NORTHFIELD, Vt. - A fast start and dominant bench play set the tone for the Norwich University men's basketball team on Saturday night, as the Cadets rolled past the University of Maine at Fort Kent, 86-62, in the opening round of the 2025 Ed Hockenbury Classic inside Andrews Hall.

The victory propels Norwich into Sunday afternoon's Hockenbury Classic Championship, where they will take on Eastern Connecticut State University at 3:00 p.m.  The Warriors punched their ticket to the final after rallying to defeat Western New England University, 74-56, in Saturday's nightcap.

Four Cadets finished in double figures in a well-rounded offensive effort, led by Joe Joe DuBrul (Shelburne, Vt.) who posted a 17-point, 12-rebound double-double off the bench.  Fellow reserve Noah Hutchinson (Montclair, N.J.) knocked down four triples en route to 14 points, while Charles Nogard (Arlington, Mass.) added 13 points behind a 5-6 mark from the free-throw line.  Jordan Ricketts (Stratford, Conn.) chipped in 10 points and three helpers.

Norwich opened the contest with a triple from Michel Ndayishimiye (Colchester, Vt.), sparking a quick 7-0 lead that set the early tone.  The Bengals trimmed the deficit to one, 12-11, before Hutchinson dialed long distance to initiate a 14-0 Cadet run, which included a DuBrul trey and culminated in a commanding 26-11 advantage.

Maine-Fort Kent again rallied to pull within four with under five minutes to play in the first half, but Norwich continued to keep the visitors at arm's length, rebuilding a double-digit margin after a layup by Mike Johnson-Correia (Mattapan, Mass.).  With the Bengals once again within single digits, the Cadets closed the half on a defining 8-0 burst behind buckets from Hutchinson, Ricketts, and Niklas Nordberg (Fairfield, Pa.), taking a 46-30 lead into the locker room.

Norwich kept its foot on the gas to open the second frame, with DuBrul laying it in less than two minutes in to stretch the lead to 20.  The Bengals remained within range for much of the half, but each push was met by a Cadet response, none more emphatic than a Riley Severy (Barre, Vt.) triple at the 7:19 mark that ballooned the advantage to 25.

Maine-Fort Kent managed to whittle the deficit back to 16 down the stretch, but Norwich immediately responded with a 9-0 run to grab its largest lead of the night at 86-61.  The Bengals added a late free-throw, but never threatened again as the Cadets closed out the 24-point win.

Norwich dominated in several statistical categories, including a 43-10 edge in bench points, a 23-9 advantage in points off turnovers, and a 44-30 margin in the paint.  The Cadets racked up 25 fast break points and outrebounded Fort Kent, 44-34, while holding the Bengals to 34.4 percent shooting from the floor and just 22.7 percent from beyond the arc.  Offensively, Norwich shot 48.5% overall and 81.3% at the line.

Sunday's action at Andrews Hall will begin with the Consolation Game between the University of Maine at Fort Kent and Western New England at 1:00 p.m., followed by the 2025 Hockenbury Classic Championship showdown between Norwich and Eastern Connecticut State at 3:00 p.m.