Cornell men’s basketball kicks off its regular season in two months. Here’s a look at the Red’s slate of games in and out of the Ivy League.
Non-Conference Schedule
After a preseason tournament — the first ever Central New York Classic including Binghamton, Colgate, New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Division III SUNY Canton — the Red will embark on its non-conference schedule, which is significantly stronger this year than in past seasons. Games against Duquesne, Wyoming and Northeastern have been traded for matchups with UConn on Nov. 20, Wake Forest on Jan. 2, Southern Methodist University on Dec. 22 and Towson on Jan. 9. Most of Cornell’s big-time non-Ivy games will take place away from Ithaca — the Red has five straight road games between Nov. 17 and Dec. 16.
The daunting schedule aims to help the Red face tough competition in preparation for Ivy League play.
Ivy League Play
The Red will kick off Ivy League play with a home bout against Columbia Jan. 19 before traveling to Columbia to play the Lions in New York City Jan. 26. After this, Ivy schedule highlights include hosting the defending conference champions, Penn, in Ithaca on Feb. 1 with Princeton, head coach Brian Earl’s alma mater, coming to Newman Arena the next night.
Seven of the Red’s first eight Ivy contests are at home, the lone road matchup being the early-season trip to Columbia. Cornell will hope to rack up some Ivy wins in Ithaca before four straight on the road at the end of February and beginning of March, a trip that includes the perennially tough Quakers and Tigers.
Harvard, who ousted the Red from last year’s Ivy League Tournament semifinals, will come to Ithaca March 8, at the tail end of the season, before the Red closes out the regular season against Dartmouth.
If the Red again finishes in the top four in the Ancient Eight, the Ivy League Tournament will take place at Yale — not the Palestra at Penn as in past years — March 16 and 17.
Full Schedule (Home games appear in bold)
Nov. 6 at Binghamton (CNYC)
Nov. 8 SUNY Canton (CNYC)
Nov. 11 Colgate (CNYC)
Nov. 15 Delaware
Nov. 17 at New Jersey Institute of Technology (CNYC)
Nov. 20 at Connecticut
Nov. 28 at Lafayette
Dec. 1 at Syracuse
Dec. 16 at Niagara
Dec. 17 Longwood
Dec. 19 at Toledo
Dec. 22 at Southern Methodist
Dec. 30 Navy
Jan. 2 at Wake Forest
Jan. 5 Johnson & Wales
Jan. 9 at Towson
Jan. 19 Columbia
Jan. 26 at Columbia
Feb. 1 Penn
Feb. 2 Princeton
Feb. 8 Dartmouth
Feb. 9 Harvard
Feb. 15 Brown
Feb. 16 Yale
Feb. 22 at Princeton
Feb. 23 at Penn
March 1 at Yale
March 2 at Brown
March 8 Harvard
March 9 Dartmouth
March 16-17 Ivy League Tournament