Men's College Basketball
Rider Hosts Princeton on The Comcast Network
LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ—In the 2015-16 season opener, the Rider University men's basketball team will host cross-town rival Princeton University Friday at 7pm in Alumni Gymnasium. The game will be televised on The Comcast Network.
“I think this has developed into a rivalry,” said Rider head coach Kevin Baggett, the 2014-15 MAAC Coach of the Year, “due to the proximity of the campuses the fans can get into it and the players play against each other in the summer leagues so they see it as a rivalry as well.”
Rider is coming off of a 21-win season and a second place finish in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
Princeton was 16-14 last year, 9-5 in the Ivy League. The Tigers experienced a rare feat in college basketball of winning the last game of the season last year. Princeton ended 2014-15 on a four-game winning streak.
Despite being just 6.6 miles apart, Rider and Princeton have only met 14 times since the series began in 1931-32 with Princeton winning 11. The Tigers have won the last three meetings since the series was resumed in 2011, including 64-58 last year in the season opener. The last time Rider beat Princeton was during the 2002-03 season, a 62-59 victory at the Sovereign Bank Arena (now the Sun Center). The only time Princeton has played in Alumni Gym was during the 2011-12 season, a 72-71 overtime Tiger win.
The last time Rider began the season with a home game the Broncs defeated Robert Morris in the 2012-13 season opener. Rider has lost the last two season openers, at Princeton last year and at Lehigh in 2013-14.
The Tigers will be led by three forwards, senior Hans Brase, junior Steven Cook and junior Spencer Weisz. Brase was second in scoring (11.5) and first in rebounding (7.5) for the Tigers last year. Cook and Weisz were both Second Team All-Ivy selections last season. Weisz was the team's leading scorer (11.6).
Rider will be led by three guards, graduate student Teddy Okereafor (London, England/VCU), junior Jimmie Taylor (Branford, Fla./Suwannee) and senior Zedric Sadler (Detroit, Mich./Cody).
Okereafor is a Preseason First Team All-MAAC pick after earning Second Team All-MAAC honors last year. Taylor is a Preseason Third Team All-MAAC selection this year. Last year Sadler was the MAAC Sixth Man of the Year.
Prior to the game Friday there will be a Tailgate Party on the Rider Campus Mall beginning at 5:15pm, featuring food (free for Rider students with ID) and music.
The Princeton game is Rider's only home game in November. The Broncs travel to La Salle, Maryland, Cancun and Rhode Island before returning to Alumni Gym to host Saint Peter's in a MAAC game December 2.
The Comcast Network, on most cable networks is on channel 8, or channel 846 in HD. On the Verizon System it is channel 99 in the Greater Philadelphia area.
The Comcast Network is available to every TV distributor - cable, satellite and telco - that serves viewers in the network's territory (including Eastern & Central PA, South NJ and Delaware).
The Princeton game can also be heard on 107.7 FM The Bronc and at GoBroncs.com.
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