NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University men's basketball team kicked off the 2025 calendar year with their ninth win of the season, topping Plymouth State University, 75-71, in the confines of Andrews Hall behind a new career-high from Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) on Saturday afternoon.

After netting a career-best 27 points against Plymouth State back on Jan. 3, 2024, Murray logged a new career-high against the Panthers today, pouring in 31 points on a 9-15 clip from the floor with four treys and a 9-11 mark from the charity stripe.  Murray led a quadruplet of double-digit scorers, with Owen Liss (West Suffield, Conn.) nearly recording a double-double on 15 points and nine caroms.  Sharif Sharif (Burlington, Vt.) tallied 11 points in his first-ever start in the Maroon and Gold, while Noah Hutchinson (Montclair, N.J.) added 10 points off the bench with a pair of three-pointers.

Both teams struggled initially offensively, as the Cadet defense held the Panthers scoreless for two and a half minutes while taking a slim 5-0 lead.  After Plymouth State's first basket, Norwich's defensive efforts continued to escalate while the offense picked up steam, as the hosts embarked on a 17-4 run.

Norwich's 22-6 advantage proved to be the largest of the game for either team, as the Panthers gradually whittled the lead down to two in the closing seconds of the opening half.  Murray sent the Cadets into the locker room with some momentum, shaking off a defender on a screen and knocking down a deep three-pointer to give the hosts a five-point advantage.

An errant Plymouth State pass picked off by Charles Nogard (Arlington, Mass.) found itself in Murray's hands on a fast-break opportunity, with the senior guard draining another trey to begin the second stanza.  Both teams exchanged baskets over the ensuing 14 minutes as the Panthers prevented Norwich from building a double-digit lead until the 3:52 mark.

A triple from Nogard finally put Norwich back over the double-figure hump, igniting a spark that pushed the Cadet lead to 15 on a pair of occasions, first on a 2-2 trip to the foul line for Murray and again on a Hutchinson layup.

Norwich seemed destined to secure a decisive victory, but the Panthers capitalized on a few Cadet miscues down the stretch, trimming the lead down to four.  Crucial free throws in the final seconds from Sharif and Murray iced the affair, however.

The Cadet offense was blistering, shooting at a 49.0% clip while knocking down 17 freebies.  Norwich maintained edges in points off turnovers (20-14), second chance points (11-8), and points in the paint (32-24), while winning the battle on the glass, 42-27.

Kevin Henry paced a quintuplet of double-digit scorers for the Panthers, going 7-7 from the foul line en route to 17 points.

The Cadets now enter Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action, hosting Anna Maria College on Tuesday, Jan. 7, at 3:00 p.m. in the second game of a basketball doubleheader.  Norwich then hits the road for two straight, traveling to the University of Saint Joseph on Jan. 11 and Rivier University on Jan. 15.