After picking up a critical bounce-back last weekend against Brown (7–12 overall, 1–5 Ivy League), the Princeton Tigers (7–14, 3–3) headed to a frigid Ithaca to face a surging Cornell team (10–9, 3–3). With two decisive conference wins in a row and just one game behind the Tigers in the battle for an Ivy League tournament playoff spot, it was clear that the Big Red would be a tough task for anyone. And, with the home crowd on their side, Cornell pulled away from the Orange and Black for a big conference win.
From the opening tip, the Big Red gave a glimpse of what the story would be for the rest of the game: elite offensive efficiency. Cornell made their first two shots of the game, including one beyond the arc. And although Princeton was able to keep up for the opening stages of the contest, it was simply too much to overcome over the course of 40 minutes.
Up until the midway point of the first half, Princeton found success on the free-throw line and in the midrange. With an incredibly balanced attack and five different Tigers etching their names in the scorebook, the Orange and Black were able to keep pace without needing to hit many shots from three, with the lone make coming from first-year guard Landon Clark. However, while Princeton was only down 17–15 and leading in the turnover margin, the Big Red found their offensive rhythm.
Cornell went on a rapid 8–0 run in just over two minutes, scoring on four of their next five possessions to take a 25–15 lead and prompt a timeout from head coach Mitch Henderson ’98. While this moment may have seemed like a “danger zone” for the visiting Princeton team to let the game slip out of hand, the Tigers responded and quieted the Cornell crowd for the time being.
This time, it was junior forward Jacob Huggins who contributed for the Tigers on a hook shot, as Princeton capped off a run of their own with a left-wing three from junior guard Jackson Hicke.
Now only down 26–22, with six minutes to play in the opening frame, the Tigers eyed a lead in the scoreboard before halftime. However, Cornell’s ability to shoot at an extremely high rate and force Princeton turnovers that lead to runouts and easy baskets gave the Big Red a commanding lead by halftime.
In Cornell’s big momentum swing to end the half, the Big Red were able to score 14 points off of layups, which, paired with a couple of threes, stretched their lead out to 48–32. Although Cornell now had a large advantage as both teams headed into the locker room, Princeton still found ways to limit the damage with two threes of their own by Hicke to end the half.
Despite this, the stats say it all. Over the course of the game Cornell won the turnover battle, had 16 more points in the paint than the Tigers, and shot an incredible 64 percent from the field. Cornell’s efficiency made a comeback extremely difficult for the Orange and Black.
“We need to be better in transition and taking care of the ball and shot selection that lead to Cornell runouts,” Hicke said to The Daily Princetonian.
To begin the second half, it was more of the same for Cornell: lots of success inside the paint with easy baskets and an ability to continue finding enough range from beyond the arc to distance the lead. Six minutes in, the Big Red stretched their lead out to 62–40. For Princeton, Hicke, Huggins, and sophomore guard Jack Stanton all scored in a valiant effort to slow Cornell’s constant waves of scoring, but it simply wasn’t enough.
The last 10 minutes of the game, while even, didn’t see a spark from the Orange and Black that prompted a big comeback. And, as the final buzzer sounded, the score ended in an 87–64 victory for the Big Red. Hicke once again led the Tigers in scoring, this time with 13 points, but Cornell was simply too much to overcome on Friday night.
“We’ll use this game as a learning opportunity to improve our discipline and continue to remain connected as a group,” Hicke said to the ‘Prince.’
Princeton will need to move on quickly, as the Tigers are set to play away at Columbia (14–6, 3–3) on Saturday within 24 hours of their loss to Cornell. The Lions are also 3–3 in conference with a win under their belt against Penn Friday, meaning Princeton will need to be at the top of their game to come out victorious.
Lucas Nor is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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