Princeton Makes Points Without Earl

On a night when Brain Earl, its leading scorer, was shut out, Princeton amassed its highest point total of the season.

Which means, after its worst offensive outing of the year, things are back to normal for the Tigers.

Gabe Lewullis tied a career high with 24 points and scored eight in a late first-half run that sparked No. 11 Princeton to an 86-61 Ivy League victory over Cornell on Friday night at Princeton, N.J.

“I was pretty much upset with the way I played Monday, and everybody else was upset with how they played,” said Lewullis, referring to the Tigers’ sloppy victory over Division III College of New Jersey. “A lot of guys made it personal to go out there and play tough. This was a step in the right direction, but we still didn’t feel we played our best basketball game.”

They still had enough to offset a scoreless night from Earl, who leads Princeton with a 14.3 scoring average.

Because of the way Cornell crashes the offensive boards, Tiger Coach Bill Carmody implored his team to push the ball and try and beat the Big Red in transition. Princeton did that with a number of fastbreak layups.

Princeton, 15-1 overall and 3-0 in the Ivy League, won its eighth straight overall, its ninth straight against Cornell (6-11, 3-2) and its 18th straight against Ivy League opponents.

Princeton shot 50% and committed only six turnovers.