton Garden Theatre, SAVE – A Friend to Homeless Animals, Stony Brook Garden Club, The Garden Club of Princeton, The Present Day Club, West Trenton Garden Club, and ToobyDoo Princeton.  more

Covered Bridge Artisans Host 29th Annual Fall Studio Tour

“PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE”: Hand-painted glass pieces by Karen Caldwell of Sunflower Glass Studio in Stockton are among the works featured in the 29th Annual Covered Bridge Artisans Fall Studio Tour, to be held November 24, 25, and 26.

Held November 24, 25, and 26 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, the 29th annual Covered Bridge Artisans Fall Studio Tour is a self-guided driving tour located in the Delaware River Valley of lower Hunterdon and Bucks counties. The studio tour will take place in seven professional artists’ studios in the Lambertville, Stockton, Sergeantsville, and Solebury and New Hope, Pa., along with 14 additional artists at the Sergeantsville Firehouse Events Center. All studios are located within five miles of Stockton. Visitors can visit the workshops, shop for distinctive gifts, and learn from each artist about how and where they create their work. 

The idea for the tour started with a group of six area artists 30 years ago. Each was a professional in their craft and worked in  unique, rural, historic studio settings. They decided to create a tour that introduced people to their remote locations and allowed for a direct relationship with the artist. Visitors get the chance to tour the studio, see work in progress, discuss new commissions, and buy finished work.  more

Off the Wall Holiday Market at WW Arts

“TREVI FOUNTAIN, ITALY”: This painting by Robert Hazzon is offered in West Windsor Arts’ Annual Off the Wall Holiday Market, running through December 23.

West Windsor Arts presents its annual Off the Wall Holiday Market through December 23, highlighting more than 100 original and affordable artworks and hundreds of handcrafted items made by artisans including jewelry, accessories, ceramics, and one-of-a-kind items for the home.

New this year is a special focus on supporting November as Arts and Health month. Shoppers can encourage healthy hearts with purchases from a special pop-up section of donated artwork.  more

Ghada Amer Named New ACP Artist-in-Residence

ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE: Internationally renowned artist Ghada Amer is joining the Arts Council of Princeton as a long-term artist-in-residence.

The Arts Council of Princeton (ACP) has announced artist Ghada Amer as a long-term artist-in-residence, working in the studio spaces at the Arts Council to produce a new body of clay and print works.

Amer’s wide-ranging practice spans painting, cast sculpture, ceramics, works on paper, and garden and mixed-media installations. Further, she often collaborates with her longtime friend Reza Farkhondeh. Recognizing both that women are taught to model behaviors and traits shaped by others, and that art history and the history of painting in particular are shaped largely by expressions of masculinity, Amer’s work actively subverts these frameworks through both aesthetics and content. Her practice explores the complicated nature of identity as it is developed through cultural and religious norms as well as personal longings and understandings of the self. more

Hiltunen Gets Lone Tally, Goalie McCamey Posts Shutout As PU Women’s Soccer Tops Michigan in NCAA Opener

TUNED IN: Princeton University women’s soccer player Lexi Hiltunen, right, goes after the ball in a game earlier this season. Last Friday night, senior forward Hiltunen scored the lone goal as Princeton defeated Michigan in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Tigers, now 10-5-3, will play at Texas Tech (16-1-4) on November 17 in a second round contest. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Justin Feil

Lexi Hiltunen and Tyler McCamey could feel the pressure rising at opposite ends of the Roberts Stadium pitch.

The Princeton University women’s soccer team’s NCAA tournament first round game Friday against visiting Michigan remained scoreless through the first half and as the clock ticked toward the final 15 minutes of regulation. The Tigers had chances, twice hitting the cross bar, but hadn’t been able to score. more

Senior QB Stenstrom Undergoes Emotional Roller-Coaster As PU Football Falls to Yale in OT, Ending Ivy Title Hopes

LAST FLING: Princeton University quarterback Blake Stenstrom fires a pass last Saturday as Princeton hosted Yale. Playing in his final home game as a Tiger, senior Stenstrom connected on 20-of-36 passes for 240 yards and one touchdown in a losing cause as Princeton fell 36-28 to the Bulldogs in double overtime to get knocked out of the Ivy League title race. The Tigers, now 4-5 overall and 3-3 Ivy, play at Penn (6-3, 3-3 Ivy) on November 18 in their season finale. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Blake Stenstrom experienced an emotional roller-coaster as the Princeton University football team hosted Yale last Saturday in his last home game as a Tiger.

The day started with the annual Senior Day ceremony as Stenstrom and his classmate were introduced one by one before the game, escorted by their families onto the field.

“It is really special to play at Princeton, it has been a fantastic experience,” said quarterback Stenstrom, who transferred to Princeton from Colorado. “I think the culture of the team is what stands out, and just the guys who are on it. I am super honored to have been part of Princeton football for three year. I am going to miss the guys and the relationships I have built with them. You can’t put into words just how amazing my experience has been. It has been a blessing and I will miss it for sure.” more

With Battle-Tested Veterans Displaying Toughness, Tiger Men’s Basketball Produces Superb 2-0 Start

STRONG START: Princeton University men’s basketball player Caden Pierce dribbles upcourt in a recent practice session. Last Friday, sophomore forward Pierce scored a career-high 26 points and had 15 rebounds to help Princeton defeat Hofstra 74-67. He was later named the Ivy League Player of the Week. The Tigers, now 2-0, play at Duquesne on November 15 and at Monmouth on November 18. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

While the Princeton University men’s basketball program lost some key players to graduation from the squad that made a run to the NCAA Sweet 16 last March, the 2023-24 team appears to retained one of the chief qualities that led to that success.

Opening the season on November 6 by topping Rutgers 68-61 in the Jersey Jam at the CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, the Tigers displayed the resilience that made them so hard to beat last season down the stretch last winter. more