Greenwood, Miller lead Rams to road win

Finishing games has been a point of emphasis this season for Coach Chad Murray's young Cornell men's basketball team.

On the road for the first time and the game in the balance, that's exactly what his Rams accomplished in pulling out a 73-70 victory over Benedictine Friday night in Lisle, Ill.

Guard tandem Alex Miller and Reggie Greenwood delivered in the clutch, scoring 19 of the team's 22 points in the final nine minutes as Cornell notched its first win of 2011-12.

"The game was up for grabs with five minutes to go," Murray said. "(Friday's finish) was a great validation of what we have been stressing. We did what we needed to win."

The Rams (1-2) rebounded from a 69-60 home loss to NAIA's Mount Mercy in Tuesday's season opener. Cornell dropped a 79-62 decision on the road Saturday night to Elmhurst.

"We looked at last week as having three winnable games, so I was disappointed we didn't get at least two," Murray said. "There were certainly some individual and collective performances that we can build on as we move forward."

Greenwood got his sophomore season off to a strong start, averaging 17.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 56.3 percent from long range (9-of-16) in the three games. The 5-foot-8 point guard poured in a career-best 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting in a stellar all-around effort against Benedictine. Greenwood, who went 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, added five rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Miller delivered 11 of his 17 points against Benedictine in the final 8:06 of regulation. With the Rams leading 61-60 and less than three minutes to go, the junior popped in a pair of 3-pointers to keep Cornell ahead. Miller knocked down two free throws with 11 seconds left to provide the final margin of victory.

"Alex is our most experienced player and he stepped up like a veteran should. He made plays with the game on the line," Murray said. "Reggie was phenomenal on the offensive end. From a shooting standpoint, I can't complain."

Miller finished 7-of-10 from the field against Benedictine while dishing out four assists. John Harth and Rory Cotter added nine and eight points respectively. Freshman Nick Bobb and Harth chipped in seven rebounds apiece.

The Rams made 9-of-24 3-point goals and overcame a 12-of-25 performance from the foul line. Benedictine (1-2) hit 28 free throws on 46 attempts.

An eight-minute scoreless spell to start the second half plagued the Rams in the opener against unbeaten Mount Mercy (6-0), which received national votes in the NAIA Division II Preseason Top 25 Poll. Cornell, which led 40-39 at the break, was held without a field goal until the 10:30 mark of the second half. The Rams cut the deficit to 55-54 on a Harth layup with 5:50 to go, but never regained the lead.

"Mount Mercy is a very good team," Murray said. "I thought we executed our game plan and competed really well. You just can't expect to win a game when you go scoreless for that long (in the second half)."

Sophomore Joey Guth hit three 3-pointers and finished with 14 points, tying team-high scoring honors with Miller. Greenwood tallied 13 points, six rebounds and five assists. Bobb had eight points, five blocked shots and four rebounds.

Cornell saw the Elmhurst game get away during a 10-minute lapse to end the first half. The Bluejays turned a 20-17 deficit into a 43-25 lead at halftime. The Rams outscored the hosts 37-36 after intermission.

"We completely shut down on both ends of the court in the final 10 minutes of the first half," Murray said. "We competed well in the second half. Our guys showed some maturity."

Greenwood led three Rams in double figures with 15 points. He also had six rebounds and four assists. Miller scored 11 points, Bobb 10 and Guth eight.

Elmhurst shot 57.7 percent from the floor. The Rams shot 42.1 percent and turned the ball over 18 times.

Coming up - Cornell plays host to perennial power UW-Platteville (2-1) at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22 at the Small Multi-Sport Center. The Pioneers return three starters from last season's 17-10 squad.

UW-Platteville rolled to an 83-46 win over the Rams last year in Platteville, Wis.

"Platteville will present some match-up problems and will provide another good early-season test," Murray said. "We've had this game in the back of our minds after what happened last year. Hopefully we can prove that we've taken steps forward."