Following Saturday night’s epic battle between longtime Ivy League rivals Princeton and Harvard in which Princeton won 63-62 on a last-second 25-foot shot by junior guard Douglas Davis, the Tigers are returning to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2004. Though I didn’t attend Princeton, my father, uncle, and two of my cousins did, and for everyone in the Flippin family, this is not only an exciting time but a return to some fond memories for the prestigious central Jersey college. Many times in my youth I attended games at Jadwin Gymnasium, an arena which my father helped build during his days as a Tiger, and the most exciting day I remember for the Black and Orange was in March 1996, when Princeton faced the defending national champion UCLA Bruins. This was something of a conflict for me because the first March Madness that I remember was the one the year before this when UCLA won it all and I ‘ve always had a fondness for the program, rooting especially for the players of that time; Toby Bailey, Cameron Dollar, brothers Ed and Charles O’Bannon, with Jim Harrick as head coach. Yet the excitement and electricity was unmistakeable when Princeton center Steve Goodrich delivered a perfectly-placed bounce pass to Gabe Lewullis, for what would be the winning layup as the lowly Tigers (at least as far as basketball goes) defeated the mighty Bruins, 43-41, officially putting Pete Carril and his Princeton offense on the map as a staple of college hoops throughout the nation, in all different conferences.
Yes, Princeton would go on to get walloped in the 2nd round by an overpowering Mississippi State team and they would make it back to the tournament the next year only to be quickly disposed of by future NFL superstar tight end Tony Gonzalez and the California Golden Bears, but that one day in March 1996 will always live on as one of many days of great pride and accomplishment for this storied university. This Thursday, Princeton will square off against John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats. No, Kentucky doesn’t carry the mistique of being the defending national champions like UCLA did fifteen years ago, but make no mistake about it, the atmosphere will be just as electric if the Tigers can somehow pull off another major upset. Calipari’s counterpart will be Princeton’s head coach Sydney Johnson, who was the starting shooting guard for Princeton in that 43-41 win, and who will no doubt use the incredible feeling he experienced as a means of motivating the young men he will be leading. It is a long shot to be sure, and needless to say my dad was not thrilled when he realized who the first round opponent would be, but he couldn’t have been any more excited to face UCLA a decade and a half ago. We all know these games aren’t won on paper and they call it “March Madness” for a reason. Go Tigers.