The 1997–98 Princeton Tigers men's basketball team represented

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

in intercollegiate

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

during the

1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began in November 1997 and concluded with the 64-team 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, whose finals were held at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The Kentucky Wildcats ear ...

. The

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

was

Bill Carmody William D. Carmody (born December 4, 1951) is an American retired men's college basketball coach, formerly the head coach at the Holy Cross Crusaders men's basketball, College of the Holy Cross. He was the head coach of the Northwestern Wildc ...

and the team co-

captains Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

were

Steve Goodrich Steven Withington Goodrich (born March 18, 1976) is a former National Basketball Association (NBA) player who played center for the Chicago Bulls and New Jersey Nets in the early 2000s. Goodrich averaged 1.1 points per game and 8.7 minutes per g ...

and

Mitch Henderson Mitchell Gordon Henderson (born August 14, 1975) is an American college basketball coach, currently serving as head coach for the Princeton Tigers men's basketball team. Before taking the Princeton job in 2011, he served as an assistant for the ...

. The team played its home games in the

Jadwin Gymnasium The L. Stockwell Jadwin Gymnasium is a 6,854-seat multi-purpose arena at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. The arena opened in 1969. It is home to the Princeton Tigers college basketball teams. It replaced Dillon Gymnasium, the ho ...

on the University campus in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

, and was the repeat undefeated champion of the

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

, which earned them an invitation to the 64-team

1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 12, 1998, and ended with the champio ...

where they were seeded fifth in the East Region and advanced to the second round. Over the course of the season, the team achieved the highest winning percentage in the nation (93.1%, 27–2). It also established the current school record of 20 consecutive wins surpassing the 19-game streak achieved twice, including the prior season. Using the

Princeton offense The Princeton offense is an offensive basketball strategy which emphasizes constant motion, back-door cuts, picks on and off the ball, and disciplined teamwork. It was used and perfected at Princeton University by Pete Carril, though its roots m ...

, the team posted a 27–2 overall record and a 14–0 conference record. The team entered the tournament on a 19-game winning streak. In a March 12, 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament East Regional first round game at the

Hartford Civic Center Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 census. Hartford is the most populous city in the Capitol Planning Region and the core city of ...

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

, Connecticut, the fifth-seeded Tigers defeated 69–57. Then two days later in the second round the team lost to the

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...

63–56. The team's season-opening 62–56 win against

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic on November 11, 1997, was the team's last win against a ranked opponent until the 2011–12 team defeated

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

on February 11, 2012. During the season, the team entered the fourth Associated Press Top Twenty-five Poll (for the week of December 2) ranked twenty-fifth and climbed steadily each week until it ended the season ranked eighth. The team also finished the season ranked eighth in the final USAToday/NABC Coaches Poll. The team was led by first team All-Ivy League selections Goodrich and

Gabe Lewullis Gabe may refer to: People Given name *Gabe Alvarez (born 1974), Mexican baseball player and coach *Gabe Brown (born 2000), American basketball player *Gabe Carimi (born 1988), American football player *Gabe Cramer (born 1994), American baseball p ...

. Goodrich, who finished second in the conference in

scoring SCORE may refer to: *SCORE (software), a music scorewriter program * SCORE (television), a weekend sports service of the defunct Financial News Network *SCORE! Educational Centers *SCORE International, an offroad racing organization *Sarawak Corrido ...

with a 16.1 average in conference games, earned the

Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Year The Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Year is an award given to the Ivy League's most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1974–75 season. There have been six players honored on two occasions: Craig Robinson, Kit ...

award as well as second team

Academic All-American An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the ...

recognition from

College Sports Information Directors of America College Sports Communicators (CSC) is a membership association for all strategic, creative and digital professionals working in intercollegiate athletics across all levels for colleges, universities and conferences across the United States and Cana ...

. Goodrich was also a 1998 NCAA Men's Basketball All-American honorable mention selection by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

. With two first team selections and two second team selections (

Brian Earl Brian W. Earl (born August 9, 1976) is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player. He is the current head coach for the William & Mary team. Prior to his start at William & Mary, Earl was the head coach for the Corn ...

), this was the fourth team (and third Princeton team) to have four first and second team selections. The team won the tenth of twelve consecutive national statistical championships in

defense with a 51.4 points allowed average. The team also led the nation in assist-turnover ratio (1.63) and fewest turnovers per game (10.14). The assist-to-turnover ration was a national record that lasted until 2005. The team continues to be a contributor to the national record for combined single-game

three-point field goal A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or triple) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two ...

shooting percentage Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles can ...

(72.4%, minimum 20 made) stemming from a February 20, 1998, contest in which they made 12 of 15 attempts, while made 9 of 14 attempts. Two-time defending Ivy League

field goal percentage Field goal percentage in basketball is the ratio of field goals made to field goals attempted. Its abbreviation is FG%. Although three-point field goal percentage is often calculated separately, three-point field goals are included in the gene ...

statistical champion Goodrich was unable to repeat a third time, but instead he won the

shooting percentage title with a 51.4% average.

Schedule and results

The team posted a 27–2 (14–0 Ivy League) record. , - !colspan=9 style=, Regular season , - !colspan=9 style=, NCAA tournament

Rankings

NCAA tournament

The team was seeded fifth and advanced to the second round of the

. NCAA Tournament :March 12, 1998, in Hartford, Conn.: (5) Princeton 69, (12) UNLV 57 :March 14, 1998, in Hartford, Conn.: (4) Michigan State 63, (5) Princeton 56

Awards and honors

** First Team All-Ivy League ** Academic All Ivy **

Academic All-America The Academic All-America program is a student-athlete recognition program. The program selects an honorary sports team composed of the most outstanding student-athletes of a specific season for positions in various sports—who in turn are give ...

, second team **

1998 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans The Consensus 1998 College Basketball All-American team, as determined by aggregating the results of four major All-American teams. To earn "consensus" status, a player must win honors from a majority of the following teams: the Associated Press, ...

honorable mention ** All-East *

** First Team All-Ivy League *

** Second Team All-Ivy League * James Mastaglio ** Honorable Mention All-Ivy League

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1997-98 Princeton Tigers Men's Basketball Team Princeton Tigers men's basketball seasons

Princeton Tigers The Princeton Tigers are the athletic teams of Princeton University. The school sponsors 35 varsity teams in 20 sports. The school has won several NCAA national championships, including one in men's fencing, three in women's lacrosse, six in me ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...