Gamecenter: Cornell 94, Penn 92

	1st	2nd	Final
Cornell (21-5, 13-0 Ivy)	44	50	94
Penn (11-18, 6-6 Ivy)	44	48	92


The Palestra – Philadelphia, PA	Boxscore

Keys to the Game
Key sequence	Cornell found itself in serious danger of absorbing its first Ivy League defeat, trailing 69-60 with under 12 minutes to play in an energized Palestra, but the Big Red would hold the Quakers scoreless for over eight minutes to rally dramatically. Jeff Foote drew the visitors within seven, and after misses by both teams, Alex Tyler’s bucket made it 69-64. The score sat unchanged for nearly two minutes until Foote got loose inside again for a layup and a one-posession game. Another two-minute dry spell ensued, before Tyler drew a foul and hit two free throws to trim the Penn lead to one. The Big Red re-claimed the lead the next trip down the court on a Louis Dale layup, and after a Quaker timeout, the hosts gave it back on a turnover and Dale again laid it in. Adam Gore struck from long range to stretch Cornell’s run to 15-0, as the Quakers suddenly found themselves in a 75-69 deficit with 4:22 remaining.
Key sign it was over	It looked like Cornell had it all wrapped up with a 91-81 lead and 34 seconds to play, but Penn staged an unbelievable late comeback to force a heart-stopping finish. Harrison Gaines’s three-pointer made it a seven-point game, then the Quaker press forced a Dale turnover. Bernardini drained a long three-pointer with 18 seconds left to made it a four-point contest, before Dale surprisingly missed a free throw at the other end. A Gaines layup made it a one-possession game with 12 ticks remaining, and Dale uncharacteristically once again went 1-for-2 at the stripe. Another long Bernardini three cut Cornell’s lead to just one, and Ryan Wittman was fouled with 2.7 seconds left. Wittman missed his first free throw before making the second for a two-point lead. Justin Reilly threw a long inbounds pass to Bernardini just across the halfcourt line in front of the Penn bench, who drove toward the top of the key. As Bernardini went up to attempt the potential game-winner, Gore reached in and Bernardini control lost the ball. By the time it came down, the clock had expired, giving the Big Red the victory and sending Glen Miller chasing after the officials, incredulous over the lack of a foul call on the play.
Key performance	Dale continued a late run at the Ivy League Player of the Year award with a huge game. The sophomore point guard finished with 24 points on 8-for-14 shooting and added four rebounds, seven assists, and a steal in 34 minutes.
Key statistic	While 10 of the attempts came in the final minute when Penn was looking to foul, Cornell still owned a decisive edge at the free throw line. The visitors were whistled for just 16 fouls, compared to 28 Quaker personal fouls, and the Big Red finished the night 27 of 34 (79.4 percent) at the stripe, while the hosts were 19 of 23 (82.6 percent).

Notes

– Cornell had five double-figure scorers, with Gore (19 points), Wittman (17 points), Tyler (16 points), and Foote (12 points and 10 rebounds) joining Dale.

– Bernardini led all scorers with 25 points, while Brian Grandieri had 21 and Gaines added 19 for Penn.

– The Big Red got the better of the rebounding battle, grabbing an impressive 41.7 percent offensively and limiting the Quakers to 30.3 percent.

– Both teams shot well from the outside, with Cornell 9 of 21 (42.9 percent) from three and Penn not far behind at 9 of 22 (40.9 percent) from long range.

– The contest was highly entertaining, featuring 11 ties and 13 lead changes.

– Cornell closes out its regular season looking to cap off a perfect Ivy campaign at Princeton on Saturday, March 8, at 7:30 pm ET, while Penn hosts Columbia in an important battle for third place at 7:00 pm ET.

Basketball U.

Gamecenter: Cornell 94, Penn 92

Jake Wilson

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Basketball U.

Basketball U.

Jake Wilson

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Basketball U.