August 24, 2008 at 11:02 am
Filed under Basketball, Chris Young, David Blatt, Howie Levy, Princeton, Recruiting, Richmond, Today's News, Will Venable
The Trenton Times reports that former Princeton assistant Howie Levy will be named the men's basketball coach at Mercer County Community College. Congratulations, Coach Levy!
Will Venable is likely to join the Padres in September when the active rosters are expand.
Venable was also named to the Fort Wayne Wizards' all-time team.
San Diego manager Bud Black says that Chris Young will pitch for the Padres in September.
A New England prep school player who previously listed Princeton as a favorite has instead committed to Brown.
A New Jersey guard took an unofficial visit to Princeton and has "high interest" in the Tigers.
Dave Blatt tells a short, funny anecdote from his playing days at Princeton.
Chris Mooney is pleased with Richmond's offense after the Spiders' tour of Spain.
August 23, 2008 at 8:03 am
Filed under Basketball, Princeton
For the first time in almost 30 years, Princeton and Army will face off in men's basketball. The game takes place on Sunday, November 23rd and will be played at West Point.
Fellow Patriot League squad Lehigh will visit Jadwin Gym on January 7th.
August 22, 2008 at 11:27 pm
Filed under Basketball, Princeton
We have a date for the first confirmed non-conference home game of the upcoming season! Princeton and UNC Greensboro will face off for the first time on Saturday, January 3rd at 2:00 pm ET.
August 21, 2008 at 9:05 am
Filed under Basketball, Oregon State, Today's News, Will Venable
The Princeton Packet talks to Will Venable.
Oregon State has released its 2008-09 schedule.
August 20, 2008 at 11:13 am
Filed under Basketball, Judson Wallace, Princeton
I wrote a piece for this week's Town Topics on Judson Wallace. Enjoy! - JS
Photo: Suns.com
After Success in NBA Summer League, PU Alum Wallace on a 5-Year Pro Plan
Jon Solomon
For Judson Wallace, the "three-year plan" has become "the five-year plan."
Despite enduring a disappointing senior season for the Princeton University men’s basketball team in 2004-05, Wallace immediately set his sights on playing in the NBA by 2008.
The 6’10” Wallace, who has been playing pro ball in Italy since graduating from PU, took a step closer towards achieving his goal with a successful five-game campaign playing for the Phoenix Suns in the 2008 NBA Summer League.
Starting at forward for the Suns in a slate of games played on the UNLV campus in Las Vegas, Wallace averaged 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds a game as Phoenix posted a 2-3 record.
“I’m pretty happy,” said Wallace, reflecting from his parents’ home in Atlanta, where he was enjoying his very brief off-season among family and friends.
Wallace’s experience with Phoenix was more productive than his time as a Houston Rocket in the 2006 Summer League, where he was scoreless in 22 total minutes of play as the Rockets’ starters monopolized the available playing time.
“I think game-by-game [with Phoenix], as I got more experience I got better and better, and then in the last game I thought I played pretty well,” said Wallace, who scored 1,090 points in his Tiger career, the 16th-best total in program history
In Phoenix’s final game, against the Washington Wizards, Wallace connected on his first three three-point shots, scoring 15 points, snatching nine rebounds, and swiping four steals in a 88-69 victory.
With first round draft pick Robin Lopez away from the Suns for the afternoon, working out against Team USA, Wallace had space to move inside and more plays were called for him.
“Everybody knows going in that Summer League is about developing draft picks, so if you’re not one of the guys who was drafted, you’re not going to get a lot of shots,” said Wallace.
“Early on, I wasn’t even taking my open shots. I was trying to make the extra pass, stuff like that. I was a little tentative. I’ve never thought of myself as a selfish player, so I have no problem passing up shots and getting those guys the ball. D.J. [Strawberry], Alando [Tucker], and Robin, I knew they were going to get all the shots. That’s who we ran all the plays for. I just tried to go out there and play real good defense and rebound and score when I could.”
Wallace left Las Vegas with a better idea of what he needs to do between now and next summer to put himself in a position to join an NBA roster.
“[Suns assistant coach] Igor Kokoskov said I need to get to the point where my three pointer is just dead-eye and I need to work on closing out a little,” added Wallace. “Other than that he loved the way I play and my chemistry.[Assistant coach] Dan Majerle said I impressed him. He did not have many expectations for me and I showed him a lot.”
Wallace’s success this past season with Pierrel Capo d’Orlando of Italy’s Lega A caught the Suns’ attention. Wallace was the leading rebounder in top Italian league, averaging 10.7 boards to go along with 14.4 points per game.
“[The Suns] reached out to my agents during the season,” said Wallace. Towards the end of the season they said ‘’We’d like to take a look at Jud’ to my agent.”
Despite averaging just 4.8 rebounds a game during his Princeton career, Wallace had confidence in his ability to go to the glass.
“I think I’ve always been a good rebounder,” Wallace asserted. “In the Princeton system, offensive rebounds were tough to come by. A lot of times as center I was out at the top of the key.”
In Italy, Wallace has made the most out of the more freewheeling style of play.
“I think I have a pretty good motor,” said Wallace. “Rebounding is all about creating opportunities. I try to go after every rebound, which is creating the most opportunities for me. I’m not the most athletic guy. I am not the strongest guy. I think I just have a pretty good nose for the ball and I never stop. I won’t compare myself to Dennis Rodman, but it is a similar mentality.”
This season, Wallace will suit up in Italy for Benetton Treviso, where he has signed a two-year contract. Wallace will be joined by two fellow Americans - former Towson University guard Gary Neal and Wright State guard DaShaun Wood.
“[Benetton] has a whole new team this season. I think the town is going to be really excited. My expectations are to win. I think we’re going to have a good year,” Wallace said.
Wallace will line up against another Princeton product in Lega A, center Mason Rocca ‘00, who is in his eighth season playing professionally in Italy. Rocca is making his debut with Armani Jeans Milano this year.
“Mason is a warrior,” said Wallace. “Thankfully [as a forward], I don’t really have to guard him, but I always tell the people that guard him, ‘you have to box that dude out’ because he’s got an unbelievable motor and he goes so hard. He’s given me a couple little pointers here and there.”
Next year at this time, Wallace hopes to still be building off his professional successes, setting his plan for its fifth and final stage.
“It started out as a three-year plan,” admitted Wallace. “I went to Vegas because I wanted to open some eyes and show some people that I could play on any level, just to set it up for next year. I am going to put some money in my pocket, try and get as good as I can possibly be for next summer and that’s my summer to make it in the NBA. Now it is a five-year plan, but as long as I get to the NBA, the plan is successful. We’ll see how it goes.”
August 18, 2008 at 10:57 am
Filed under Basketball, Craig Robinson, David Blatt, Princeton, Today's News, Will Venable
Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer profiles Russian national team head coach David Blatt. Russia will not advance to the medal round, finishing pool play in Group A with a 1-4 record following a 91-79 loss to Argentina.
Konrad Wysocki also saw his Olympic experience end with a 106-57 defeat against the United States. Wysocki had five points and five rebounds in defeat. Germany ended with a 1-4 record in Group B.
Will Venable was honored by Baseball America for having the "Best Strike Zone Judgment" in the Pacific Coast League in the magazine's annual "Best Tools" survey.
CBS Sportsline interviews Craig Robinson about his brother-in-law.
August 17, 2008 at 1:13 pm
Filed under Basketball, Princeton
I'm fighting a fever and camped out at my parents' house to make sure Maggie doesn't catch what I have, so a full news update will have to wait but I do have a new game for the upcoming Princeton schedule to reveal: The Tigers will visit St. Bonaventure on Saturday, December 6th. For a full list of confirmed 2008-09 games, check the sidebar.
August 14, 2008 at 8:48 pm
Filed under Basketball, Chris Young, David Blatt, Princeton, Today's News
The Town Topics caught up with Noah Savage after George's/Ivy Inn won the Princeton Summer League title.
Konrad Wysocki scored three points and was whistled for a technical foul as Germany lost 72-59 to Spain in Olympic play.
The Jerusalem Telegraph profiles Russian head coach David Blatt.
Chris Young has been placed on the 15 day disabled list with a strained right forearm, retroactive to August 11th. Young hopes to pitch again this season, but may be done for the year.
Former Ivy League Associate Director for Athletic Administration and Championships Chuck Yrigoyen has been named commissioner of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
August 13, 2008 at 9:03 am
Filed under Basketball, Craig Robinson, David Blatt, Georgetown, Richmond, Today's News, Will Venable
Konrad Wysocki scored seven points in 17 minutes of play, but Germany was no match for Greece, 87-64.
David Blatt is interviewed by Adrian Wojnarowski for a piece about how basketball in Russia has changed.
The Princeton Packet talks to Noah Savage about his performance in the Princeton Summer League final.
Will Venable cracked his 14th home run of the season as Portland came from behind to defeat Fresno 6-5.
Craig Robinson will introduce his sister at the Democratic National Convention.
Richmond is heading to Spain for four exhibition games.
It has been a surprising summer for Georgetown.
August 11, 2008 at 9:34 am
Filed under Basketball, Chris Young, Princeton, Today's News, Will Venable
C. Young (4-4) - 4.0 IP 9 H 7 ER 3 BB 2 K 4.74 ERA. 96 pitches, 57 strikes.
Spotted with an 11-0 lead after three innings, Chris Young could not get beyond the fourth frame of San Diego's 16-7 victory over the Rockies.
Konrad Wysocki started at forward for the German national team in their 95-66 victory over Angola.
Home run number 13 for Will Venable as Portland split a doubleheader with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox.
August 10, 2008 at 7:48 am
Filed under Basketball, Chris Young, Princeton, Sean Gregory, Today's News
Chris Young makes his third post-injury start today at 3:05 pm ET in Colorado versus the Rockies.
Noah Savage returned from California just in time to score a team-best 17 points as George's/Ivy Inn won the deciding game three of the Princeton Summer League championship series.
Since I can't tell what is being broadcast when/where on the NBC family of networks, I'll avoid Olympic spoilers, but play-by-play for games involving Konrad Wysocki and David Blatt can be found here.
Also in China, Sean Gregory, who posts about the experience on the Ivies In China site.
August 8, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Filed under Basketball, Chris Young, David Blatt, Princeton, Today's News
Another confirmed contest for the 2008-09 non-conference schedule: Princeton at Lafayette on Tuesday, December 30th. There are now 15 games on the tentative schedule we've pieced together. Dates for home games against Rutgers and South Carolina and a trip to Army are expected to be added soon.
ESPN has published its Ivy League ShootAround.
CBS Sportsline's Gregg Doyel wonders how Dave Blatt can live with himself.
Chris Young is interviewed for mlbplayers.com.
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