Game Info: Tuesday, December 3, 2024 - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Hagan Arena - Philadelphia, Pa.
TV: ESPN+ |
Listen: sjuhawks.com |
Live Stats: sjuhawks.com |
Saint Joseph's Game Notes |
Princeton Game Notes |
Tickets
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Opening Tip
The Saint Joseph's men's basketball team returns from Thanksgiving break to take on Princeton on Tuesday, December 3. Tipoff from Hagan Arena is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. with the game being broadcast on ESPN+ and NBCSP+.
Who's Next?
With his 18 points and trio of three-pointers against Coppin State,
Erik Reynolds II continued to make further inroads on the career charts for the Hawks in scoring and three-pointers made. By tallying 18 against the Eagles, he stands at 1,724 points for his career and enters the game against Princeton just two away from the St. Joe's top-10.
Norman Black (1975-79) and Maurice Martin (1982-86) are tied for ninth at 1,726. Moving up to sixth in the game is not out of reach as Cliff Anderson (1964-67) is at 1,728, Tony Costner (1980-84) is at 1,730 and Craig Amos (1988-92) scored 1,735. By hitting a trio of treys against CSU, the senior from Temple Hills, Md. passed former teammates Taylor Funk (2017-22) and
Cameron Brown (2019-24) to move into third on the Hawks' list with 279. Reynolds II enters Tuesday night 15 triples behind Pat Carroll (294 - 2001-05) for second and is 21 away from becoming just the second ever SJU men's basketball player with 300 or more threes. Langston Galloway (2010-14) owns that distinction at 343.
Swiping Left
The Hawks rejected 12 Coppin State shots last Tuesday, a season-high. Both
Rasheer Fleming (5) and
Erik Reynolds II (4) recorded career highs in blocks.
Justice Ajogbor,
Anthony Finkley and
Shawn Simmons II each had one. St. Joe's was also in double figures in the season-opener against Navy, turning aside 11 attempts. Prior to the game against the Midshipmen, SJU had not blocked 10 or more shots in a game since January 12, 2013 against Duquesne.
Breakout Game
Dasear Haskins had his best game for the Hawks against Coppin State. He scored a career-high 15, going 6-for-8 from the field, including 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. The Willingboro, N.J. native also pulled in four rebounds including a pair on the offensive glass midway through the first half that helped to propel a 24-10 run that saw St. Joe's take control of the game. For his efforts, Haskins was named the A-10 Rookie of the Week.
One For The Record Books
Rasheer Fleming pulled in 20 rebounds against Texas in the championship game of the UKG Legends Classic. It is tied for the most in a single game in NCAA Division I this season.
Derek Quinn of Maryland also had 20 against Manhattan on November 4. Jonnivius Smith of UTSA joined Fleming and Quinn on November 27 against Merrimack. Fleming becomes the 14th player in St. Joe's history to record 20 rebounds in a game, a feat that has been accomplished just 29 times in the program's 115 seasons.
Line It Up
Xzayvier Brown's performance at the free throw line against Texas Tech on November 21 wasn't just impressive, it was historic. By going 13-for-13, he had the second most makes in a game without a miss in SJU history. The only work from the charity stripe better was Mike Hauer who went 15-for-15 at the line at Seton Hall on February 21, 1970.
Getting Recognized
Saint Joseph's is one of seven A-10 teams in the top-100 of the KenPom rankings as of games played on November 29. Dayton (24) and VCU (42) are in the top-50. Loyola-Chicago (77), George Mason (85) Rhode Island (87), SJU (89) and St. Bonaventure (92 are also in the top quartile of NCAA Division I schools.
Scouting Report
Princeton enters play 6-3 overall and is coming off a 99-63 win against Nazareth in its last game. Prior to that, the team went 1-2 at the Myrtle Beach Invitational, topping Portland in its last contest.
It is a balanced scoring attack for the Tigers, who have four players all averaging 9.8 points per game or better. Xavian Lee tops the group at 14.8 a night, followed by Dalen Davis and Caden Pierce at 12.6 and 11.8, respectively. Blake Peters rounds the quartet. Pierce leads the squad at 6.9 rebounds an outing while Lee has 45 assists.
So far this season, Princeton has epitomized the adage of "live by the three, die by the three." It has lived well, ranking ninth in NCAA Division I with 11.4 made triples a game and is 32nd in three-point percentage at 38.9.
For as much as they excel at making treys, giving them up has been a problem for the Tigers. Opponents have connected on 34.9 percent of their shots from beyond the arc and have averaged more than seven a contest.
Alumnus Mitch Henderson is in his 13th season as the head coach at Princeton with a record of 238-135 in central Jersey. He has guided the Tigers to seven 20-win seasons, including three in a row, and a pair of NCAA tournament appearances.
Honorary Member
St. Joe's is the third Atlantic 10 opponent that Princeton has faced this season. The Tigers beat Duquesne at the Jersey Jam in Trenton on November 8. They lost to Loyola-Chicago at home, 73-68 on November 15.
All-Time Series
The Hawks hold an 11-8 advantage against the Tigers in a series that dates to 1944. Success has been bookended for SJU in the series, winning the most recent five as well as the first three. Princeton went 8-3 against St. Joe's from 1976 through 2010. SJU is 3-1 against Princeton at Hagan Arena.
Last Time Against Princeton
Four players scored in double figures as the Hawks were two points better in each half, downing the Tigers 74-70 at Jadwin Gymnasium on December 10, 2023. .
Erik Reynolds II led all scorers in the game with 21.
Lynn Greer III scored 18 with
Cameron Brown and
Xzayvier Brown tallying 11 and 10, respectively. In a game that featured 12 lead changes, St. Joe's used a 9-2 run to close the game, as
Cameron Brown tied it on a three-pointer and Reynolds II went 6-for-6 at the line in the last 95 seconds to seal the win.
Sharing Is Caring
With his 13 assists against Vilanova,
Xzayvier Brown posted the most helpers in a game for Saint Joseph's in more than three decades and the second most in a single game in Hawks' history. Tom Haggerty had 14 against Fairfield on February 21, 1970. Rap Curry matched that mark on November 28, 1990 against Drexel. Bob McNeill also had 13 dimes against Lafayette on January 30, 1959.
Home Sweet Hagan
Since officially being renamed Hagan Arena for the start of the 2009-10 season, Hawk Hill has provided a significant advantage for Saint Joseph's. SJU is 137-82 on Hawk Hill in the last 15+ seasons, a winning percentage of .626. The last two seasons have been particularly strong for St. Joe's, going 25-9 (73.5 percent) from 2022-24. 14-3 mark last year. SJU has been .500 or better at home in 12 of the 15 seasons at Hagan Arena, including six of the last seven years.
Up Next
The Hawks play on Saturday, December 7 in the championship game of the Big 5 Classic against La Salle. Tipoff from Wells Fargo Center is at 7:00 p.m.
