PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Behind a career day from junior guard Ania McNicholas, the Cornell women's basketball team downed Brown on the road, 68-61, on Saturday afternoon at the Pizzitola Sports Center in Providence, R.I. With the victory, the Big Red secured the season sweep of the Bears for the second time in the last three campaigns and improved to 8-12 (3-6 Ivy) on the year. Brown fell to 6-16 (1-9 Ivy).

McNicholas was the star of the show for the Big Red, pouring in a career-high 22 points and eclipsing the 20-point mark for the first time of her career. McNicholas was feeling it from behind the arc, sinking a career-best five 3-pointers and finishing the contest 5-of-8 from deep while adding seven rebounds, three assists, a pair of steals, and a block. The five treys for McNicholas marks the most made by an individual for the Big Red this season.

Senior forward Theresa Grace Mbanefo joined McNicholas in double figures, finishing the game with 16 points for her 13th double-digit performance of the year. She was also one of three Big Red student-athletes to pull down a game-high eight rebounds along with senior guard Samantha Will and freshman forward Summer Parker-Hall. Along with McNicholas' seven boards, the trio was the guiding force behind the Big Red ruling the Bears on the glass, as Cornell outrebounded Brown in the contest 45-27, including a dominating 19-5 on the offensive end of the floor.

Cornell's scoring in the contest went way beyond McNicholas and Mbanefo, as junior guard Shannon Mulroy (9), Will (8), and Parker-Hall (8) all scored at least eight points. Mulroy added a team-high four assists, while Parker-Hall's eight rebounds and three assists both marked a career-highs.

Cornell darted out to an early 10-2 lead to open the first quarter. Will and Mbanefo scored four early points apiece and Parker-Hall facilitated the Big Red offense, as all three of her assists for the contest came among the first four Cornell baskets of the game. The Big Red shot an impressive .412 (7-of-17) from the floor in the first quarter as compared to Brown's .333, building an 18-11 lead after 10 minutes of play. Cornell also did an excellent job of turning Brown over early on, scoring eight points off of the Bears' five first quarter turnovers and limiting itself to just two giveaways in the frame.

Brown's Maddie Mullin almost single-handedly powered the Bears' offense at the end of the first quarter and into the second, sinking four first half 3-pointers to help Brown pull within three of Cornell, 22-19, with 5:32 remaining in the first half. It was at that point, however, that Brown went cold and McNicholas heated up. Cornell held Brown scoreless for the remainder of the half while closing the second quarter on a 9-0 run, capped off by two McNicholas 3-pointers, her second and third of the half. The Big Red entered the locker room with a 12-point advantage, 31-19.

The Big Red took its biggest lead of the game, 39-23, with 6:51 left in the third quarter. Just when Cornell felt sure in its footing, Brown's Isabella Mauricio had other plans. The freshman scored 16 of her game-high 25 points in the third quarter, fueling a 15-2 Brown run over the next 3:45 to slice the Cornell lead to three, 41-38. Mauricio scored 13 of Brown's 15 points in the run and 16 of the Bears' 22 points in the quarter, as Cornell led by five, 46-41, at the end of the third quarter.

The Bears' comeback continued into the fourth, and after opening the final frame on a 10-2 run, Brown found itself with its first lead of the game, 49-48, with 6:25 remaining in the contest. The Bears would lead by three, 51-48, but Cornell quickly put an end to Brown's comeback hopes, going on a 9-1 run of its own over the next minute to reclaim a five-point advantage, 57-52. None other than a McNicholas 3-pointer put an exclamation point on the run.

Brown's foul count worked into Cornell's favor down the stretch, as the Bears put Cornell in the bonus at the 4:20 mark of the quarter. Mulroy was clutch in crunch time, going a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe in the last minute of the game to help secure the Cornell victory. Along with two free throw makes from McNicholas, Cornell went 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the final 60 seconds of the game, going on to the 68-61 victory.

The Cornell women's basketball team will return home for a three-game road stand when it hosts Dartmouth on Friday, Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. and Harvard on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 5 p.m. at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.