BOSTON, Mass. - The Norwich University men's basketball team halted a late Emmanuel College rally, and handed the previously conference-undefeated Saints their first loss in Great Northeast Athletic Conference action, 81-77, at the Jean Yawkey Center on Tuesday evening.

Jalen Olivero (Holyoke, Mass.) led the effort, pouring in 22 points on 7-14 shooting with an 8-10 clip from the charity stripe.  Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.), Joe Joe DuBrul (Shelburne, Vt.), and Donovan Lewis Jr. (Savannah, Ga.) all additionally shot 50.0% from the floor en route to finishing with 15, 12, and 10 points respectively.  Lewis Jr. flirted with a triple-double, also hauling down eight caroms and dishing out a career-high seven assists.

Emmanuel wasted no time getting on the board swiftly with a Donte Pope layup on the Saints' opening possession, and quickly doubled up on the Cadets, 10-5, after back-to-back treys.  Norwich promptly responded, knotting things at 14-all before embarking on a 15-3 run to take a game-high lead of 12, 29-17.

Despite attempts from the Saints, Norwich kept the opposition at bay for the remainder of the half, taking four more 12-point leads and holding onto a 10-point edge, 47-37, at the break.

The Saints marched out of the gates on a 13-2 run, reclaiming the lead until Chris Hough (Bloomfield, Conn.) gave the Cadets a lead they would not relinquish for the final 14 and a half minutes of action.  Norwich would again find momentum, pushing the advantage back to 12 with five minutes left.

Norwich held Emmanuel in check, despite a pair of Ricky Martin treys pulling the Saints back within two, as seven-made free-throws in the closing 26 seconds from Olivero iced the game and gave the Cadets a monumental GNAC victory.

"Huge win on the road for our basketball team," Head Coach Paul Booth said.  "We did a great job on both ends of the floor against a very talented team.  We really executed offensively and defensively when we really needed it.  Jalen was huge down the stretch with his poise and free-throws at the end.  Really proud of this group."

The Cadets dominated inside, maintaining a 44-22 advantage in points in the paint, while shooting 50.0% from the floor for the contest.

The loss marks the first conference loss for the Saints, who entered tonight's game at 11-0 in GNAC play, and likewise snapped Emmanuel's nine-game winning streak.  The Cadets avenged a 78-74 loss to Emmanuel earlier this January.

Winners of two-straight, Norwich will look to keep the momentum flowing as the calendar flips to February, with a seismic showdown against Colby-Sawyer College on tap in Andrews Hall on Thursday, Feb. 2.  Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m.