MINETTI & TAMBURRO LEAD MEN'S HOOPS TO 74-68 GNAC WIN OVER NORWICH

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Alex Minetti (Wakefield, R.I.) and Joe Tamburro (South Windsor, Conn.) combined for 43 points to lift the Emmanuel College men's basketball team past Norwich University, 74-68, Saturday afternoon at Andrews Hall.

The Cadets fall to 5-9 on the year and to 2-5 within the Great Northeast Athletic Conference while Emmanuel nets its first conference win of the season in eight opportunities. The Saints improve to 2-12 overall on the year and snap a 10-game losing skid.

Norwich trailed by a 17-11 margin near the midpoint of the first half but rallied to close the gap. A Haimes three-point basket dramatically tied the game at 21 with 9:06 left in the first half and a triple from junior Joe Bertrand (Saugus, Mass.) propelled the Cadets into the lead, 24-21. 

Emmanuel shot nearly 55% in the first half (18-for-33) and battled the Cadets to a 37-37 tie with 1:33 to go in the stanza. Down the stretch, Emmanuel's Dan Flaherty potted a free throw and Alex Minetti notched a layup with 29 ticks left on the scoreboard to create a 40-37 advantage. 

Haimes gave the Cadets the lead with 7:12 to go in regulation time, using a three-point basket to create a 60-57 lead for the hosts. Down by one point with about four minutes left, a dramatic Booth trey propelled Norwich into the lead, 65-63, but the game changed on the next possession. 

Minetti, who finished with 22 points off the bench for the Saints, made a layup and was fouled. He capped off the three-point play to put his team up by a 65-55 score and, immediately following a Norwich three-point miss, Joe Tamburro added insurance with a deep trey to give his team a 69-65 lead with 2:49 to go. 

Bryant cut the Emmanuel lead to 69-67 by making a layup with 92 seconds to go in regulation time, but Aidan Hadley (Owls Head, Maine) answered only 27 seconds later with a jumper. A missed three-pointer by the Cadets forced them to foul within the final minute of action – Emmanuel made 3-of-4 foul shots down the stretch to hold on for the lead. 

Minetti led both teams in point scoring while Tamburro ranked second with 21 points. Emmett Riddick (Middletown, Conn.) scored 10 points and handed out three assists while Hadley accounted for eight points and a team-best seven boards. 

NU junior Ryan Booth (Northfield, Vt.) scored 21 total points after shooting 6-for-16 from the floor and 7-of-8 at the free throw line. Sophomore Daniel Haimes (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) and junior Darius Bryant (Calhoun Falls, S.C.) each scored 11 points while the latter hauled in a team-best eight rebounds for the Cadets. 

Norwich will look to rebound from the tough loss by taking on Suffolk this Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. in Andrews Hall. The Saints return to the hardwood on Monday, Jan. 16 at Rivier University for a 3:00 PM GNAC tilt. 

*Release courtesy of NU Sports Information Dept.