ITHACA, N.Y. -- Three double figure scorers and 53 percent shooting handed Jon Jaques '10 his first victory as a head coach in front of Newman Nation as the Cornell men's basketball team ran past Marywood 93-52 on Monday evening at Newman Arena. The Big Red never trailed, leading by as many as 46 points in improving to 1-0.

None of Cornell's 19 players saw more than 18 minutes of action and everyone had a hand in its 18th consecutive non-conference home win. Sophomore Jake Fiegen, making his first collegiate start, made 7-of-8 shots from the floor en route to 16 points and added three rebounds and two assists. junior Cooper Noard added 12 points and classmate Josh Baldwin, also making his first collegiate start in his return to Newman Arena after missing 2023-24 with an injury, had 10 to go along with three boards. Senior Guy Ragland Jr. was dominant in his 13 minutes, scoring two points with five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a blocked shot.

There was plenty to be excited about on the first day of college basketball for Big Red fans, particularly Jaques moving one chair over to capture a win in his collegiate debut. The captain of the 2010 NCAA Sweet 16 team and an assistant and associate head coach for a dozen years at his alma mater, Jaques saw the Big Red share the ball (30 assists) and pick apart the Pacers in a dominant first half with most of its rotation players seeing time. Cornell had 16 assists on 20 baskets, made 67 percent of its shots and held a 48-22 edge at the break. Though a little more sloppy after the break, Cornell ran (33-14 edge in fastbreak points), scored in the paint (50 points) and was lights out inside the arc (25-of-33, 76 percent), continuing its recent trend of doing all those things to create winning Big Red basketball.


Junior guard Corbin Zentner (three points), sophomore center AJ LaBeau (four points) and freshmen Gioacchino Panzini and Ty Iwanonkiw (two points apiece) each scored their first collegiate points, while rookie Mateen Rafiq had a team-high five rebounds and dished three assists.Freshmen AJ Rodriguez and Anthony Nimani combined for seven rebounds in the win.

Cornell played without the services of returning All-Ivy League player Nazir Williams, who was nursing an injury. The starting lineup didn't miss a beat. making 20-of-25 baskets (80 percent) and assisting on 14 buckets with just three miscues. AK Okereke posted  a+30 in his 18 minutes of action, posting eight points, five assists and three rebounds in the victory. 

Marywood got 13 points and five rebounds off the bench from Cole Johnson, while Austin Bausman scored nine. Shilo Bivins scored four points with five boards, including an early dunk in the halfcourt for the first points of the game for the visitors.  The Pacers shot 32 percent from the floor and were on the short end of a 50-30 rebounding margin, but also assisted on 17 baskets against just 11 turnovers.

Jacon Beccles (seven points, three assists), DJ Nix (eight points, five rebounds, two steals) and Adam Hinton (seven points, two assists) were among the returners making their mark on the game, while Ryan Kiachian scored six points and grabbed five boards, including tipping in two baskets. Sophomore Ian Imegwu scored five with three rebounds and two assists, while Chris Cain was a +15 in 11 minutes, scoring one points with a rebound, an assist and a steal.

UP NEXT
• Cornell remains at home to face 2024 Southern Conference regular season and tournament champion Samford on Friday, Nov. 8 at 6 p.m. at Newman Arena in Bartels Hall.
• The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.
• It will be the first-ever meeting between the teams on the hardwood.
• The Bulldogs lost to Kansas 93-89 in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament to complete a 29-6 campaign.