The men’s basketball team (12-13, 4-6 Ivy League) defeated Cornell 81-80 after taking the lead in the final possession of the game with 3.5 seconds left on the clock. Down one with possession of the ball, Tamenang Choh GS — who ended the contest with 15 rebounds and 11 points — drove to the basket looking to seal the win.
Choh missed a contested layup, but Jaylan Gainey ’22 managed to grab the offensive rebound. Gainey soared over two defenders and slammed down the dagger to secure the win. Gainey netted a team-leading 16 points, as well as nine rebounds and two blocks by the game’s end. With this win, the Bears remain in striking distance of the playoffs with four games remaining.
Gainey described the feeling of converting in such a clutch situation. “Being down by one with (a few) seconds on clock and knowing the season (was) on the line really had my heart racing,” he said. “My team and I really wanted the win, and I’m glad I was able to give us that final push we needed to close it.”
Six different Bears scored in the double digits, and Brown’s bench scored 15 more points than Cornell’s. In addition to Choh and Gainey, co-captain David Mitchell ’22 had 12 points, four rebounds and three steals. Kino Lilly Jr. ’25 had 10 points, becoming the fifth-highest first-year scorer in program history with 338 points and counting on the season. Perry Cowan ’23 scored 10 points and Dan Friday ’23 scored 11.
Brown shot 57.6 % from the field in the first half of the game. There were 23 lead changes during the match and the Bears recorded 14 offensive rebounds, their most since their trip to Syracuse on Dec. 27.
To start the second half, Cornell gained a six-point advantage with the help of a 10-0 run. The Bears fought hard and took a 71-69 lead with six minutes on the clock. Cornell briefly pulled ahead with a single-point lead — one that Brown surpassed with 34.3 seconds left on two free throws from Choh.
Cornell looked ready to take a win after a layup placed them in the lead 80-79 with 14.1 left, but Gainey secured victory for the Bears 81-80.
Choh was grateful that Gainey was able to convert after his miss. “During the timeout, Coach (Martin) drew up a play for me to get to the rim. The Cornell guys really helped in the paint, but I knew if I could at least get it on the rim, there was enough time for me to possibly get the board and put it back,” he said. “Thankfully, Jaylen came in and dunked it over me and brought us home for the win.”
"That's a great win for our team," said head coach Mike Martin ’04 in a statement to the Brown Athletics website. "Cornell presents lots of challenges at both ends of the court. I thought our players stepped up and found a day to do whatever was necessary to win the game. As a coach, that was exciting to see."
The team is focused on finding ways to come away with victories in their next two Ivy League games. Our “mindset for the next two games is just winning. I plan on doing everything I can for us to win,” Gainey said. “Opportunities for us to make the tournament are limited, so me and the guys are gonna give it our all in this final stretch. (It’s) not going to be easy but we are more than prepared.”
Still, Choh emphasized that the team is trying to maintain their focus. “Our mindset is just (to take things) one game at a time,” he said. “We of course understand the situation we're in, but we just want to key in on one game and one practice at a time and not try to get ahead of ourselves.”
Brown will return to gameplay this week. The Bears will host Princeton on Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. and Penn on Feb. 19 at 6 p.m.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story contained passages with identical or nearly identical language to a news article on the official Brown Athletics website. These portions have since been revised. An Editors’ Note explaining this and other changes can be found here.
