MEN'S BASKETBALL DROPS 81-76 DECISION TO NORWICH

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College men's basketball team squandered a six-point halftime lead, eventually falling to Norwich University, 81-76, Sunday afternoon at the Jean Yawkey Center. The Cadets improve to 3-9 overall and notch their first Great Northeast Athletic Conference victory to improve to 1-4 in the conference while the Saints fall to 2-10 and 0-6.

Emmanuel never trailed in the opening stanza, jumping ahead to a 41-35 lead heading into halftime. EC led by as many as 11 in the first half and got a huge lift from its bench who scored 17 points in the frame. Emmanuel shot 60.0% from the floor (18-30), saw ten players register field goals and held a +3 rebounding advantage at the break.

The Saints remained in control early on in the second half, matching their largest lead of the game following a layup from freshman swingman James Sullivan (Wethersfield, Conn.) to make it 52-41 with 13:44 remaining. Over the next minute of action, the Cadets immediately responded with a 7-0 run to get back within striking distance (52-48) as a layup by sophomore guard Gary Gladden (Boynton Beach, Fla.) made it a two possession game.

Following a Sullivan free throw, the Cadets continued to gain ground as seniors Nickolai Havoutis (Coral Glades, Fla.) and Tom McDonald (Groton, Mass.) converted layups to make it a one-point contest at 53-52 with 11:20 to play.

EC senior guard Brandon Jones (Windsor, Conn.) connected on a pair from the charity stripe to bump the lead to 55-52 before freshman guard Grant Brown (Whitinsville, Mass.) buried a game-tying three pointer with 10:45 on the clock to even the score at 55-55.

The squads would trade hoops on the following few possessions with ties at the 57-57 and 59-59 before McDonald hit a go-ahead three with 8:10 left to put the Cadets on top for good.

NU led by as many as nine points (74-65) following a pair of free throws from Havoutis with under two minutes remaining but the Saints were able to make it a two possession game following some free throws from senior guard Alex Myers (Long Beach, Calif.) with 43 tics left to pull the hosts to within four at 72-76.

Norwich was able to seal the game at the line, connection on its final five free throws to lock in the 81-76 GNAC road victory.

Gladden led all scorers with 27 points on 8-13 shooting from the floor and a perfect 10-10 performance from the line. McDonald added 23 points while Havoutis chipped in with 21.

Senior guard Josh Welles (Philadelphia, Pa.) led the Saints with 17 points while sophomore forward John Clay (Westport, Mass.) put up a solid 12 point/seven rebound performance. Sullivan added 10 points off the bench.

Both teams return to action on Wednesday at 7:00 PM when Emmanuel heads to Nashua, N.H. to face Rivier University in another GNAC tilt while Norwich hosts Suffolk University.