Nov. 19, 2004

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POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Marist's Will McClurkin (Medford, N.Y.) and Will Whittington (Kingwood, Tx.) combined for 30 points to stave off a valiant comeback by Cornell to defeat the Big Red 72-67 in the nightcap of the 19th annual Pepsi Marist Classic. Marist advanced to face Birmingham-Southern in Saturday's championship game after the Panthers knocked off Northeastern 81-70 in Friday's first contest. The win was Marist's sixth victory in its last seven openers.

The Red Foxes raced out to a quick lead in the first half, going up by as much as 17 on a three-pointer by Whittington at the 1:42 mark. Cornell tossed in a couple of baskets down the stretch to close the margin to 15 (36-21) at the half.

Marist continued to extend its advantage in the second half, extending the lead to 20 points (52-32) on a jumper just under the 12-minute mark by Carl Hood. Cornell went on a torrid run to close the gap, however, pulling to within a point on a layup by Eric Taylor at 66-65 with 46 seconds left to play. McClurkin and Whittington then salted the win away by going 6-for-8 down the stretch to give the Red Foxes the win.

Carl Hood chipped in 10 apiece in the scoring effort, while McClurkin jerked down nine boards. Jared Jordan also posted a decent floor game of six points, six assists and four rebounds. Cornell was led by Lenny Collins, who exploded for 30 points and seven rebounds on 11-for-14 shooting.

The Red Foxes shot 52 percent (26-for-50) from the field, including a 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) clip from long range. The Big Red was 49 percent (25-for-51) from the floor and held a narrow edge over Marist on the boards at 28-27.

Marist also dominated the bench points category 31-4, due in large part to the efforts of Hood and Whittington.