SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Senior Matt Morgan scored 26 points and Cornell erased a 15-point second half deficit, but Syracuse was able to pull through for a 63-55 win over the Big Red on Saturday evening at the Carrier Dome. The Big Red slipped to 4-4 with the loss, while the Orange improved to 5-2..

Morgan scored 16 of his points after halftime as the Big Red led with under six minutes to play, including a personal 11-0 Morgan run that turned a nine-point deficit into the visitors' first lead since 19-17. Battle drained a 3-pointer on the other end as Syracuse scored seven straight to put the upset bid to bed. The senior guard moved his career scoring total to 1,837 points - good for No. 8 all-time in Ivy League history. It was the Orange's 39th consecutive victory over Cornell dating back to 1968.

Jimmy Boeheim added nine points, six rebounds, four assists and a block in a much-ballyhooed matchup against the team coached by his father with his younger brother on the roster in his hometown. Josh Warren scored eight points and Steven Julian had three points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals.

Cornell shot 47 percent from the floor and assisted on 17 of the team's 20 baskets, patiently running offense against Syracuse's vaunted zone.
   

Tyus Battle had 26 points and five rebounds and Oshae Brissett had 19 points, eight rebounds and three assists as the home team shot 50 percent overall and held a 22-12 edge in points in the paint.

The teams went toe-to-toe in the first 12 minutes, with Cornell taking its biggest lead of the night at 19-14 on a jumper by Morgan with 7:46 left in the half. Syracuse responded with a 12-0 run over the next three minutes to take a seven-point lead. The run extended to 25-5 on a 3-pointer by Battle two minutes into the second half to make it 39-24.

The Big Red was game, hitting consecutive treys by Morgan and Jack Gordon, followed by consecutive layups by Jake Kuhn and Josh Warren off nifty feeds from Jimmy Boeheim. to get the visitors within single digits. 

Then Morgan got hot.

He hit a 3-pointer with 10 minutes to play to get Cornell within six, then another to make it a two-point game. Then a third to give Cornell a lead at 48-47 with eight minutes to play. Syracuse briefly regained the lead only to have Morgan again answer when he was fouled by 7-foot-2 Paschal Chukwu on a running jumper in the lane. His two free throws made it 50-49 with 6:16 left.

The Orange embarked on a 12-2 run to take control of the game over the next four minutes, though it was just a four-point game with 2:45 remaining. Syracuse answered on the other end with a dagger 3-pointer by Frank Howard, who had missed his previous six 3-pointers.

NOTES TO KNOW
• Steven Julian's six assists were a career high, surpassing his previous high of four.
• Jimmy Boeheim also set a career high in that category with four.
• Morgan hit six 3-pointers in a game for the third time in a game this season (eight total games).
• He reached double figures for the 59th consecutive game, extending his own school record. It's the third-longest active streak in Division I.

NEXT UP
• Cornell will take two weeks off for final exams before returning to action against Niagara on Sunday, Dec. 16 at 1 p.m.
• The Big Red will come back to Ithaca the following day for a 7 p.m. tip-off against Longwood on Monday, Dec. 17 at Newman Arena.