Harvard holds off second-half rally to beat Cornell, 75-73

BOSTON (AP) — Austin Hunt knocked down three of four free throw attempts in the final 12 seconds as Harvard held off a second-half comeback bid to beat Cornell 75-73 on Friday night.

The Crimson led by 17 points at halftime, 47-30, but Cooper Noard’s layup with :54 left cut the Big Red’s deficit to a single point, 70-69. Evan Nelson hit two free throws to give Harvard a three-point lead, but AK Okereke’s layup got Cornell within one, 72-71 with :13 left.

Thomas Batties II’s 21 points, five rebounds and three steals led the Crimson (8-13, 3-5 Ivy League). Chandler Pigge added 13 points while shooting 6 for 13, including 0 for 3 from beyond the arc while they also had seven rebounds and three steals. Nelson went 4 of 7 from the field (3 for 5 from 3-point range) to finish with 13 points.

The Big Red (13-8, 5-3) were led by Noard, who recorded 22 points and six rebounds. Nazir Williams added 18 points for Cornell. Okereke also had 10 points.

Both teams play again on Saturday. Harvard hosts Columbia and Cornell travels to play Dartmouth.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

By The Associated Press