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LOWELL, Mass. – Redshirt sophomore Jahad Thomas (Williamsport, Pa.) totaled 19 points and nine rebounds to lead the UMass Lowell men's basketball team (3-2) to a hard-fought, 80-77 victory against Cornell University (3-4) on Sunday afternoon at Costello Athletic Center.
 
"This was a great win for our program," said Head Coach Pat Duquette. "It got really tight down the stretch, forcing us to execute and make a number of tough plays against pressure, which is always hard to do, especially when you're playing with so many young guys. We moved the ball and spaced the floor, and we got the ball to the open guy. That allowed us to make a high percentage of our shots and force Cornell to make some adjustments defensively, and I thought that was the key today."
 
The decision marked the program's first win ever against an Ivy League opponent. Thomas notched season highs of four assists and three steals in outing. Freshman Isaac White (Ashland, Ohio) added to the offense with 18 points and nine rebounds of his own, while freshman Keith Hayes II (Little Rock, Ark.) (13 points) and sophomore Matt Harris (10 points) rounded out the double-digit scorers for UMass Lowell. As a team, the River Hawks controlled the boards, outrebounding the visitors, 46-27.
 
The score was tied twice with less than six minutes to play in the contest, but Thomas came up big with three straight buckets in the waning minutes to give his squad the lead for good. UMass Lowell then went 5-for-6 from the line in the final minute to help secure the outcome.
 
The teams traded baskets in the early part of the contest before White hit a jumper and junior Tyler Livingston (Hudson, N.H.) knocked down a three to put the home squad ahead, 15-10, with 13:37 remaining in the first half.
 
Cornell knotted the score at 17-17, but a quick, 8-2 spurt that included a tip-in by freshman Logan Primerano (Peru, Ind.) and a long-range jumper from Hayes gave the River Hawks a 25-19 advantage at 7:23 in the first.
 
Although the Big Red made it a one-basket game on two occasions, White drained back-to-back three-pointers as part of a 12-0 UMass Lowell run to give the squad its largest lead of the game at 39-24 with just over four minutes left. The visitors would notch the last six points of the half, however, cutting the difference back to single digits, as the River Hawks led, 43-34, at the break.
 
Coming out of halftime, Cornell outscored UMass Lowell, 12-2, to take the upper hand, 46-45, with 16:23 still to play. The lead was short-lived, though, as freshman Ryan Jones (Rio Rancho, N.M.) converted on a pair of free throws to spark a 14-3 run for the home team, making the score 59-49 at 10:49.
 
The River Hawks maintained at least a four-point margin until the Big Red used a three-point play to pull within three at 63-60 at 7:37. The visitors then used back-to-back threes to regain the lead with just over six minutes remaining.
 
Matt Morgan led three double-digit scorers for Cornell with a game-high 23 points. Robert Hatter added 14 points.
 
Sunday's contest marked just the second meeting ever between UMass Lowell and Cornell in the sport of men's basketball. The River Hawks will return to action on Thursday, December 3 when they visit LIU Brooklyn for a 7 p.m. tilt to kick off a three-game road trip.