NOTEBOOK: Hummer Does It All For Princeton

PRINCETON, N.J.—Princeton senior Ian Hummer sat for just three minutes in Friday night’s contest against Harvard.

“[What] else can you say about the kid?” Crimson coach Tommy Amaker said about Hummer. “He made every big play down the stretch for that team, whether it was a tip-in, free throws, intercepting the last pass, whatever he had to do. He was a monster.”

On the defensive end, Hummer’s main assignment was Harvard co-captain Christian Webster, who was held scoreless for only the second time this season. Hummer finished with numbers above his season averages, scoring 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.

With the night’s performance, Hummer moved into second all-time on the Tigers’ scoring charts—a feat that he says would not have mattered to him if Princeton had lost the game. The only Princeton player currently ahead of him is William Bradley, who ended his Tiger career with 2,503 points 48 years ago.

“[It’s] fun to watch him play,” Princeton coach Mitch Henderson said. “I’m proud that he wears the orange and black. He does everything for us. He’s really worked hard, especially at free throw shooting. He’s constantly improving.”

EARNING HIS [CHARITY] STRIPES

Three possessions after a long-distance shot extended Princeton’s lead to a game-high 10 points, the Tigers squad did exactly what almost any other team does when sophomore forward Steve Mondou-Missi receives a pass on the low block. They intentionally fouled him, choosing to give the traditionally shaky free-throw shooter a chance to prove himself at the line rather than score two easy-points. Mondou-Missi, who shoots just 66.7 percent from the charity stripe on the season, sunk each shot, avoiding the rim for a perfect swish on each.

After he grabbed three consecutive defensive rebounds and put in a layup at the 7:29 mark of the second period, Moundou-Missi caught the ball at the left elbow, hesitated, took several dribbles to reach the baseline, and splashed in a short-corner baby-hook. The game, for the first time since the opening tip, was tied with 4:02 remaining.

A number of Moundou-Missi’s openings were made possible by his screen-and-roll play with freshman Siyani Chambers, which Amaker said the two ran well late in the game.

“[The pick-and-rolls] pushed us and got us in the lead” Amaker added.

After Hummer made two free throws on the other end to regain the Princeton advantage, Mondou-Missi did his best impression of the Tiger senior as he sank both of his ensuing free throw attempts. And, after Tigers senior center Brendan Connolly missed a jumper on one side of the court, Moundou-Missi received the ball once again at the left short-corner position, drove hard to the basket, and knocked in the layup while drawing a foul. With the score and the foul shot, his seventh free throw of the day, the Crimson gained a three-point lead—its first advantage on the night.

While turnovers would go on to doom Harvard’s chances to win the contest, Mondou-Missi finished the game with team-highs in points, 15, and rebounds, eight.

“Steve did a terrific job,” Amaker said. “[With] his numbers, being seven-for-seven from the foul line, and [leading] us in rebounds…We are having him to do a heck of a lot there.”

THREES [DRAW] A CROWD

In a contest billed as a matchup between two sharp-shooting three-point teams who average a combined 39.15 percent from beyond the arc, misses were abundant, closeouts were consistent, and swishes were close to nil on Friday night. Harvard and Princeton, who lead the Ivy League in three-point percentage, went a combined 1-for-18 from downtown, forcing the already-close contest to be played close to the basket.

When the squads last faced off, the Crimson shot treys at a clip of 38.9 percent. On Friday, after a poor shooting first half, a shot from deep with seconds remaining on the clock was ironically exactly what Harvard needed to extend the game into overtime. But an interception prevented any last-chance attempt, and the contest was officially marked as the first of the season in which Harvard did not make a single three-pointer.

As the scouting reports on both teams coming into the game emphasized long-range shooting, each side’s defensive scheme relied heavily on closing-out around the arc, increasing the difficulty of each attempt.

Perhaps as a result of the augmented pressure outside, a majority of the Tigers’ offense was shifted inside, and the squad attempted 19 layups for the game—seven more than the Crimson put up. While Harvard made a total of nine lay-ins, Princeton converted on 12—a difference of six points in a game with a final spread of only five.

The only made three of the night was one converted by 6’9” Tiger senior Mack Darrow at the 9:57 mark of the second period. With the shot, Princeton continued its streak of making at least one three-pointer in every game since the three-point line was brought to collegiate play.

—Staff writer Juliet Spies-Gans can be reached at jspiesgans@college.harvard.edu.