Senior-less Princeton Men’s Basketball Looks to Build Experience in Tough Nonconference Games

For only the second time since the formation of the Ivy League 70 years ago, the Princeton Tigers will suit up a men’s basketball squad that does not include a single senior.

Following a last-second loss to eventual Ivy champion Yale in the conference tournament semifinals last March, Princeton’s three seniors-to-be each left the program. First dynamic junior Xaivian Lee transferred to defending national champion Florida in April. His classmate Jack Scott departed for Duke in May, and in July former Ivy Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year Caden Pierce announced he would sit out his final season as a Tiger to retain his collegiate eligibility as he completed his degree. Pierce’s post-graduate destination remains to be determined.

Head coach Mitch Henderson ’98 enters the 2025-26 campaign, his 14th at his alma mater, with a 16-man roster that includes six freshmen and three returning players who have not seen meaningful court time to date.

“We might be the youngest team in the country, which is fun,” Henderson said after a mid-October practice at Jadwin Gym. “I think we should embrace that. Our youth should be a strength.”

“We’re going to play a lot of guys,” Henderson added, noting that he expects redheaded first-year Landon Clark to play significant minutes among five freshmen in the expanded rotation. Henderson described newcomers Sebastian Whitfield and Jacob Hammond as “bouncy, long, and strong” athletes in the mold of standout Myles Stephens ’19. Guard Jake Sussberg has already drilled so many jumpers in practice akin to recent sharpshooter Ryan Langborg ’23 that his coach keeps mistakenly calling him “Ryan.” The excellently named Cash McSweeney provides a different look as, in Henderson’s words, “a more typical Princeton post.” 

“I love the freshmen,” Henderson said. “They’re going to help us.”

“They’re learning super-quick,” sophomore CJ Happy added about the freshmen class. “Every single day they’ve been picking it up. They’ve picked it up must faster than I did. It has been fun to watch them grow and develop.”

With Lee and Pierce both averaging over 32 minutes a game as juniors, their early departures free up considerable minutes that look to be filled by an untested, eager roster.

“There’s a pop in the young guys’ step. I have to play the freshmen and sophomores. There’s just no way we can get through the season without them getting a lot of minutes,” Henderson said.

The Tigers will be captained by a trio of juniors: 6-foot-5 wing Jackson Hicke, interior presence Jacob Huggins, and leading returning scorer Dalen Davis (9.2 points per game), who will be called upon to have the ball in his hands more with Lee no longer dribbling up the court.

“They’ve been fantastic,” Henderson said of his captains, singling Davis out as the team’s best player.

“It is pretty unique,” Hicke said of the team makeup. “I think it is a collection of people that have to step up. A lot of our sophomores are helping out a lot too. [Happy, Malik Abdullahi, Peyton Seals and Jack Stanton] played a lot of minutes last year. We’re really coming together as a group to lift each other up.”

“When people leave, there’s room for others to grow,” Henderson said. “Generally, that happens when you’re a senior. We just happen to be doing that all a year in advance.”

“I think our style of play is going to be a little different,” Hicke said, anticipating a faster pace, a deeper rotation, and more team-oriented complementary basketball that could include shifting Abdullahi to attack from the wing. “The strength of our team is going to be a lot of people coming at you instead of just focusing on one.”

The Tigers visit defending MAC champion Akron to start their season on Nov. 8, with trips to Kansas, Iona, Loyola (Chicago), and Temple plus a trio of tilts Thanksgiving week at the Terry’s Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational also on the docket prior to Ivy play. 

“We can’t get discouraged,” Henderson said about the difficult schedule his team will encounter in November and December. “We’ve got to stay together. We’re going to take some lumps, but it is going to be OK.”

In 1985-86, the other senior-less Princeton roster went 13-13 overall, 7-7 in Ivy play. Forty seasons later, a confident Henderson expects far better results by the time the Tigers reach the new year and feels this team can compete for an Ivy League title. “We have a real shot at it,” he said. “We have to get to [conference play] having played a lot of minutes for guys who haven’t played.”

The Tigers open their conference slate Jan. 5, hosting Penn, with the two teams knotted at 126 victories all-time following 13 consecutive Princeton wins.

“We feel really good about where we are,” a rejuvenated Henderson said with a smile. “This team, the way it feels right now feels very old-Princeton-y. It is a real gift to be around them.”