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DiscussPHILADELPHIA, Pa. –– Yesterday, the men’s basketball team closed out the Legends Classic with its third win in as many days, defeating Drexel, 61-54, at the Daskalakis Athletic Center despite a dicey final two minutes. Senior forward Ryan Wittman scored a game-high 18 points and secured six rebounds en route to being named MVP of the regional tournament.
Despite only seeing 20 minutes of action, senior center Jeff Foote managed 15 points and five rebounds, while senior forward Mark Coury contributed eight points and four rebounds off the bench. Sophomore guard Chris Wroblewski had seven points, including a crucial 3-pointer to return the lead to the Red with 1:48 remaining.
Along with Wittman, senior tri-captain Jon Jaques was also named to the all-tournament team for his contributions against the Dragons. In 15 minutes of play, he grabbed a rebound, two steals and netted two pressure free throws to preserve Cornell’s (5-2) third straight victory with 21 seconds left.
Drexel overcame a 14-point deficit to take a lead late in the second half on a jumper by freshman guard Derrick Thomas, but the advantage proved short-lived as Wroblewski came through with a clutch trey. The Red forced 18 turnovers and shot 40.4 percent overall for the game, including a 6-for-14 showing from beyond the arc.
On Saturday, Cornell rallied from a 12-point halftime deficit to top Vermont, 67-59, thanks largely to the efforts of junior forward Adam Wire, who notched a career-high 13 rebounds off the bench. Playing without junior guard Max Groebe and senior forward Alex Tyler, the Red was led offensively by senior guard Louis Dale, Wittman and Foote, who contributed 12 points apiece. Wroblewski and senior guard Geoff Reeves also had 11 points each, placing five Cornell players in double-figures on the day. The Red had a season-best 14 steals — eight of which came from Wroblewski and Dale — and held the Catamounts to 44.4 percent shooting, including 23.1 percent from 3-point range. Mid-major All-American senior forward Marqus Blakely managed 21 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocked shots, but was one of only two players in double-figures — the other being junior guard Joey Accaoui with 10.
Coming off two tough losses to Big East opponents, Cornell got back to its winning ways on Friday, procuring its second victory of the Legends Classic with a 78-60 showing against the University of Toledo. The Red saw five of its players score in double-figures, including Wittman with a game-high 20 points, and Foote, who picked up his second consecutive double-double with a 12-point, 12-rebound effort.
However, the real story on the day was Dale, who fell just short of the first triple-double in Cornell men’s basketball history. Head coach Steve Donahue said after Tuesday’s loss to the Orange that Dale would bounce back from his subpar outings against Seton Hall and Syracuse, and bounce back he most certainly did, ending the afternoon with 14 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, three steals and zero turnovers.
Dale acknowledged that “sometimes you get in a bit of a slump,” while Donahue added that Dale “probably could have had double-digit assists if we made some of those open shots as well.”
Cornell won the tap to open the game, and a Dale-to-Foote alley-oop sent an early message; however, Toledo’s on-target shooting kept things close in the opening minutes of the contest. Wroblewski’s only 3-pointer of the game would knot the score at 7, but back-to-back layups by freshman guard Jake Barnett and junior forward Justin Anyijong put the Rockets on top, 11-7, forcing a Red timeout.
Two free throws from Tyler cut the deficit, and a layup by Wire on a pass from Dale put Cornell in front for good. The Red defense held Toledo to just 37.9 percent shooting for the first half –– allowing just one 3 from freshman guard Stephen Albrecht, who matched Wittman with 20 points on the afternoon.
With just over two minutes remaining, Cornell went on an offensive tear that featured back-to-back treys from Wittman and Reeves, who was one of the five Red players to finish in double-figures. Reeves contributed another 3-pointer with 20 seconds left on the clock to send his team into the locker room with a 14-point advantage (41-27).
However, the Rockets refused to go quietly, initiating a 13-2 run early in the second half to cut the Red’s lead to three at 56-53 with 10 minutes to play.
“We got real casual. ... We didn’t have a lot of turnovers, but they were critical at that point,” Donahue said. “I think a good offensive team comes back, and that being said, I thought we executed again from that point pretty well.”
Indeed, the Rockets’ threat served as a wake-up call for the Red, who responded with a 9-0 run of its own that was punctuated by Reeves’ fourth and final trey of the game.
“We battled back ... but their seniors and older guys took over,” said Toledo head coach Gene Cross. “We had some defensive lapses ... not being as attentive as we could have been.”
The Red’s lead would swell to as much as 18, and with less than a minute remaining Donahue emptied his bench, as Cornell ran out the clock en route to a comfortable 78-60 victory to snap its two-game losing skid.
After being limited to just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc in the first half, Toledo upped its 3-point percentage to 45.5 in the second frame, thanks largely to Albrecht, who contributed half of his team’s six 3’s.
“Stephen’s been like an assassin out there for us ... especially from the 3-point line,” Cross said.
Cornell out-rebounded its opponent, 35-29, and shot 46.7 percent overall for the game, but was held to just 7-of-22 from outside. The Red forced 15 Rocket turnovers, while giving up the ball 10 times.