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Avery Brown
Columbia University Athletics / Matt Rostkowski
79
Columbia CU 9-5,0-1 Ivy League
91
Winner Cornell CU 11-3,1-0 Ivy League
Columbia CU
9-5,0-1 Ivy League
79
Final
91
Cornell CU
11-3,1-0 Ivy League
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Columbia CU 44 35 79
Cornell CU 48 43 91

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Basketball Hangs With Cornell But Drops Conference Opener

Lions’ 50.8 percent shooting mark from the floor not enough

ITHACA, N.Y. — Columbia men's basketball hung around for most of Tuesday's Ivy League opener at Cornell, but fell, 91-79, from Newman Arena at Bartels Hall.

Avery Brown led Columbia (9-5, 0-1) with a season-high 17 points in 38 minutes of action, followed by double-figure efforts from Josh Odunowo (11), Kenny Noland (11), Jaden Cooper (10), and Zine Eddine Bedri (10). It's the third time this season five Lions have finished in double-figures scoring. Before this season, the last time five Lions notched 10 points or more in the same game was Nov. 19, 2019. 

The Lions went 32-59 from the field but posted a season-low 7-11 mark from the free throw line. Cornell (11-3, 1-0) also finished above 50 percent from the floor but converted on 15 of 21 free throws. Nazir Williams posted a game-high 24 points for Cornell on 8-12 shooting.

Cornell made four of its first five shots in the opening four minutes to have a slim 10-9 advantage at the first media timeout of the night.

The first 13 minutes saw seven lead changes and five ties. Coming out of the under-8 media timeout, Noland drilled two shots in a row to give the Lions a 32-29 lead with 6:51 to go. Tuesday night's contest was the first start of the sophomore's career.

Columbia's last lead of the game would come with 6:21 left in the first half when it was 32-31 Lions.

After two Cornell buckets with under a minute until the break, Jake Tavroff laid one in as time expired to cut Cornell's lead to 48-44 at the half. Cooper went 3-3 from the floor in the opening half to lead Columbia with 10 at the break. Both teams shot well beyond 50 percent from the field in the first 20 minutes of play.

The Lions immediately tied it at 48 less than a minute into the second half on baskets from Blair Thompson and Odunowo. The Big Red would push their lead to 59-54 with 11:46 to go.

Columbia closed the gap to as little as three following a Brown fast break dunk with 5:40 left, but was never able to tie it.

A Keller Boothby three-pointer boosted Cornell's lead to 77-68, its largest of the night at the time with 4:54 remaining. The Big Red made their final eight foul shots of the game to help close out the 12-point victory and are now 4-0 at home this season.

Columbia plays at Yale on Monday at 7 p.m. from John J. Lee Amphitheater.

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