Sunday, November 29
2:30
Drexel University
54
vs
61
Cornell
Cornell Outlasts Drexel in Final Game of 2009 Legends Classic
11/29/2009 4:32:29 PM | Men's Basketball
Box Score
Philadelphia - Drexel erased a 12 point second-half deficit to Cornell but the visitors pulled out a 61-54 victory in the final game of the 2009 Legends Classic. The Dragons were led by Jamie Harris who scored 15 points while Gerald Colds added 14 points. Harris and Colds each handed out four assists. Legends Classic Most Valuable Player Ryan Wittman led all scorers with 18 points. The loss dropped Drexel's record to 3-4 while Cornell, the defending Ivy League champion, improved to 5-2 on the season.
The Dragons fought back from an 11-point deficit as the Big Red built a 30-19 advantage heading into halftime. Cornell jumped to its biggest lead of the second half when Chris Wroblewski knocked down a jumper with 14:45 remaining to give the Big Red a 36-24 lead. Freshman Derrick Thomas responded with a lay-up to ignite a 10-0 Drexel run that cut the Cornell lead to just two points with 11:09 left. The teams battled back and forth until the Dragons finally knotted the game at 50-50 on a Harris three-pointer with just over four minutes remaining. The teams exchanged baskets before a field goal from Thomas gave Drexel its first lead of the game at 54-52 with 2:05 to play. It was short-lived, however, as Wroblewski drained a three-pointer from the top of the arc just 17 seconds later to give Cornell a lead it would not relinquish. On the ensuing Drexel possession, Samme Givens was whistled for an illegal screen as Harris slashed to the basket. Cornell's Jeff Foote scored in the paint on the other end to move the lead to three points. Colds got a good look at a three-pointer from the left side of the arc with 32 seconds remaining but his shot missed and the visitors corralled the rebound. Cornell connected on its final four free-throw attempts to close the game.
Drexel opened the game by missing its first eight field-goal attempts of the game as Cornell opened a 15-1 lead. The Dragons got its first bucket of the contest when Harris connected on a mid-range shot but Cornell responded with a Louis Dale jumper to bring the Big Red lead back to a game-high 14 points. A basket in the lane by Givens four minutes later capped a 12-4 run that saw the Dragons reach to within six points but Cornell built the advantage back to 11 points over the final 7:12 of the period by scoring seven of the final 11 points of the half. The Dragons shot just 33 percent from the floor in the opening stanza while committing 12 turnovers. Drexel's totaled 18 turnovers for the day after posting a season-low five miscues the day before against Toledo.
Evan Neisler and Givens each totaled a game-high seven rebounds while Givens also added 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the floor. Drexel missed just seven of its 22 field-goal attempts in the second period in recording a season-best 68 percent shooting for the half en route to a season-best 51 percent for the game.
Harris lead the team in scoring for the fourth consecutive game as he was selected to the Legends Classic All-Tournament Team. He was joined on the squad by Vermont's Marqus Blakely, Toledo's Jake Barnett and Jon Jaques and Wittman from Cornell.
Drexel returns to action on Wednesday, Dec. 2 at fourth-ranked Villanova. The Dragons and Wildcats will meet at the Pavilion at 7:00 p.m.
Philadelphia - Drexel erased a 12 point second-half deficit to Cornell but the visitors pulled out a 61-54 victory in the final game of the 2009 Legends Classic. The Dragons were led by Jamie Harris who scored 15 points while Gerald Colds added 14 points. Harris and Colds each handed out four assists. Legends Classic Most Valuable Player Ryan Wittman led all scorers with 18 points. The loss dropped Drexel's record to 3-4 while Cornell, the defending Ivy League champion, improved to 5-2 on the season.
The Dragons fought back from an 11-point deficit as the Big Red built a 30-19 advantage heading into halftime. Cornell jumped to its biggest lead of the second half when Chris Wroblewski knocked down a jumper with 14:45 remaining to give the Big Red a 36-24 lead. Freshman Derrick Thomas responded with a lay-up to ignite a 10-0 Drexel run that cut the Cornell lead to just two points with 11:09 left. The teams battled back and forth until the Dragons finally knotted the game at 50-50 on a Harris three-pointer with just over four minutes remaining. The teams exchanged baskets before a field goal from Thomas gave Drexel its first lead of the game at 54-52 with 2:05 to play. It was short-lived, however, as Wroblewski drained a three-pointer from the top of the arc just 17 seconds later to give Cornell a lead it would not relinquish. On the ensuing Drexel possession, Samme Givens was whistled for an illegal screen as Harris slashed to the basket. Cornell's Jeff Foote scored in the paint on the other end to move the lead to three points. Colds got a good look at a three-pointer from the left side of the arc with 32 seconds remaining but his shot missed and the visitors corralled the rebound. Cornell connected on its final four free-throw attempts to close the game.
Drexel opened the game by missing its first eight field-goal attempts of the game as Cornell opened a 15-1 lead. The Dragons got its first bucket of the contest when Harris connected on a mid-range shot but Cornell responded with a Louis Dale jumper to bring the Big Red lead back to a game-high 14 points. A basket in the lane by Givens four minutes later capped a 12-4 run that saw the Dragons reach to within six points but Cornell built the advantage back to 11 points over the final 7:12 of the period by scoring seven of the final 11 points of the half. The Dragons shot just 33 percent from the floor in the opening stanza while committing 12 turnovers. Drexel's totaled 18 turnovers for the day after posting a season-low five miscues the day before against Toledo.
Evan Neisler and Givens each totaled a game-high seven rebounds while Givens also added 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the floor. Drexel missed just seven of its 22 field-goal attempts in the second period in recording a season-best 68 percent shooting for the half en route to a season-best 51 percent for the game.
Harris lead the team in scoring for the fourth consecutive game as he was selected to the Legends Classic All-Tournament Team. He was joined on the squad by Vermont's Marqus Blakely, Toledo's Jake Barnett and Jon Jaques and Wittman from Cornell.
Drexel returns to action on Wednesday, Dec. 2 at fourth-ranked Villanova. The Dragons and Wildcats will meet at the Pavilion at 7:00 p.m.
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