GRINNELL – Cornell's Midwest Conference men's basketball opener was a tale of two halves in Tuesday's 94-75 setback to in-state rival Grinnell at Darby Gym.
 
The Rams (0-7 overall, 0-1 MWC) shot a sizzling 61.5 percent in the opening 20 minutes and took a 42-41 lead into the break. Grinnell (5-1 overall, 2-0 MWC) responded with a 15-0 spurt to start the second half and didn't look back to stay unbeaten in league play.
 
Freshman Wayne Jurica had his best game as a Ram, leading all scorers with 23 points in only 21 minutes of action. The 6-foot-4 guard buried four 3-point goals and went 7-of-7 from the foul line.
 
Jurica's three brought the Rams within 58-51 with 12:48 left to go, although Grinnell pulled away from there. Cornell's shooting cooled off to 31.3 percent in the second half.
 
Cornell held the nation's top scoring team 29 points below its season average. The Pioneers took advantage of 34 Cornell turnovers that resulted in 42 points.  
 
The Rams had 13 players score in the contest, which included eight points off the bench from Caleb Leslie. Luke Hellige led the team with five rebounds, while Kylen Bonner came away with four steals.
 
Coming up – The Rams are home Saturday to face Ripon (1-6 overall, 1-0 MWC) at 1 p.m. in the Small Athletic and Wellness Center.