NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University men's basketball team battled to the end in the 2025 Ed Hockenbury Classic Championship on Sunday afternoon, but a hot-shooting second half from Eastern Connecticut State University proved too much to overcome, as the Cadets dropped a 73-55 decision inside Andrews Hall.

Joe Joe DuBrul (Shelburne, Vt.) and Charles Nogard (Arlington, Mass.) both earned All-Classic Team honors after leading the Norwich attack.  DuBrul poured in a team-high 15 points, while Nogard recorded a double-double behind 12 points and 12 rebounds. Michel Ndayishimiye (Colchester, Vt.) added nine points and 10 boards, narrowly missing a double-double of his own.

Following a scoreless first 100 seconds, Jordan Ricketts (Stratford, Conn.) put the Cadets on the board with a jumper to ignite the offense.  After Eastern Connecticut State responded with an old-fashioned three-point play, Norwich regained the edge behind Nogard free throws and a DuBrul jumper to take an early 6-3 lead.

The Warriors quickly flipped momentum, however, uncorking a 19-3 run to storm ahead by 14 midway through the opening stanza.  Buckets by Mike Johnson-Correia (Mattapan, Mass.) offered a brief Cadet spark, and a Nogard triple brought the margin back to single digits.  A DuBrul free throw trimmed the gap to eight with just over five minutes remaining, but Eastern Connecticut State responded with another 8-0 spurt to rebuild its cushion.  Norwich clawed back one more possession before the break, as Ricketts found Niklas Nordberg (Fairfield, Pa.) in the final minute to send the Cadets into the locker room trailing 37-24.

Norwich traded baskets with the Warriors early in the second half before making a strong push four minutes in.  Consecutive buckets from Ndayishimiye and Ricketts closed the deficit to just seven, 47-40, igniting the home crowd.  But it would be as close as the Cadets would get, as Eastern Connecticut State answered with a decisive counterpunch, pushing the lead back into double figures for good and ballooning the margin to as many as 19 down the stretch.

Despite a determined final effort from the Cadets, the Warriors maintained control and closed out the 18-point win to claim the Hockenbury Classic crown.

Eastern Connecticut State's Jalen Hamblin was named Tournament MVP after recording 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Julian Sanchez came off the bench to score a game-high 21 points and also earned All-Classic Team honors.

In the afternoon's Consolation Game, Western New England University topped the University of Maine at Fort Kent, 81-66, behind a 22-point showing from Eddie McCoy.  Sam Williams led the Bengals with 18 points in the loss.

The complete 2025 Ed Hockenbury Classic All-Classic Team included:

• Western New England:
  • #0 Eddie McCoy
• University of Maine at Fort Kent:
  • #10 Sam Williams
• Norwich:
  • #0 Joe Joe DuBrul
  • #21 Charles Nogard
• Eastern Connecticut State:
  • #6 Julian Sanchez
  • #5 Jalen Hamblin (Most Valuable Player)

Norwich will close out the month of December with a road contest at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts on Wednesday, Dec. 10. Tip-off is slated for 6:00 p.m. The Cadets will then return from the holiday break on Thursday, Jan. 1, for a non-conference tilt at Anna Maria College.