The Princeton Tigers have been lacking fire this week in the Colmone Classic at Hall High School.

Coach Jason Smith said it showed in Thursday’s 67-57 loss to Eureka in the Colmone crossover bracket.

And Smith said it all starts with him.

“I’ve got to coach better,” he said. “I have to be better at coaching in details. Teaching them that it’s OK to play with emotion, play with heart, with grit and passion and energy. It’s my job to instill that in them, and I haven’t done a good enough job with it. And yet we’re good enough to compete against a team like Eureka, who I think is really, really good.”

Smith said it may take some different energy drills in practice to light that fire and “set a tone early in practice and instill that in them so maybe they can set that tone in the game.”

The loss sends the Tigers into Saturday’s seventh-place game at 3 p.m. against the loser of Friday’s Rock Falls-Kewanee game. Having played in three championship games in the last four years, winning two, this game isn’t the place the Tigers wanted to be.

Smith didn’t know for sure what place the Tigers would be playing for Saturday, other than “it’s not first place.”

“I’ve coached three championships in this tournament, and it’s pretty special to me. And to be playing for seventh place is just hard,” he said. “A lot of people probably expect us to be around this position in this tournament, except for the guys in the locker room. Yeah, I think we let a few slip away this week.”

In earlier action, St. Bede held off Bureau Valley 59-57 to earn a spot in Saturday’s ninth-place game.

The tournament resumes Friday night with the final round of crossovers. Mendota will meet IVC at 6:30 p.m., followed by Hall vs. two-time defending champion Fieldcrest at 8 p.m., with the winners to meet for Saturday’s championship at 7:30 p.m.

Eureka 67, Princeton 57: The Tigers stayed within shouting distance late, cutting a 12-point halftime deficit to seven in the fourth quarter, but could get no closer.

Jackson Mason converted a 3-point play on a back-door cut pass by Jack Oester to pull the Tigers within 35-27 early in the third quarter.

Ryan Jagers swished a 3-pointer from the left corner to bring the Tigers within 37-30 with 4:32 to play and hooped again to make it 43-36 two minutes later.

Mason came back with a late 3-pointer to make it a 51-41 game early in the fourth, but it was not near enough.

Gavin Lanham hit a runner in the lane to beat the buzzer to draw the Tigers within 19-14 at the end of the first quarter.

Freshman Julian Mucha hit a 3-pointer to draw the Tigers even at 19 early in the second quarter, but the Hornets pulled ahead to a 34-22 halftime lead.

Mason and Mucha each scored 16 points, and Jagers added 10 for the Tigers.

St. Bede 59, Bureau Valley 57: The Storm led 32-29 at the half and by seven points in the third quarter, but the Bruins rallied to take a 43-39 lead at quarter’s end.

The Bruins were led Gino Ferrari with 23 points, and Graham Ross and Geno Dinges added 11 each.

“Ferrari’s 23 was huge, and Dinges’ 11 and Ross getting 11 points and 12 rebounds kept us afloat. But our collective defensive effort was great,” St. Bede coach Brian Hanson said.

Freshman Carson Gruber led the Storm with 20 points, scoring five points in each quarter with a 3.

“Gruber is a load. You have to start guarding him when he steps out of the huddle.”

The Bruins will play for 9th place at 1:30 p.m. against the winner of the PC/Galva game, which was suspended to 9 a.m. Saturday.

The Storm will play the loser of the PC/Galva game at noon Saturday for 11th place.

Note: Thursday’s crossover between Putnam County and Galva was postponed to 9 a.m. Saturday when Galva opted to stay home with the threat of a snowstorm.

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Princeton's Julian Mucha and Gavin Lanham reach out to grab a rebound against Eureka during the Colmone Classic on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025 at Hall High School. (Scott Anderson)