Princeton Cruises Past Penn Behind Jackson

PRINCETON, N.J.--The game plan of the Penn men's basketball team was not surprising. The Quakers used a swarming defense aimed at shutting down Princeton's All-Ivy center, Kit Mueller.

And the visiting Quakers were successful... sort of. Mueller was held to two points from the foul line while shooting 0-for-4 from the field.

But Penn left the wrong guy open.

Princeton guard Sean Jackson, a transfer from Ohio University, burned the Quakers for 24 points, leading Princeton to a 56-44 victory at Jadwin Gym here Saturday night. Jackson led the Tigers (9-3 overall, 1-0 Ivy) on 8-for-9 from the field, including 7-for-8 from three-point land.

"Jackson made so many of his three-pointers at critical times," Princeton Coach Pete Carril said. "Just when Penn looked like it was getting back in the game... boom! He hits a three."

The win put Princeton, the favorite in the Ivy League race this year, in an early first-place tie with Dartmouth.

Mueller, the pre-season favorite for Ivy League Player of the Year, handled the double and triple teams well despite his low scoring output. The junior dished out nine of the team's 11 assists and grabbed a game-high six rebounds.

"In the first half, [Mueller] was taken by surprise and was shaken," Carril said. "They came after him like piranhas."

What a Difference

After grabbing a 14-12 lead with five minutes to go in the first half, Princeton scored 15 unanswered points. It was not until almost four minutes into the second half that Penn (2-7, 0-1) tallied again. The Tigers held the lead the entire way, and the closest the Quakers got was 11 points behind.

THE NOTEBOOK: Princeton shot 65 percent from the floor, including a whopping 83 percent (10-for-12) from three-point range... The victory was Carril's 397th career win in his 23rd season at Princeton... Jackson is Carril's first-ever transfer.

Tigers, 56-44 at Princeton, N.J. Penn  12-32--44 Princeton  25-31--56

PENN [44]: Hassan Duncombe 4-7 6-8 14; Ken Graf 3-4 0-0 7; Paul McMahon 4-9 0-0 8; Jerry Simon 2-7 0-0 6; Paul Chambers 2-4 0-2 4; Tyrone Gilliams 1-1 0-0 2; Ray Marshall 1-3 1-2 3.

Totals: 17-35 7-12 44

PRINCETON [56]: Sean Jackson 8-9 1-2 24; Matt Lapin 3-4 4-4 12; Jerry Doyle 4-4 1-3 9; Kit Mueller 0-4 2-5 2; Matt Henshon 1-2 4-46; Matt Eastwick 1-3 0-0 3.

Totals: 17-26 12-18 56

Three-pointers: Simon 2, Graf; Jackson 7, Lapin 2, Eastwick. Rebounds: Penn 18 (McMahon, Marshall 4), Princeton 14 (Mueller 6). Total fouls: Penn 19, Princeton 10. Fouled out: Duncombe.