UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State hit a program record 15-pointers and erased a late second half deficit with a game-ending 21-7 run to hand Cornell men's basketball its first loss, an 85-74 decision on Monday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Nittany Lions improved to 3-1, while the Big Red fell to 4-1.

Sarju Patel led three Cornell players in double figures in scoring with 15 along with five rebounds, with Nazir Williams adding 14 points and four boards and Chris Manon scored 12 with four rebounds and two steals.Kobe Dickson scored eight points with five rebounds and six assists for a Big Red team that had 13 assists and just nine turnovers on the night. The visitors had nine steals and held a narrow 39-38 edge on the glass, including 13 offensive boards. Cornell shot just 38 percent overall and 28 percent (9-of-32) from beyond the arc.

Seth Lundy had 23 points and seven rebounds and Sam Sessoms recorded 22 points, six rebounds and four assists while making 6-of-7 3-pointers in the win. Sessoms, a Binghamton transfer, hit four in a span of 2:03 late in the first half to turn a 10-point Cornell lead into a halftime advantage for the home team, then connected on two more in the final 5:08 to ultimately put the Big Red away. Jalen Pickett had 15 points and six assists and John Harrar notched seven points, a game-high 12 rebounds and blocked two shots for the Nittany Lions. Penn State drilled its 15 3-pointers on 34 attempts.

Penn State led by eight just six minutes in, but Cornell exploded for a 21-3 run to go up 27-17 with eight minutes to go before halftime. Sessoms then took over, putting PSU up 41-38 after 20 minutes. A 10-0 second half run gave Cornell a lead four minutes into the second half and didn't surrender it until Sessoms drained a trey with 5:08 remaining and Cornell was never able to get back in it after that.

First Half

• Penn State jumped out to an 6-2 lead before the Big Red settled down, with Chris Manon scoring Cornell's first four points. 
• The home team's lead grew to 11-4 after the first media timeout as the Big Red opened just 2-for-9 from the floor.
• While the Big Red was struggling to make shots, it had a 10-7 edge on the backboards, and Kobe Dickson's putback of a miss got Cornell within 14-11.
• A Dean Noll 3-pointer after a sweeping layup got the Big Red within 17-16, and a Nittany Lion turnover led to a Jordan Jones 3-pointer for the team's first lead of the night at 19-17 midway through the half.
• The 21-3 run included a backdoor layup by Jones on a feed from Kobe Dickson. 
• It was 27-17 after Keller Boothby canned a pair of free throws after a Big Red steal led to an intentional foul. 
• Sessoms drained four consecutive 3pointers in the final 2:41 to go into the break with a 41-38 lead to change the complexion of the game.
 

Second Half

• Five straight points to open the half by Penn State pushed the lead to eight, but Cornell answered with 10 consecutive to regain the lead.
• Sarju Patel hit consecutive 3-pointers to regain the lead set up by Dean Noll steals on back-to-back plays
• Cornell maintained the lead for most of the second half, and Penn State twice missed the front end of 1-and-1's that allowed the Big Red to maintain the lead.
• Nazir Williams snapped a 3:36 scoreless streak with a pair of free throws to make it a three-point lead with 6:13 to play.
• From there, just like late in the first half, Sessoms got free for 3-pointers that changed the game.
• This time, the senior made consecutive shots beyond the arc to put the home team back in front, the second making it 73-69.
• Williams made it a one possession game with two free throws, but Myles Dread hit his lone shot of the day, a dagger 3-pointer, to make it a four-point game.
• Cornell was never able to scratch its way closer.

 

Up Next

• The Big Red will play a Thanksgiving-eve matinee contest against Saint Francis (Pa.) on Wednesday, Nov. 24 at 4 p.m. at Newman Arena.
• The all-time series is tied 4-4 with the Red Flash winning the last meeting between the teams, 72-62, in Ithaca during the 2013-14 season.
• Cornell previously had won three consecutive contests between the programs.
• The two teams first met during the 1979-80 season, a 75-61 Saint Francis (Pa.) victory in the consolation game of the Rochester Classic.