RIPON, Wis. - In a game that featured nine ties and 13 lead changes, Cornell topped Ripon's men's basketball team by a score of 63-57 Saturday afternoon. The Red Hawks shot just 34 percent (21-61) in the contest, while Cornell converted 45 percent (24-53) of their shots.

The two teams battled back and forth throughout the first half, with neither team leading by more than five points. With the score tied at 23 with four and a half minutes left in the first half, Cornell (11-5, 6-1 MWC) finished the period on a 6-2 run to take a four-point lead into halftime.

Cornell would build an eight-point advantage in the opening minutes of the second half, before Ripon (10-8, 6-3 MWC) got back into the game with eight consecutive points to tie the score at 33 on a pair of Luke Meinholz free throws. Cornell then took a four-point lead with seven and a half minutes remaining, but Ripon answered with nine consecutive points, taking a five-point lead on a Ryan Steffes jumper with four and a half minutes remaining. With the two teams deadlocked at 57 with two minutes remaining, Cornell would score the game's final six points, which included four free throws, to secure the victory.

Steffes led Ripon with 18 points, seven rebounds, and three assists, while David DeValk recorded his fifth career double-double of 12 points and 11 boards, to go along with a career-high four assists. Jaylen Mahone added nine points off the bench.

Cornell's Cooper Kabela led all scorers with 23 pionts on 9-of-13 shooting, while Logan Sharp added 11 points. Jordan Magnani also chipped in with nine points and a team-high four assists.

Ripon will try to rebound on Tuesday when they'll host Beloit College at 5:30 p.m. at WIllmore Center. That game can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/.