The Cornell Big Red responded to the negativity entering their first season without Matt Morgan in a big way, dominating the Binghamton Bearcats, 84-64, at Newmsn Arena. The Big Red had four players scoring in double figures, led by 24 from junior Jimmy Boeheim.
Boeheim was fantastic all night, shooting 11-for-19 from the field and connecting on two three-pointers.
“Guys set me up all night and I had a little advantage here and there and I just kinda took it,” said the 6-8 forward from Fayetteville, N.Y. He even threw down two dunks, the first two of his career.
Josh Warren also had a huge game. He got off to a cold start, but connected on a few shots late in the first half and got going from there. He finished with 19 points and seven assists.
“I kinda like to pass first, it’s just how I play, and within our offense, it works really well, people cutting and coming off screens,” Warren said.
Thurston McCarty also had a big game, taking advantage of his first real minutes as a member of the Big Red. He had 11 points and six boards.
“He’s made an impact, found his niche, and we’re happy with what he did tonight,” said coach Brian Earl.
Junior Terrance McBride was ready to take on a much bigger role in his third season, and he looked really good. He scored 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting.
“With Matt [Morgan] leaving, there’s a little bit of reason to have to pick up your offense and I think he’s done that. He scores in the way that he wants to, in a lot of pull up jumpers and sort of probing the defense,” said Earl.
Dean Noll also chipped in with eight, while Bryan Knapp, Riley Voss, and Jordan Jones each had a bucket.
The Big Red were very dominant on the defensive end, containing the Bearcats to 41% shooting. They kept Binghamton sophomore star Sam Sessoms in check, scoring just six points and all were in the first half.
Cornell led 45-38 at halftime.
“We were worried about [Sam] Sessoms a lot. They had some talented freshman [in] Brenton Mills, so we made sure we made Sessoms a big part of what we were trying to defend,” Earl said.
The Big Red were great on the boards, hauling in 38 compared to Binghamton’s 29. Cornell also got 10 offensive rebounds.
They were also able to take care of the basketball all night, turning the ball over just six times. The Big Red also stole the ball from Binghamton 10 times, and blocked them five times led by Thurston McCarty’s three.
Next up, the Big Red travel to take on the Bryant Bulldogs, who just came off a 73-71 loss to Brown Tuesday behind 23 from Brandon Anderson, including the winner with 12 seconds left.
Cornell will take on the Bulldogs on Sunday at 1 p.m. The game will be streamed live on NEC Front Row.