Cornell men’s basketball set more offensive records in a dominant 101-72 road win over Bucknell on Sunday at Sojka Pavilion. The Big Red improved to 5-2 with their fifth straight victory, while Bucknell fell to 2-7.
Cornell shot 67.3 percent from the field, surpassing a 40-year-old program record, and made 20 3-pointers with 30 assists, both arena highs. Six Big Red players reached double digits in scoring, led by senior Cooper Noard with 17 points, including 5-of-6 from deep. Junior Jacob Beccles added 13, seniors Corbin Zentner and Jake Fiegen each had 11, and sophomores Anthony Nimani and Gio Panzini contributed 10 apiece. Senior Josh Baldwin led with six assists, while junior Kaspar Sepp grabbed six rebounds.
The Big Red took control early after a tight start, building a 45-30 halftime lead thanks to a mix of fast-breaks and perimeter shooting. Cornell continued its hot shooting in the second half, never allowing the Bison to get closer than double digits. Key stretches included back-to-back 3-pointers from Zentner and timely dunks from Nimani and Panzini, pushing the margin to 33 points.
Defensively, Cornell forced 17 turnovers and limited Bucknell to 38.3 percent shooting, holding the Bison to just 7-of-26 from beyond the arc. Aleksander Pachucki led Bucknell with 17 points. Cornell also controlled the paint 34-26 and held a 32-26 edge on the boards.
Next, Cornell travels to Fairfax to take on George Mason on Tuesday, December 2 at 7 p.m. at EagleBank Arena.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].