Ball Leads Dartmouth Men's Basketball Past Princeton, 53-43

Friday, February 23

Hanover, N.H.

7:00 p.m.

Dartmouth College

9-15, 4-7Ivy

Princeton

11-13, 2-8Ivy

Princeton

Dartmouth

Ball Leads Dartmouth Men's Basketball Past Princeton, 53-43

2/23/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Dartmouth

Friday, February 23, 2007

Ball Leads Dartmouth Men's Basketball Past Princeton, 53-43

Boxscore

HANOVER, N.H. - Junior Jonathan Ball (Memphis, Tenn.) had the second double-double of his career, leading the Dartmouth men's basketball team past Princeton, 53-43, in Ivy League action Friday night.

Ball had 14 points and 10 rebounds while Dartmouth made some history by beating the Tigers twice this year.

For the first time since the 1945-46 season, the Big Green swept the Tigers in the two-game series. On February 10, Dartmouth broke a 19-game losing streak at Jadwin Gym, 45-44.

"This was a confidence builder," said third-year head coach Terry Dunn. "Last weekend was tough for everybody. We needed to get back on the right side and try to finish this season strong."

Both teams shot better than 50 percent in the opening half as Dartmouth took a 26-21 lead to the locker room. The Big Green started the second half with an 8-2 run for a double-digit lead, 34-23, with 16:20 to go.

But Princeton (11-13 overall, 2-8 Ivy) answered with an 18-6 run. Luke Owings banged home a three-pointer for a 41-40 Princeton lead with 6:17 to play.

On the next trip down the floor, Dartmouth regained control for good on a Leon Pattman (Memphis, Tenn.) layup, making it 42-41 at the 4:53 mark.

Pattman finished with 14 points, while Owings had a game-high 15 for the Tigers. Sophomore Alex Barnett (St. Louis, Mo.) - who averages more than 12 points per game - had a relatively quiet night with seven points and seven rebounds, but he contributed four blocked shots.

"Alex had some huge defensive plays tonight," said Dunn, "especially his block with about four minutes to go. John Ball had a tremendous night, and Leon had some big shots in the second half."

Freshman Robbie Pride (Denver, Colo.) had a career-best 19 minutes at guard. He had a critical three-point basket in the first half and contributed two rebounds and one steal without a turnover. "Robbie Pride gave us some huge minutes," said Dunn.

Dartmouth improved to 4-7 in the Ivy League and 9-15 overall. The Big Green is back in action on Saturday, February 24, hosting Penn in a 7 p.m. game. Seniors Pattman and Jason Meyer (Covington, Ohio) will be saluted in a pre-game ceremony.