DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Norwich University men's basketball team continued to make the 2024-25 season a historic campaign, as Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) became the 30th 1,000-point scorer in program history while the Cadets foiled a late rally by Penn College, topping the Wildcats, 66-65, in the Florida Sunshine Shootout at the Ocean Center on Sunday night.

Murray was one of four double-digit scorers in maroon and gold tonight, racking up 16 points, with 13 coming in the second half, to go with four assists.  Jalen Olivero (Holyoke, Mass.) paced the Cadets offensively, rattling off 20 points, including 15 in the first half on 6-10 shooting and 3-3 from long range.  Charles Nogard (Arlington, Mass.) and Owen Liss (West Suffield, Conn.) rounded out the double-digit scorers, adding 10 apiece while hauling down a combined 13 caroms.

The Wildcats struck first on back-to-back layups to take an early 4-0 lead, before Olivero knocked down two-straight shots to give the Cadets their first advantage.  Both teams exchanged narrow edges until Norwich seemingly claimed momentum, spurred by a pair of treys from Nogard and Olivero.  Subsequent baskets by Olivero and Sharif Sharif (Burlington, Vt.) gave Norwich its largest lead of the half of seven, 25-18, with 4:53 remaining in the opening half.

Penn promptly responded, rallying for 11 straight points to recapture the lead before the break.  A layup in the waning seconds from Mohammed Kanneh (South Burlington, Vt.) halted the Wildcats' offensive rhythm, sending the Cadets into the locker room trailing by two, 29-27.

Despite the Wildcats taking a pair of five-point leads early in the second frame, the Cadets refused to be turned away and rushed ahead on consecutive Murray buckets, securing a lead they did not surrender for the ensuing 12 minutes.

Norwich overcame Penn knotting the affair up twice, with the last coming on a foul shot from Liss that broke a 52-all deadlock.  Michael Woolridge handed the Wildcats the edge on the subsequent basket, but a Murray trey generated a 9-0 avalanche that included three-straight layups from Murray, Olivero, and Nogard.

The Wildcats kept close in the waning minutes, but trips for Olivero and Murray to the charity stripe iced the game for the Cadets.  Norwich's final points came on a 2-2 visit for Murray, whose first free-throw to make it 65-62 catapulted him into the exclusive 1,000-point club, becoming the 30th player in program history to cross the coveted plateau.  A last-ditch effort by Gavin Barrett brought Penn within one, but Murray evaded pressure and dribbled the clock out to seal the deal.

The Cadet defense was forceful tonight, holding the Wildcats to 35.8% from the floor and just 33.3% from beyond the arc.  Norwich maintained a slim advantage in fast break points (8-4) while also capitalizing on 13 Penn turnovers, scoring 17 points off those miscues.

In addition to becoming the 30th Cadet in program history to reach the 1,000-point mark, Murray joins Olivero and Liss in achieving the mark this month, after the pair netted their 1,000-point baskets in Norwich's Dec. 7 outing against Elmira College in the opening game of the 2024 Ed Hockenbury Classic.

Norwich closes the 2024 calendar year with an 8-2 overall record, matching last season's win total at the end of December 2023, when the Cadets finished 8-3 before the second semester.

The Cadets will return to the friendly confines of Andrews Gym to close the week, hosting Plymouth State University in Norwich's final non-conference game of the regular season on Saturday, Jan. 4, at 1:00 p.m.  The Cadets then hosts Anna Maria College for Norwich's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opener on Tuesday, Jan. 7, at 3:00 p.m.