Men’s basketball had one half left to protect its lead. But the relentless Towson University Tigers didn’t let that happen.
Towson turned the final 20 minutes into a clinic, outscoring Cornell (5-4, 0-0 Ivy) 58–44 and using a dominant edge on the glass to pull away for a 93–80 win Wednesday night at SECU Arena in Towson, Maryland. The Red suffered its second road loss in a 48-hour span.
Cornell carried a one-point lead into halftime thanks to a balanced opening stretch, but Towson’s size and hot shooting quickly erased that margin. The Tigers finished with a 38-25 rebounding advantage and turned 16 offensive boards into 20 second-chance points — the stat line that ultimately decided the game.
“I think Towson did a great job guarding us and was physical,” said head coach Jon Jaques ’10. “[They] guarded us in a way that forced [us] out of our identity at times. In that second half, they went on a quick run, we got out of character, a few too many dribbles, not strong with the ball. It’s a credit to Towson; other teams will do that to us too, so it’s a great learning experience.”
A 13–1 Cornell burst early in the first half gave the Red a 17-9 lead, before the teams traded baskets for much of the period.
When the dust settled, Cornell had a 36–35 edge at the intermission.
But the second half belonged entirely to the Tigers. Tyler Tejada — the 2024-25 Coastal Athletic Association Player of the Year — erupted, finishing with 26 points while drilling six-of-10 from deep and accumulating eight rebounds.
“Tejada, he’s a potential pro, you want to make it as hard as possible for him,” Jaques said. “Normally, he shoots a lot of pull-ups and mid-range [jumpers], that’s his game. We let him get too comfortable early, and he’s so talented, when he gets confident, it gets tough.”
Dylan Williamson was the second in command behind Tejada, controlling the pace with 15 points and eight assists. A 39–24 Towson attack out of the gates in the second half— sparked by Tejada’s scoring prowess and Williamson’s transition buckets — turned a one-point game at halftime into a 74–60 advantage for the Tigers. More than seven minutes remained on the clock, but Cornell couldn’t claw its way back within double digits.
Jaques pointed to Towson’s 13-rebound advantage, and what came from it, as the separator.
“We knew rebounding would be an important part of the day,” Jaques said. “They got a lot of second chances, they made a few more threes than they normally do, and a handful of those were off of second-chance opportunities. I think that kind of wore us down a little bit. Some offensive decision-making hurt us too, which is uncharacteristic. It was a close game, a couple miscues and second chances for them let them pull away.”
Offensively, Cornell still produced efficient numbers: the Red shot 54 percent from the field and had four players in double figures. Senior guard Jake Fiegen led Cornell with 19 points and was a perfect five-for-five from the line. Senior guard Adam Hinton continued his strong season, finishing with 17 points — including five-of-six from behind the arc — and senior guard Cooper Noard added 14. Junior forward Kaspar Sepp chipped in 12 points, six rebounds and four assists, leading the team in the two latter categories.
“I thought Kaspar had a good weekend for us, he’s kind of learning when to pick his spots and be aggressive and where he fits within what we do offensively,” Jaques said. “Jake, Cooper and Adam, they [are] all talented scorers and cutters, and them playing off each and moving without the ball is important for us. We like when the box score shows four, five, six guys in double figures. We are hard to guard that way.”
Despite the setback, Jaques found positives: multiple scorers, energy from younger pieces and signs of the team’s core identity. He emphasized recovery and refocus as Cornell prepares for its final game before a two-week hiatus due to exams.
“We want the guys to recover. It’s a lot of travel,” Jaques said. “Just want to make sure we are taking care of ourselves and improving, we will talk about Samford a bit, just reiterate and remind the guys what makes us good.”
Cornell will look to bounce back on Sunday at Samford University in Homewood, Alabama. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Austin Curtis is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. He is a Sun Staff Writer and can be reached at acurtis@cornellsun.com.
