'Black Tuesday' not revisited in Red and Blue's rout

PRINCETON, N.J. -- In the final minute, Princeton's fans were cheering for what they thought the Tigers needed to get back into the game -- a thirty-point basket.

What was supposed to be a clash of the Ivy titans had become a Penn rout almost as soon as the Quakers stepped off the bus.

After Ed Persia hit a three pointer to narrow Penn's lead to 4-3, the Quakers reeled off a 20-0 run lasting eight minutes that shocked the Tigers' faithful and brought a hush over the the Jadwin Gym crowd.

For Princeton, it was not exactly the ideal way to start a game against its archrival on its home floor.

"That was the worst possible scenario that could happen against that team," Princeton coach John Thompson III said.

The run began after Penn guard Andrew Toole responded to Persia's three by nailing one of his own with 16:51 remaining in the first half.

It was an auspicious start to Penn's run, as the Quakers tend to reflect the play of their floor general. And it got even better for the six-foot-four guard when he drilled two more three-pointers during Penn's 20-point bulge.

However, the burst was not just Toole's one-man show.

Penn's tandem of talented frontliners -- Koko Archibong and Ugonna Onyekwe -- also played leading roles as well.

Archibong, following Toole's three that initiated Penn's surge, translated a pair of defensive stops into consecutive Quakers baskets to increase the Penn lead to 11-3.

Onyekwe followed his teammate's pair of baskets with two free-throws of his own. Another Toole three-pointer preceded Onyweke's second score of the run, which gave the Quakers an 18-point advantage with 9:30 to play in the first.

The finishing touches on the Quakers' run were added by freshman guard Tim Begley, a product of nearby Christian Brothers Academy.

By the time Princeton guard Ed Persia scored the Tigers' first bucket -- eight minutes after Toole's first three-pointer -- the floodgates were already open.

"In order to play as well as we did tonight, everybody has got to play well," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "We got a good effort across the board."

As the seemingly interminable wave of dead-on Penn shots were flowing like water through the Jadwin nets, Princeton's attempts were giving the rim a workout of its own.

While the Tigers had many clean looks at the basket during the fateful eight minutes, Princeton went 0 for 8, including three misses from Persia and a pair of misfires by forward Ray Robins.

"We got some layups, got some good shots, " Thompson said. "They just fell out."

Yet, all hope was not lost in the otherwise idyllic world of Princetonland.

The last time the Tigers found themselves behind the Quakers by such a deficit -- Princeton trailed Penn 33-9 at halftime on Feb. 9, 1999 -- they rallied to defeat the later-Ivy champs at the Palestra.

In a game nearly three years from the date Penn fans eulogize as "Black Tuesday," it seemed that the Tigers might have a shot to duplicate their memorable comeback.

So much for precedent.

As the Quakers big three -- Toole, Onyekwe and Archibong -- continued to have their way with Princeton's vaunted defense in the second half, any thoughts of a Princeton comeback were erased.

While Toole's presence was mostly felt from behind the arc -- he nailed 4 of 9 attempts from downtown in the game -- Onyewke and Archibong dominated the Tigers in the post.

The forwards dropped matching 17 point totals on Princeton, with Onyekwe adding 10 boards for his third double-double of the year.

Faced with defending such a redoubtale trio, Princeton could only throw up the white flag.

"They just have too many weapons to fall behind," Thompson said.

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