Cornell Overmatches Eureka, 96-71

MOUNT VERNON, Iowa – The Eureka men's basketball team fell behind Cornell midway through the first half and never caught up on Monday.

The Rams pushed past the Red Devils to notch a 96-71 non-conference victory on their home floor.

Chris Daniels (Peoria, Ill./Peoria) scored a team-high 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting and dished a team-high five assists for the Red Devils. Jalen Hosea (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) followed with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including 2-of-2 from beyond the arc. Despite foul trouble, Jaedon Banks (Peoria Heights, Ill./Peoria Heights) added nine points, including a 3-pointer, and four boards.

Off the bench, Jordan Brooks (St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) had a career-high eight points with a pair of 3-pointers, Lane Thompson (Dwight, Ill./Dwight), posted a career-high eight points, and Andrew Gonzalez (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein) gathered a team-high six boards to go with four points.

Cornell's Jordan Magnani dropped a game-high 23 points on 6-of-8 shooting with a pair of 3s. Logan Sharp had a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Cooper Kabela added 10 points.

The Red Devils led by as many as six points in the first 10 minutes of play and didn't relinquish the lead until the last five minutes of the half. However, the Rams outscored EC 26-12 in the final eight minutes of the half and they ran downhill from there.

Freshman Haniefe Johnson (Rockford, Ill./Rockford Auburn) knocked down a 3-pointer in his Red Devil debut, and sophomores Logan Dilley (Dawson, Ill./Tri-City) and Connor Zuber (Olney, Ill./Richland County) made their first appearances of the season for the maroon and gold.

On Wednesday, Eureka (2-2) will open St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play against Blackburn (1-0) at home at 7:30 p.m.