ITHACA, N.Y. -- Senior Nazir Williams led four double figure scorers for Cornell, but Brown's Kino Lilly Jr. shook off an uncharacteristically cold shooting night to hit the game-winning free throw with 10 seconds remaining to lift the visiting Bears to an 83-82 victory on Monday afternoon at Newman Arena. The Big Red slipped to 10-6 (2-1 Ivy), while the Bears improved to 9-7 (1-2 Ivy).

Williams scored 17 points and added five rebounds and five assists to lead the Big Red, while AK Okereke netted 18 points, four boards, four assists and two steals. Jake Fiegen (13 points) and Guy Ragland Jr. (11 points, six rebounds) rounded out the double figure scorers. Cornell shot 64 percent from the floor in the loss, including a torrid 77 percent in the first half. Cornell, the nation's leader in assists, was credited with helpers on 21 of its 33 made field goals.

Aaron Cooley scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-13 shooting, with Landon Lewis adding 17 and both AJ Lesburt Jr. and Lyndel Erold scoring 11 for the Bears. Brown shot 53 percent from the floor and turned the ball over just seven times, allowing the Bears to attempt eight more shots than the Big Red, who coughed the ball up 14 times. Combined with its nine missed free throws, the Big Red couldn't make up the difference.
 


Cornell led by as many as nine points in the first half and went into the locker room with a 49-43 edge in a back-and-forth first half that saw the home team shoot 77 percent from the floor and connect on 6-of-10 shots from beyond the arc. Brown wasn't exactly a slouch on the offensive end, shooting 52 percent itself. Williams had 11 points to lead the Big Red, but it was Cooley's 17 points that allowed the Bears to hang around and ultimately escape with the win. 

Brown was able to slow down Cornell in the second 20 minutes, allowing just 33 points and turning over the Big Red nine times. The Bears twice took the lead in the second half, but Cornell answered with 3-pointers both times - the first by Adam Hinton, the second by Ragland Jr. - to gain back the momentum.

The Bears were bailed out in the final minute when Lilly Jr., who had a miserable 2-of-16 shooting night, came up big when it mattered. The all-league selection was fouled attempting a pull-up jumper with 10 seconds to play and made the first of two free throws to give Brown an 83-82 lead. Cornell missed on the other end, but got the ball under the basket trailing by one with 0.5 seconds left. The Big Red got Ragland Jr. a great, but hurried, look from the corner and his shot rimmed out at the buzzer, giving Brown the hard-fought victory.
UP NEXT
• Cornell returns to the road to face reigning Ivy League champion Princeton on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. at Jadwin Gymnasium.
• The contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
• Princeton holds a commanding 154-85 edge in the all-time series, though the Big Red is 4-5 in the last nine matchups.
• Five of the past eight meetings have been decided by five points or fewer, with three of the last four at Jadwin decided by a single possession.