Four Falcons tallied double figures in scoring as the Albertus Magnus men's basketball team soared to a 97-85 win in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Tuesday night in New Haven.
Albertus improves to 8-1 with the win and 4-0 in GNAC action, while Norwich falls to 2-8 on the year with tonight's loss. The Cadets also fall to 0-3 in the league standings.
Norwich opened the contest with a 4-0 run before the Falcons put together a 6-0 run to take a 6-4 lead. With the score 25-24 with 8:02 left in the frame, Albertus recorded a 12-0 run in a span of just under four minutes to take a 37-24 advantage.
At the break, the Falcons led 46-35 thanks to 15 points from Darius Watson (New Britain, Conn.) and 11 points from Eian Davis (Brooklyn, N.Y.). The Falcons shot 52.8% from the field in the opening half, including a 3-of-9 clip from behind the arc. Norwich shot 48.4% in the first half and was led by 10 points from Evan Tullar on 4-of-8 shooting. The Falcons also scored 13 points off of nine Norwich turnovers in the half.
In the second half, the Falcons shot 48.6% from the floor to finish the night 50.7%. Norwich shot 52.2% on the night, while the Falcons held a slight rebounding edge at 39-35.
The Falcons largest lead of the game came with 4:13 left on the clock when they led by 19 but that was after the Cadets battled back to within seven at 70-63 with 7:51 left in the contest.
The Falcons also scored 52 points in the pain and 22 fast-break points.
Watson headlined the Falcons with 29 points, while both Davis and Victor Ljuljdjuraj (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) tallied 19 points. Watson now has 1,705 career points. Ljuljdjuraj recorded his fifth double-double on the year, including his second-straight. James Jennings (Stratford, Conn.) added 14 points as he hit 4-of-7 from behind the arc.
The Falcons are 15-12 all-time against Norwich dating back to the 1993-94 season. The Falcons have won the last 10 meetings and are 9-6 all-time at home against the Cadets.
Norwich was led by five players with double figures, including a team-high 24 points from Tom McDonald. Nickolai Havoutis added a double-double with his 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Albertus will head North to Nashua, N.H. to take on GNAC foe Rivier University on Thursday, Jan. 9 in a 7:00 p.m. league contest. The Raiders are 4-6 on the year and 1-2 in GNAC play as the league's Jan. 6 standings.
