PRINCETON, N.J. -- Matt Allocco's buzzer-beating 3-pointer just before the horn sounded capped Princeton's rally from 18 points down in the second half and gave the Tigers a 72-70 victory over Cornell on Saturday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. The win improved the Tigers to 12-3 (2-0 Ivy), while the Big Red dropped to 9-5 (1-2 Ivy).
It looked as if the Big Red had won the game, getting a layup by
Dean Noll with 4.9 seconds remaining to go back into the lead moments after the Tigers took their first lead of the night, but two passes put the ball in Allocco's hands and he took a shot from three feet behind the arc. The officials reviewed the play and confirmed the shot was good on replay, keeping Princeton unbeaten in conference action.
The loss overshadowed a strong effort by the Big Red, playing without its starting backcourt of
Jordan Jones and
Greg Dolan.
Chris Manon and
Sarju Patel each had 13 points while
Keller Boothby and
Dean Noll scored 11 apiece. Noll added five rebounds, three assists and two steals, while
Nazir Williams chipped in eight points and five boards. Cornell shot 44 percent from the floor and forced 17 Princeton turnovers.
The Tigers shot 56 percent in the decisive second half and made 7-of-13 from 3-point range in the final 20 minutes. Allocco finished with 14 points, but it was the play of Tosan Evbuomwan that got Princeton over the finish line. The big man had 15 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals, including a number of big plays down the stretch. His free throw with 1:08 left gave the home team its first lead, and he had two big offensive rebounds and a steal in the final minute. Drew Friberg had 16 points and Ryan Langborg had 11 for Princeton, who was playing without their leading scorer, Jaelin Llewellyn.
Gallery: (1-8-2022) Men's Basketball at Princeton, 01.08.22
FIRST HALF
• Cornell led 39-25 at the break after forcing 11 turnovers and taking advantage to outscore the Tigers 16-4 off them.
•
Dean Noll and
Chris Manon each had nine points to lead the Big Red, which shot 47 percent from the floor.
• The Big Red played 13 players, not including the starting backcourt of
Jordan Jones and
Greg Dolan, who sat out due to injury.
• Cornell, which ranked second in the country in assists, was credited with just two on 15 first half baskets.
• The visitors led wire-to-wire in the half, ending on a 15-5 run.
SECOND HALF
• The Big Red's lead swelled to 18 points.four minutes into the second half on a
Sarju Patel 3-pointer as the senior scored 13 after the break.
• Princeton chipped away at the lead, getting back to single digits with nine minutes left and ultimately taking its first lead with 1:08 to play.
• In between, turnovers (nine) and Princeton offensive rebounds (seven leading to 10 points) crushed the visitors.
• The Tigers shot 56 percent from the floor overall and 54 percent from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes.
• The game featured three ties and five lead changes in the final three minutes, including four lead changes in the final 68 seconds.
•
Chris Manon and
Dean Noll each scored go-ahead baskets in the final minute for the Big Red, while
Nazir Williams broke a tie with 2:38 remaining.
NEXT UP
• The Big Red completes its three-game road swing when it visits defending Ivy League champion Yale on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. at John J. Lee Amphitheater in New Haven, Conn.
• Yale leads the all-time series 118-110, including 15 consecutive victories.
• The Big Red's last win over Yale came in a 68-61 victory on Feb. 15, 2013 in New Haven behind 18 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots from Shonn Miller.
