Skip To Main Content

Cornell University Athletics

The Cornell Big Red’s women’s basketball team competes against Brown on Saturday, Jan. 29, 2022 in Newman Arena in Ithaca, NY.
Eldon Lindsay/Cornell Athletics
55
Brown BRN 5-13,0-6 Ivy League
61
Winner Cornell CU 7-10,2-4 Ivy League
Brown BRN
5-13,0-6 Ivy League
55
Final
61
Cornell CU
7-10,2-4 Ivy League
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Brown BRN 10 10 14 21 55
Cornell CU 14 6 15 26 61

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Late Run Lifts Women's Basketball To 61-55 Win Over Brown

ITHACA, N.Y. – It was a total team effort from start to finish, but senior guard Samantha Will's career day was a huge difference maker for the Big Red, as Cornell earned a hard-fought 61-55 victory over Brown on Saturday afternoon at Newman Arena. With the win, the Big Red improved to 7-10 (2-4 Ivy), while the Bears slipped to 5-13 (0-6 Ivy).

Will paced three Cornell scorers in double figures against the Bears, finishing the contest with 17 points and 12 rebounds, both of which were career-bests, for her first-career double-double. Will shot 6-of-14 from the floor, including knocking down 3-of-4 shots from long range, and if that wasn't already enough, she also scooped up a game- and career-high five steals.

Senior forward Theresa Grace Mbanefo finished the game just one rebound shy of a double-double, scoring 16 points to go along with nine rebounds and three blocks for her fifth triple-block game of the season. Junior guard Ania McNicholas set up the Cornell offense with poise and confidence all day, scoring 13 points for her third-straight game in double-figures and dishing out a game-high and career-best seven assists.

Sophomore guard Kaya Ingram's performance was impactful in her first collegiate start, as she tallied seven points, seven rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Her rebound and assist totals both marked career-highs. Ingram wasn't the only one who made her way into the starting lineup for the first time of her career, however, as freshman Summer Parker-Hall got the starting nod for the first time of her career as well. Parker-Hall's court presence had a positive effect on the Big Red, as she was a +25 for Cornell in her 26 minutes of action.

In a game between two teams that could not have been much more evenly matched, the Big Red found itself trailing by four, 46-42, with 6:08 remaining in the contest. After both teams struggled offensively for much of the contest, Cornell found its rhythm in crunch time when it needed to most, going on a 16-4 run over a three-minute span from the 3:29 mark to just 20 seconds remaining in the contest to take an eight-point lead, 58-50. It was just what the Big Red needed to go on to secure the 61-55 victory.

The Big Red made it count from the free throw line in the quarter, and after shooting just 7-of-16 from the charity stripe in the first three quarters, Cornell shot 11-of-16 from the foul line in the fourth quarter alone. Ingram started off the run with a pair of made free throws, and McNicholas capped it off with three free throws of her own when Brown was forced to start fouling out of desperation. Ingram had ice water running through her veins in the quarter, scoring six of her seven points for the contest in the frame, while Will scored seven of her 17 in the quarter.

While it took until the fourth quarter for the Big Red offense to come alive, it was Cornell's defense that set the tone from the very start, as Cornell forced 22 Brown turnovers and turned that into 20 points over the course of the contest. The Big Red also collected 10 steals, half of which belonged to Will.

Brown's Isabella Mauricio scored a game-high 24 points, including hitting on 6-of-16 3-pointers, and Kyla Jones added 13 points and six rebounds off the bench to pace the Bears' offensively.

The Cornell women's basketball team will open a three-game road stretch when it plays back-to-back contests next weekend at Princeton on Feb. 4 at 7 p.m. at Jadwin Gymnasium in Princeton, N.J. and Penn on Feb. 5 at 4 p.m. at The Palestra in Philadelphia.



 
Print Friendly Version