NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University men's basketball team scooped up their third-straight win to wrap up the opening semester of the 2023-24 season, earning a decisive 72-54 victory over in-state foe Vermont State University Randolph in non-conference action on Tuesday evening in Andrews Hall.
Owen Liss (West Suffield, Conn.), the reigning Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Player of the Week, paved the way offensively, posting a 26-point, 10-rebound double-double in the effort.Â
Joe Joe DuBrul (Shelburne, Vt.) drilled a triage of treys to finish with 15 points while snagging four steals, and
Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) went a perfect 3-3 from beyond the arc to tally 13 points.
The Cadets exploded out of the gates on a 7-0 run, spurred by a Murray triple off the opening possession, but the Knights were not turned away, taking their first lead behind a 12-3 run on a Tyler Allen jumper. Norwich reclaimed the advantage on back-to-back baskets from Liss and
Charles Nogard (Oviedo, Fla.), gradually building a pair of 13-point leads, courtesy of a jumper and freebies from Liss.
VTSU whittled the lead back down to 10 in the closing minutes, but Murray gave Norwich some momentum heading into the break on a trey before the halftime buzzer. Interior play became critical in the second half for Norwich, as
Rodrick Pearson (Hartford, Conn.) had an emphatic dunk while
Donato Pakak (Sarasota, Fla.), minutes after three made baskets, drilled a crowd-erupting rainbow-three from the top of the key to push the Cadets ahead by 21.
The Knights kept close, dwindling the edge down to 11 with two minutes remaining, but the Cadets held firm in the waning moments. Liss broke through VTSU's momentum with a little over a minute left, driving through the lane for a wide-open dunk. After a missed opportunity on the ensuing sequence by the Knights,
Jalen Olivero (Holyoke, Mass.) found DuBrul in the corner, who nailed the triple. Liss closed out the exciting affair with another dunk, as DuBrul picked off a Knight and found Murray down the court, who passed off to Liss in stride who rose to the basket for the slam.
Norwich controlled inside, outscoring VTSU in points in the paint, 42-28. Pearson turned away four shots while hauling down 11 caroms, while Pakak logged a pair of blocks and finished with a season-high nine points.
Through 11 games with an 8-3 mark, the Cadets are enjoying their best start since the 2005-06 season, when Norwich kicked off the year with a 9-2 record en route to an NCAA Tournament appearance.
The Cadets will return in the 2024 calendar year, taking the court on Wednesday, Jan. 3, in a 4:00 p.m. bout at Plymouth State University. Norwich will then step back into GNAC action, hosting perennial powerhouse University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) on Saturday, Jan. 6.
