NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University men's basketball team took to the friendly confines of Andrews Gym for the first time this season, overcoming a halftime deficit before withholding a late rally en route to a 70-64 victory over Plattsburgh State University on Saturday afternoon.

Owen Liss (West Suffield, Conn.) paced the Cadets in scoring, going 13-15 from the charity stripe while finishing with 21 points and three blocks.  Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) shot 50% from the floor to rack up 16 points, while Jalen Olivero (Holyoke, Mass.) was a perfect 8-8 on freebies to earn 13 points.

Norwich gained the early ground, quickly rushing out to an 8-2 lead before building a game-best 11-point lead just nine minutes into the frame.  The Cadets' dominant sequence included a personal 5-0 stretch by Murray, complete with a trey and a fastbreak dunk, before Charles Nogard (Arlington, Mass.) capped off the spurt with a three-pointer of his own.

The Cardinals promptly responded, stringing together a 9-0 run to bring the game back within two before knotting the affair up at 26-all on a putback tip-in by Kareem Welch.  He subsequently pushed Plattsburgh State ahead moments later, and, despite Norwich regaining the lead, the Cardinals enjoyed the last basket of the half, reclaiming the lead prior to the intermission break on another putback lay-up, this time by Franklin Infante.

The Cadets surged out of the gates, courtesy of a collection of freebies bookending an Olivero long-range shot.  The Cardinals only ever tied the game after that at 49-all, as the Cadets resumed control on a 12-3 run.  Norwich iced the game from the stripe, knocking down nine freebies in the final three and a half minutes of play.

Norwich held advantages in points off turnovers (19-10) and fast break points (16-11) while making 31 trips to the line.  The Cadet defense was impressive, holding Plattsburgh State to a 34.9% shooting clip.

Plattsburgh State's Welch led all scorers in the contest, recording a 23-point, 11-rebound double-double.

The Cadets hit the road for their next slew of games, first traveling to the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts on Tuesday, Nov. 19, for a 6:00 p.m. bout.  Norwich then heads to the Barre Auditorioum for a neutral showdown against intrastate rival Vermont State University Johnson on Saturday, Nov. 23, before Thanksgiving break.