Box Score NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Norwich University and Worcester State University have advanced to the championship game of the 2015 Ed Hockenbury Classic following wins in the opening round on Saturday evening. Norwich edged Maine-Augusta 83-74 in the first game, while Worcester State knocked off Rivier University 82-60 in the nightcap.
Norwich and Worcester State will meet at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, immediately following the 1:00 p.m. consolation game featuring Rivier and Maine-Augusta.
Norwich 83, Maine-Augusta 74
Sophomore guard Ryan Booth (Northfield, Vt.) shot 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc to finish the night with a team-high 19 points, five rebounds and four assists. Classmate Ryan Fitzgerald (Winchester, Mass.) put up 18 points off the bench with sophomore center Mike Hogervorst (Leiden, Netherlands) contributing 11 points and two rebounds in the win.
Senior forward Brandon Rogers (Trulock, Calif.) shot 8-of-10 from the field and nailed all seven attempts at the stripe to finish the night with a team-best 23 points and 14 rebounds for a double-double. Freshman Noah Thompson (Yuma, Ariz.) contributed 16 points, while junior Caleb Mcguire (Whitefield, Maine) and senior Keith Chesley (Clinton, Maine) put up 15 points apiece.
Maine-Augusta jumped out to a 21-5 lead in the first seven minutes of the game before Booth put in 10 of the 14 points for Norwich to trail 21-17 at the 10 minute mark. The Moose held onto the lead before widening the margin to eight at 4:29 mark for the 34-27 lead. Norwich rallied in the final minute as Booth closed out the stanza with a three-pointer as the Cadets trailed by just two points, 43-41, at the break.
Norwich would see its first lead of the game in the opening minutes of the second half after junior David Hampton (Lebanon, N.H.) made a layup for the 47-46 lead. Norwich kept pounding away at the boards, hitting back-to-back threes from Fitzgerald and Hampton for the 57-54 lead in the 10-0 run before another run late in the game helped the Cadets keep the Moose at bay for the 83-74 victory.
Worcester State 82, Rivier 60
Junior forward Ryan DiBernardo (Springfield, Mass.) put up a team-best 16 points for Worcester State with freshman guard Alex Santos (Worcester, Mass.) adding 15 points off the bench. Junior Jamal Mustapha (Worcester, Mass.) put up 13 points along with a team-high seven rebounds as the Lancers shot 47 percent from the floor and 42.3 percent from beyond the arc.
Rivier was led by sophomore guard Andre Ruff (Chicago, Ill.) with nine points and six rebounds as seniors Anthony Simmons (Stamford, Conn.) and Cullen Donovan (Wethersfield, Conn.) each scored eight points. Rivier finished the night shooting 35.6 percent from the field and hit 9-of-20 from the three-point range.
Worcester State jumped ahead on a 6-0 run before Rivier finally settled down and rebounded midway to trail by just six points. The Lancers exploded throughout the first half to lead 41-24 at the break before leading by as many as 24 points in the second half. Rivier would put pu 60 points as Worcester closed out the contest with 82 points for the win.
