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Exclusives: From
the Cheap Seats
March 21, 2001 By Matt Golden '94 "Princeton basketball's new head coach doesn't want to hear it, but expectations for the 2001-01 season must be tempered. The Tigers simply do not have the horses to challenge Penn." -- Princeton Alumni Weekly, November 22, 2000. Yes, I'm responsible for that gem of a prediction. So you probably don't care who I think will take home the million bucks on Survivor II -- but I'm picking Keith the chef for those of you who do. After watching senior captain Nate Walton cut the final cord of a championship net and drape it around his neck on March 6, Princeton head coach John Thompson '88 reminded us media prognosticators just how wrong were about his Tigers. He said in his post-championship press conference, "I guess the cupboard wasn't quite as bare as you guys thought it was." No it was not. But when Princeton lost All-Ivy performers Chris Young '02 and Spencer Gloger '03 along with head coach Bill Carmody before the season's first practice, things looked bleak in Tigertown. Then point guard Ahmed El Nokali '02 and Walton suffered injuries, and Duke embarrassed Princeton on national television in the preseason NIT. Despite all that, Thompson had just enough ingredients left in the cupboard to whip up a recipe for Ivy success. Though the circumstances were precarious at best when Thompson took over, he never allowed this season to be about who was missing from the Tiger lineup. Thompson refused to discuss or concern himself with what-might-have-been when Princeton stumbled out of the gate with a 4-7 record. And after four straight wins in early Ivy play, with reporters and fans speculating about a possible Penn/Princeton showdown for the Ivy's top spot, Thompson stayed true to his season-long mantra -- "With this team, this year, we can't afford to worry about anything but Princeton basketball." In doing so, Thompson set the tone for a Tiger team that adopted an us-against-the-world mentality. Walton, El Nokali, and crew believed they were the team to beat for the Ivy title, regardless of what the media or logic had determined. A trio of freshmen (Konrad Wysocki, Andre Logan, and Ed Persia) developed into prime contributors for Princeton, and the ailments of Walton and El Nokali began to heal. So, when the Tigers laid a whipping on the Penn Quakers in the Palestra on February 13, I began to believe that this might be a special season. Unfortunately, my faith wasnÌt strong enough to weather a weekend sweep at the hands of Columbia and Cornell three days later. But Thompson's never wavered, and neither did his team's. The Tigers have not lost a game since (as of March 15), and not too many people are asking me for predictions these days. But I've got a feeling about that chef.
You can reach Matt Golden at golden2@erols.com
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