MOUNT VERNON – North Park shot lights out from the field and ran away with a 106-74 men's basketball win over the Rams in a holiday matchup of conference contenders Saturday inside the Small Athletic and Wellness Center.
The visiting Vikings (8-3), who stand atop the CCIW, connected on 14 3-pointers and stretched their winning streak to seven games. Cornell moved to 8-4 in its final home game of 2024.
Jayden Meeker paced the Rams with an efficient 22-point effort in which he made 8-of-11 field goals. It was the 18th career 20-point game for the all-conference senior guard.
Zach Ingle delivered 17 points and
Caleb Leslie came off Cornell's bench to score all 10 of his points in the second half.
Dylan Hurley tallied seven points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Rams.
North Park shot 58.1 percent for the game. The Vikings finished the first half on an 11-2 run to take a 55-33 lead at the break. The Rams closed within 66-54 on a free throw by Meeker with 14:38 left in regulation.
The athletic Vikings broke it back open down the stretch. They shot a sizzling 64.5 percent over the final 20 minutes.
The Rams were hurried into 18 turnovers, which North Park converted into 26 points.
Coming up – The Rams travel to play Wartburg (8-3) Tuesday in a New Year's Eve matchup at 2 p.m. in Waverly. Cornell beat the Knights, 98-94 in overtime, on Nov. 16.
