RIPON, Wis. – Cornell's best offensive performance of the season has the Rams in the championship game of the Midwest Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, one win from an NCAA berth.
 
Cooper Kabela delivered a rare triple-double, Marcus Quirk netted a career-high 30 points and the second-seeded Rams shot a sizzling 52.4 percent from 3-point range in Friday's 111-97 semifinal victory over Grinnell inside Ripon's Weiske Gymnasium.
 
The Rams (18-8) outscored Grinnell (16-9) by a 60-43 margin in the second half to notch their first MWC Tournament win since 1994, when they claimed the league crown.
 
Cornell advances to the title game at 3 p.m. Saturday for an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Rams play top-seeded Ripon (18-7), which advanced with a 61-51 win over Illinois College.
 
The Rams split two regular-season games with the Red Hawks, including a 63-57 win at Ripon on Jan. 29.
 
Cornell turned the tables on Grinnell, which beat the Rams 82-68 in Mount Vernon only eight days ago. Cornell's starting senior trio of Quirk, Kabela and Jordan Magnani stepped up in a big way with 72 combined points, including 41 in the second half when the Rams took control.  
 
Kabela had a dazzling all-around effort with 21 points, 10 rebounds and a career-best 10 assists in 38 minutes of work. Quirk, presented the MWC's Elite 20 (Academic) Award prior to tipoff, was elite on the court with a hot 11-of-18 shooting game from the field, highlighted by five 3-point goals. Quirk also grabbed nine rebounds.
 
Magnani filled up the stat sheet with 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists. He also logged 38 minutes against Grinnell's full-court pressure.
 
Izic Mackey and Julian Cleary provided 10 and nine points, respectively, off Cornell's bench. Logan Sharp and Zach Ingle added eight points apiece. Sharp had six rebounds and four blocked shots.
 
The Pioneers hit 10 3-pointers in the opening half and took a 54-51 lead into intermission. The Rams led 76-73 with 9:22 remaining when they broke it open with a 17-2 surge over the next six minutes. Quirk converted a 3-pointer, a dunk and a layup during the game-changing run.
 
Cornell sank 28-of-38 free throws, outscoring the Pioneers by 17 points from the foul line.