Princeton Claims Ivy Title

Nate Walton sat between teammates Mike Bechtold and Ahmed El-Nokali with a net draped around his neck.

“This really is a dream come true,” Walton said.

The Tigers’ captain had nine points, eight rebounds, seven assists and six steals as Princeton defeated Pennsylvania, 68-52, Tuesday night at Princeton, N.J., to win the Ivy League title and secure its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 1998.

“I remember all summer long talking about it with my brother [Luke, who plays for Arizona], saying ‘See you in the Final Four. See you in the Elite Eight,’ ” Walton said.

The fifth-year senior would not be denied against Penn. It was reminiscent of the way his father, Bill, played at UCLA nearly 30 years ago.

“When [four Ivy teams] were all 6-3, I just told myself that this is my championship. I’m not going to let anyone else take it from me,” Walton said.

The victory gave Princeton (16-10, 11-3 in conference) its 23rd Ivy title and first under Coach John Thompson III, who took over Sept. 7 after Bill Carmody left for Northwestern.

Penn (12-17, 9-5) was seeking a share of its third consecutive Ivy championship and hoping to force a one-game playoff for an NCAA berth.

TOURNAMENTS

Mid-Continent--Fred House scored 24 points, including two free throws with 6.7 seconds left, to give Southern Utah (25-5) a 62-59 victory over Valparaiso (24-8) at Fort Wayne, Ind. The victory ended the Crusaders’ six-year reign as the conference tournament champion. It is the Thunderbirds’ first NCAA berth.

Midwestern Collegiate--LaVall Jordan scored 10 points at Dayton, Ohio, and held Rashad Phillips, the conference’s two-time player of the year, to only 11 points as Butler (23-7) defeated Detroit, 53-38, and earned its fourth trip to the NCAA tournament in five seasons.

Sun Belt--Chris Marcus had 20 points and 18 rebounds at Mobile, Ala., as Western Kentucky (24-6) defeated South Alabama, 64-54, to earn its first NCAA tournament bid since 1995.

Golden State Athletic Conference--Third-ranked Azusa Pacific defeated Biola, 75-68, to win the tournament championship at Whittier.

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NCAA Men Qualifiers

Schools that have gained NCAA men’s tournament automatic bids by virtue of conference tournament championships, with exception of the Ivy League and Pacific 10--the only conferences that don’t conduct tournaments.

School: Conference

Butler: Midwestern Collegiate

Eastern Illinois: Ohio Valley

George Mason: Colonial Athletic Assn.

Georgia State: Trans America Athletic

Gonzaga: West Coast

Indiana State: Missouri Valley

Iona: Metro Atlantic Athletic

Monmouth, N.J.: Northeast

N.C. Greensboro: Southern

Princeton: Ivy

Southern Utah: Mid-Continent

Western Kentucky: Sun Belt

Winthrop: Big South