The Brown Bears (5-11) will have their chance to bring down the Ivy League’s best team when they take on the Princeton Tigers (11-4) at Paul Bailey Pizzitola Sports Center. The game gets underway at 6:00 pm ET on Friday, Jan. 29.
The Bears lost big to Yale 90-66 the last time they played. Tavon Blackmon was one of the best players for the Bears, contributing 10 points, five assists, and one steal. The Tigers, meanwhile, are coming off a 100-44 win over Bryn Athyn in their last outing. Alec Brennan played well for Princeton, recording eight points, eight rebounds, and one steal.
Second-chance points might be scarce for the Bears in this matchup. They rank 294th in the nation in offensive rebounding (OR% of 26.2%), while Princeton is third-best in the nation on the defensive glass (DR% of 78.2%). The Tigers should also expect to protect the ball well. They rank 22nd at avoiding errors (TO% of 15.5%). Conversely, the Bears force the 62nd-fewest turnovers in the nation (opponents’ TO% of 16.9%).
Brown is an eight-point underdog in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 155 points. The Bears enter the game with records of 5-11 Straight Up (SU) and 4-5 Against The Spread (ATS). Spreading the ball around is a huge part of Brown’s offense. They are 40th in the nation in assists with an average of 16.2 per game. As for the Brown defense, teams really have to fight for three-pointers against the Bears, who have allowed only 6.0 three-pointers to opponents per game.
On the other side, the Tigers have an 11-4 SU record, but have struggled ATS with a 2-4 record. While Princeton has gone 1-3 ATS over its past 10 matchups, they’ve excelled SU with a record of 7-3. When it comes to making good decisions with the ball, not many are better than the Tigers. They have one of the top assist-to-turnover ratios in the country at 1.37. Shifting to the other side of the court, teams don’t seem to hit many three-pointers against the Tigers, who are seventh in the country in terms of three-point field goals allowed at 95 this season. The Tigers have established a reputation of cleaning up the defensive glass with 28.5 defensive rebounds per game, making them one of the top teams in the nation.
Brown and Princeton will be facing off in their first head-to-head contest of the season. When they last met the Tigers were winners, moving their SU record against Brown to 8-2 in their most recent head-to-head meetings. Additionally, with a 7-3 record, Princeton has the advantage ATS. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, Princeton held the edge in all three of these categories twice in the last five meetings. Brown never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – Prince, ATS Winner – Brown, O/U – Over
Notes
Brown is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Brown’s last 5 games when playing Princeton.
Brown is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games when playing Princeton.
Brown is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Princeton.
Brown is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Princeton.
Brown scores an average of just 73.8 points per game (ranked 155th). Princeton ranks 76th in points allowed, giving up 67.5 points per game.
Brown scores just 76.8 points per home game (ranked 164th). Princeton ranks 68th in points allowed on the road, giving up 70.6 points.
The Princeton Tigers have a defensive rating of 96.0 (ranked 49th), while the Brown Bears have an offensive rating of 101.9 (ranked 249th).
Brown averages 72.4 possessions per game, scoring 1.019 points on each possession. While Princeton averages fewer possessions per game with 70.2, they score more points per possession with 1.117.
The Brown Bears average an effective field goal percentage of 49.1% this season. The Princeton Tigers have a winning 5-3 record in games where opponents have an eFG% of 49.1% or greater.
On average, Brown attempts 24.0 three pointers and Princeton attempts 26.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Brown Bears have a 4-9 record while the Princeton Tigers have a solid 8-4 record.
Brown ranks 84th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.22, while Princeton ranks 40th with an A/TO of 1.37.
Brown ranks 254th in offensive rebounds, while Princeton ranks 25th in defensive rebounds.
The Brown Bears make an average of 5.4 steals per game. When the Princeton Tigers allow 5 or more steals, they are an outstanding 7-2.
