Rams rally for 77-72 OT win over Central

The Cornell women's basketball team showed plenty of fight and perseverance in gaining a split during the opening week of Iowa Conference play.

The Rams went into Cowles Fieldhouse Wednesday night and gave IIAC preseason favorite Simpson all it could handle in a 63-60 overtime loss in Indianola. Put in a similar scenario at home Saturday, Cornell pushed past Central for a 77-72 overtime win at the Small Multi-Sport Center.

Junior center Camille Marie-Lidd averaged a double-double (16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds) on the week as the Rams moved to 3-3 overall, 1-1 in the league. Freshman post Taylor Dicus provided 15.0 points and 6.0 rebounds a game for Cornell, which held the two IIAC foes to 33.8 percent shooting while owning a 96-74 edge on the boards.

Cornell's depth played a big role in the Central win, outscoring the Dutch 46-8 in bench points. Freshman guard Rikki Mulloy came off the bench to score a team-high 19 points in helping Cornell erase a 51-46 deficit with 4:58 to go in regulation.

Mulloy accounted for 10 points down the stretch, including back-to-back 3-pointers that put the Rams ahead 57-56 with 3:12 remaining in the second half. Cornell built the lead to 61-56 on a Kathryn Schilling 3-pointer, but Central (3-3, 0-2 IIAC) rallied to tie it at 64-64 on a pair of free throws with seven seconds to go to force overtime.

Schilling netted six points in the extra period, including a 3-pointer that evened the score at 72-72 with 1:07 remaining. Freshman India Pearce converted a layup with 23 seconds left to put the Rams in front to stay at 74-72. Cornell iced the game with two free throws from Marie-Lidd and one from Morgan Woods.

Marie-Lidd finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds for Cornell, which held a 47-37 edge in rebounds. Schilling and Dicus scored 12 points apiece. Pearce added nine points and seven rebounds.

Cornell was up to the challenge on the road against four-time defending league champion Simpson (5-2, 1-1 IIAC), a game that witnessed eight ties and 10 lead changes. The Rams battled back from an 11-point deficit with 11:53 to play and sent the contest into overtime on a tip-in from Dicus just before time expired.

The Rams had their chances in the extra five-minute period, taking a 59-57 lead on a 3-pointer by junior Leonie de Jonge with 1:24 to go. A Schilling free throw gave Cornell a 60-59 lead with 46 seconds remaining.

After Simpson regained the lead at 61-60, Cornell misfired on a 3-point shot with nine seconds to play. The Storm collected the rebound and hit two free throws to escape with the victory.

Cornell received 38 points and 17 rebounds from its 1-2 inside punch of Marie-Lidd and Dicus. Marie-Lidd led all players with 20 points and nine boards. Dicus shot 9-of-13 from the field and totaled 18 points and eight rebounds.

Schilling contributed seven points and five assists for the Rams, who held Simpson to 30.2 shooting for the game. De Jonge chipped in six points and seven rebounds as Cornell won the battle on the boards, 49-37.

Rams in the rankings - Cornell enters the week as the IIAC team leader in field goal percentage defense (33.2), total rebounds (46.8 rpg) and rebound margin (+7.5 rpg).

Marie-Lidd averages a league-best 17.3 points, and also tops the charts with 4.5 offensive rebounds per game. She stands fourth in rebounding with 8.3 boards per game.

Coming up - Cornell resumes IIAC play Wednesday against Dubuque (2-3, 0-1 IIAC) in a 6 p.m. tipoff in Mount Vernon. The Rams and Spartans split two games last season. Cornell's 63-45 win at Dubuque on Dec. 8, 2010, is the team's lone win in the last seven meetings with the Spartans.