| Date: Mar. 12, 2002 | Score: Louisville 66, Princeton 65 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Reece Gaines (23) Princeton: Mike Bechtold (24) |
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| Coming into the game, Coach Pitino said that Princeton was the last team in the 40-squad NIT field that he wanted to face, and this game showed why. With methodical patience, some brilliant passing, and some three-point shooting like you've never seen, Princeton was within a few seconds of knocking off the Cardinals in Freedom Hall. Save for U of L's dominance on the boards, and the clutch play of Reece Gaines, whose on-floor memories and legend is starting to grow and grow, the Cards might have been in real trouble. Princeton got out of the gate faster than U of L, as Mike Bechtold, who led the Tigers with 24 points, hit three three-pointers in the opening minutes to give Princeton a 14-7 five and half minutes into the game. But after U of L got used to Princeton's passing scheme, and after the Tigers cooled off a bit, U of L was able to pull back into a tie with 9:04 left in the first half. Then the Cardinals got a surprise boost from the bench. Guard Carlos Hurt entered the game, making his first appearance since mid-January, when Hurt had back surgery. Hurt was expected to return next week, but came in early. Although not as sharp as he was when he went out with the injury, he did drain a three and hit a runner in the lane to give the Cards a three-point lead. Erik Brown then hit two straight buckets for the Cardinals to give U of L a 23-18 lead, but U of L led only 29-27 at halftime. |
| The Cards looked to be in control of the game in holding a nine-point lead with 4:49 to play, but Princeton had other ideas. Princeton found the touch from three-point range again, sometimes making and taking shots from NBA three-point range. After hitting three straight threes, the Tigers were within 55-52 with 3:54 left. Ed Persia, who hadn't made a shot until he made a three with 4:46 left, made two of thoese threes, then connected on another on Princeton's next possession. Meanwhile, the Cards were getting nothing done from the field, but rather getting all their points from the foul line. For the game, the Cards were 21-30 from the charity stripe, while Princeton was only 7-10. Gaines, who led U of L with 23 points, including 10-12 from the line, made two free throws to push U of L's lead back to five with 3:41 left. At that point, U of L had scored their last eight straight points from the line. Persia, who finished with 11 points, hit a three to cut U of L's lead to 57-55 with 3:14 left; the Cards hit two more free throws before Ray Robins, who had 15 for Princeton, hit a three to pull Princeton within one at 59-58 with 2:14 left. The Cards then got a huge shot from Bryant Northern, who had been 0-5 from three-point range up until the one he hit that put the Cards up 62-58 with 1:48 remaining. Northern also had five turnovers on the game. |
Then the Cards did their part to keep Princeton alive. Luke Whitehead, one of three Cardinal players in double-figures with 10 points, fouled Robins on a three-point attempt; Robins made two of the free throws to pull the Tigers to within 62-60 with 1:35 left. Whitehead then hit two free throws himself, but on Princeton's next possession, Erik Brown, who had 10 points for U of L, fouled Bechtold on a three-point attempt, and Bechtold hit all three to keep the Tigers one-point down at 64-63. Erik Brown missed an open jumper with 32 seconds left. Princeton got the rebound and called timeout with 28.5 seconds left. When play resumed, Ed Persia was able to go backdoor, received a perfect pass and hit a lay-up that gave Princeton the lead at 65-64 with 11.9 seconds left. The Cards did not call a timeout. Gaines took a pass from Northern at midcourt, drove the lane, and banked in a six-footer under pressure with 5.3 seconds left. Princeton got off a three-pointer at the buzzer that bounced off the rim, and the U of L victory was preserved. For the contest, the Tigers were 12-25 from three-point range, hitting five of those in the last five and a half minutes. One big edge the Cards enjoyed was on the glass -- for the game, U of L outrebounded Princeton 32-22.  |
