DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Norwich University men's basketball team returned to action for the first of back-to-back contests before the New Year, falling to Husson University, 83-68, in the Florida Sunshine Shootout at the Ocean Center in a non-conference showdown on Saturday evening.

Owen Liss (West Suffield, Conn.) led a trio of double-digit scorers, tying the game-high with a 21-point showcase on 10-18 shooting to go with nine caroms.  Sharif Sharif (Burlington, Vt.) provided 12 points off the bench, finishing 6-6 from the foul line, while Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) added 11 points to round out the affair.

The Cadets controlled the momentum early, rushing out to a quick 4-0 lead with a pair of baskets from Mohammed Kanneh (South Burlington, Vt.) and Murray en route to taking their game-best lead of five on three different occasions.  The final five-point spurt came off a Liss jumper to make it 11-6, before the Eagles soared ahead on a 6-0 run.

Norwich reclaimed the lead off a trey by Jalen Olivero (Holyoke, Mass.) while six points from Sharif kept Husson at bay.  A 20-17 advantage for the Cadets was gradually erased, however, as the Eagles rallied behind a 9-0 run to claim a lead they never relinquished.

A layup at the halftime buzzer by Murray sent the Cadets to the locker room trailing by just three, 38-35.  Liss whittled that lead down to one out of the break, but it was the closest Norwich would get throughout the second stanza, as Husson's lead ballooned to double-digits four minutes later.

A late rally by the Cadets in the waning minutes, spurred by four-straight points by Riley Severy (Barre, Vt.) and a long-range shot from Daniel Bogre (Colchester, Vt.), brought the Eagle advantage to 13, but time ran short on Norwich's comeback bid.

The Cadets finished an efficient 14-18 from the charity stripe while turning away four shots, with Liss racking up a pair of blocks.

Norwich closes their time in Daytona Beach on Sunday, Dec. 29, with a 6:00 p.m. bout against Penn College.  The Wildcats are coached by Geoff Hensley '06, a Norwich Athletic Hall of Famer and 1,000-point scorer at Norwich University.  The Cadets then return home for the first of back-to-back home games, hosting Plymouth State University on Saturday, Jan. 4.

Photos courtesy of Becky Schoenecker, Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications at the University of Massachusetts Boston.