Men's Basketball Spreads Offense in 85-73 GNAC Victory Over Norwich

BOSTON – Emmanuel Saints men's basketball picked up their first win of the New Year, with five players scoring in double figures, helping the Saints to an 85-73 conference win over the Norwich Cadets on Saturday afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play.

The victory stops a two-game skid for the Saints (6-9, 2-2 GNAC) and gives the team their first victory of 2024. The Cadets (10-5, 2-2 GNAC) drop their second game in 2024 with their other loss to USJ on Jan. 6.

The game's pivotal moments turned in the middle of the second half with things tied at 56-56 with 11:44 to go. Emmanuel outscored the Cadets 12-0 over the next 5:24 to break free from Saturday's close battle, taking a 68-56 lead in the process.

The Saints defense locked in, forcing Norwich to 0-for-7 shooting in the run while forcing four turnovers in the process. The Cadets would only get as close as eight down the stretch while the Saints led by as many as 13 thanks to a three-pointer by sophomore Ismani Cepeda (Roxbury, Mass.) with 4:08 to go.

Norwich came out quickly to start the game, leading by double digits midway through the first half. The Cadets trailed 17-14 before a 13-0 scoring spurt gave Norwich their largest lead of the afternoon, 27-17, with 8:29 left in the half. Sophomores Charles Nogard (Oviedo, Fla.) and Omarion Jett (Montclair, N.J.) combined for 10 of the 13 points in the run that put Norwich ahead by 10.

That 10-point advantage was short-lived with Emmanuel using a 18-2 stretch over the next 4:39 to lead 35-29. The Saints held on to that advantage into halftime, leading 40-37 at the break.

Saints senior Ryan Grijalva (Stratham, N.H.) scored a team-high 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting in a full 40 minutes. He added a game-high nine rebounds in the victory. Senior Donte Pope (Middletown, Conn.) scored 17 points, also shooting 8-for-10 from the floor, despite fighting foul trouble in the first half.

Cepeda finished with a career-high 17 points, shooting 3-for-4 from beyond the arc while adding six rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes off the bench. First-year Noah Beaudet (Norwood, Mass.) added a career-high 12 points while fellow first-year Mahari Guerrier (Stoughton, Mass.) had 10 points.

Jett scored a career-high 31 points on the afternoon, shooting 12-of-18, including 5-for-7 from beyond the arc. Nogard and junior Kohlby Murray (Fair Haven, Vt.) each chipped in with 11 points.

The Saints head back out on the road for a Tuesday, Jan. 16 game in the GNAC with the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) at 7:00 p.m. The Cadets also return Tuesday night making the trip to Regis for a 7:00 p.m. conference tilt.