ITHACA, N.Y. – Despite holding the nation's leading scorer, Kai Moon, to nearly 10 points below her average, Moon came up big when the Bearcats needed her to the most, helping unbeaten Binghamton take down the Cornell women's basketball team, 59-56, on Thursday night at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.

Most of the evening, Moon was quiet. The top scorer in the nation was held at bay by the Cornell defense - except, that is, for in the final 20 seconds of the last three quarters. That was when Moon shone brightest.
 

Moon hit a game-winning, step-back 18-footer with 15 seconds left after hitting buzzer-beating 3-pointers at halftime and the end of the third quarter to keep the Bearcats' record unblemished. Binghamton improved to 9-0 with the win, while Cornell fell to 5-3, snapping a four-game win streak.
 

Moon was hounded into a 5-of-19 shooting night for 15 points, nine off her season average. As a team, the Big Red held Binghamton to its lowest point total all season, but Cornell had a tough time finding its own offensive rhythm, allowing the Bearcats to edge out the victory.

Although Cornell fell, the Big Red once again dominated the backboards (48-30), including 24 on the offensive side, with Laura Bagwell-Katalinich posting game highs of 23 points and 16 rebounds for the Big Red. This marks Bagwell-Katalinich's third 20-point outing of the season, as well as her fourth double-double of the 2019-20 campaign. She has been the guiding force behind the Cornell offense all-season long, now having scored in double-figures in seven of the Big Red's eight games.

Despite a strong scoring effort from Bagwell-Katalinich, Cornell was held to 34 percent shooting from the floor and was outscored beyond the arc 24-3 in the loss. The Big Red did a great job of getting to the charity stripe, attempting 24 free throws as compared to Binghamton's 11, but Cornell struggled to convert, allowing Binghamton to get off easy and not pay for the fouls it committed.

Samantha Widmann also scored in double-figures in the loss, notching 12 points and adding eight rebounds. The senior duo of Widmann and Bagwell-Katalinich continues to pace the Big Red offense, as the two combined for 35 of the Big Red's 56 points on Thursday night. Halley Miklos hit the boards hard, tallying four points and corralling nine rebounds.
 

Binghamton got 12 points and five assists from Carly Boland, while and Karlee Krchnavi had 10 points and six boards. The Bearcats, who shot just 18 percent in the first quarter, connected on 43 percent in the final 30 minutes.
 

As the clock wound down and the fourth quarter progressed, Binghamton looked in control late, holding a nine-point lead (53-44) with under five minutes to play. Cornell did not go down without a fight, knotting the game up at 56-56 with 31 seconds to play when Bagwell-Katalinich hit a pair of free throws following a clutch steal from Shannon Mulroy. The Bearcats called timeout, setting up Moon's game-winning shot.

The Big Red had a chance to tie, but turned the ball over with 10 seconds to play. Moon's speed proved costly when Cornell tried to foul to stop the clock, and the Big Red didn't commit a foul until there was 1.2 seconds on the clock. Moon went to the line, as the Bearcats were in the bonus, and hit the second of two free throws to make it a three-point game. The Big Red couldn't get a shot off before the final horn, falling to Binghamton, 59-56.
 

The Big Red women's basketball team will look to bounce back when it hosts Duquesne on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.