WEST HARTFORD, Conn. — The Hartford men's basketball team stormed back from a 15-point deficit in the second half to take down visiting Cornell, 80-76, inside Reich Family Pavilion on Sunday afternoon. Freshman Miroslav Stafl contributed six of his 14 points — including the go-ahead basket — to a game-ending 23-7 run that put the Big Red away, while graduate student Traci Carter netted a career-high 21 points in the win.
 
With the come-from-behind win, the Hawks improve to 6-7 on the season. Cornell, which was led by 26 points from Jimmy Boeheim, dips to 1-9.
 
PHOTO GALLERY

HARTFORD 80, CORNELL 76
Cornell got off to a hot start, knocking down three three-pointers within the first five minutes to take a 13-8 lead. Hartford pulled within three late in the half (30-27) on a D.J. Mitchell three and an Ellison jumper, but the Big Red scored 10 of the final 15 points of the stanza to go into the break leading, 40-32.
 
The second half began with a flurry of three-pointers from both sides, but despite four from the Hawks, the Big Red pushed their lead into double digits less than four minutes in. With 9:47 to go, Josh Warren gave Cornell its largest lead of the day — a 15-point advantage at 67-52 — with a layup. 
 
But Hartford refused to go down easy, as Carter knocked down two straight three-pointers, the latter of which ignited a 10-0 run that pulled the Hawks within four with 5:10 to go. With the Big Red leading, 73-69, with 3:51 to go, Hartford continued its rally, as Carter pulled the team within one on his final triple of the night, before Stafl netted back-to-back buckets to give his team its first lead of the day. 
 
Cornell would pull within two with 87 seconds left, but a key Carter steal followed by a combined 4-for-4 effort from the line by sophomore Hunter Marks and Carter sealed the victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• Carter was dialed in from long range, going 5-for-6 while adding four assists, four steals and four rebounds
• The Hawks knocked down a season-high 13 shots from long range on 54.2 percent shooting, including a 66.7 percent clip (8-for-12) in the decisive second half
• Rejecting five shots — a career-high and the most for a Hartford player this season — graduate student Malik Ellison registered a double-double for the second time in as many games (14 points, 10 rebounds)
• A season-high six Hawks netted double figures, including Marks (10 points), Mitchell and rookie Moses Flowers (11)
• Cornell shot 49.2 percent on the afternoon (30-for-61) and held a 38-30 edge on the boards

 
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks break for the holidays before heading to the Midwest for two games. The swing begins on Friday, Dec. 7, with a matchup at Northwestern.