What to know about No. 15 seed Princeton Tigers ahead of clash with Mizzou basketball

Missouri’s next NCAA Tournament opponent is fairly unexpected.

There haven’t been many No. 15 vs. No. 2 seed upsets in the history of the event, but unfortunately for Arizona, it was the latest victim, falling 59-54 to Princeton.

Now, MU gets to take its crack at the Ivy League Tigers, and will look to avoid the fate of the 2012 Missouri team, which fell to a No. 15 seed (Norfolk State) as a No. 2.

“Missouri is really good, really good,” Princeton head coach Mitch Henderson said. “They’re playing great. We caught a little bit of the end of their game. It will be a fun challenge.”

Before Saturday’s matchup in Sacramento, which is set to tip off at 5:10 p.m. and will be aired on TNT, here’s what to know about Princeton.

Taking down Arizona

The Tigers weren’t expected to keep pace with Arizona.

The Wildcats were 28-6 entering the game and were riding high off a victory over UCLA to capture the Pac-12 Tournament.

Evidently nobody told Princeton it was supposed to roll over. Arizona took an early lead and kept it most of the way, but the Tigers stayed far closer than most would have expected.

“I think in these games, in these moments, you have to remember, like, what got you here,” Henderson said before the game. “Of course, we’re very respectful of our opponent. This is amazing to be here and be together. But you have to be yourself.”

In the final 4:43 of the game, the Tigers did just that. They held Arizona to zero points in that portion and made enough happen offensively to give themselves a chance.

With 2:03 left, Ryan Landborg made the shot that put Princeton ahead for good. With just five seconds remaining, Arizona took a three-pointer to take the lead but missed, allowing Princeton to seal the game at the free-throw line.

“When we are playing our best, we think we can take down everybody,” Tiger forward Tosan Evbuomwan said after the upset “A great program, a selfless one, that plays our brand of basketball.

When time expired, the Tigers became just the 11th No. 15 seed to win against a No. 2 seed in the history of the NCAA Tournament. The victory gave the Ivy League its first win in the event since 2016.

How Princeton got here

Princeton current sits 22-8 on the season, 10-4 in Ivy League play. The Tigers made the big dance after winning the Ivy League tournament.

“We played our best basketball last weekend,” Henderson said. “We weren’t in the tournament till Sunday at 2.”

In their first Ivy League tournament game, the No. 2 seed Tigers faced No. 3 Penn for the second game in a row, after the regular-season finale ended in an overtime Princeton win. Henderson and company dispatched the Quakers, earning a championship game battle with Yale.

Princeton had dropped two regular-season battles with the Bulldogs, the first an 87-65 beatdown on the road, the second a home 93-83 overtime defeat. The No. 1 seed, Yale was favored by 3.5 entering the title game.

In the championship, the Tigers took the early lead, but the Bulldogs never went away. Yale cut the deficit to three twice in the second half, but a clutch offensive rebound by Caden Pierce helped seal the deal and send Princeton to the NCAA Tournament.

Despite the low seed for March Madness, Henderson made it clear he felt his team belonged.

“There’s some great powerhouse programs here. You probably don’t think of us in the same vein and UCLA and Arizona, but we do,” Henderson said. “Our charge is we recruit nationally. We aim to get the best student-athletes in the country and get them to come to Princeton. Feel like we’ve done that. You’ll see that with our players. We have a great group.”

Who are Princeton’s best players?

Princeton is led by Evbuomwan, who leads the Tigers in scoring with 15 points per game. He also posts the team lead in assists, with 4.8 per game, along with 6.2 rebounds.

Evbuomwan, who stands 6-foot-8, came to Princeton from his hometown of Newcastle, England.

“It’s just a great university, it gives you the best in terms of playing basketball at the highest level,” He said of what attracted him to the Tigers. “Obviously the academics are at the highest level, too. Just the people are great. People that are both present in the program now and were in the past. The coaching staff, all of my teammates, obviously everyone is great people”

Evbuomwan was named the Ivy League Tournament’s most outstanding player after dropping 21 points in the championship game. He earned the conference’s player of the year award last season.

Pierce, who also made the Ivy League’s all-tournament team, led the Tigers in rebounds, grabbing 7.1 per game. He was named the conference’s rookie of the year this season, after coming to Princeton having attended high school in Illinois.

In addition to the rebounds, Pierce has scored 8.3 points per game. Against Arizona, he had eight total rebounds and six points.

“It’s just the toughness this team has, making those winning plays, getting an offensive rebound, a charge, getting a hand on a ball you’re not supposed to,” Pierce said of what made his team so successful in the Arizona upset. “I think this team has a knack for finding a way to do those things. It’s really helped us.”

The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.