NORTH ADAMS, Mass. - The Norwich University men's basketball team capped the 2025 calendar year with a thrilling battle at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, but came up just short in overtime, falling to the Trailblazers, 82-80, in non-conference action on Wednesday evening.

Four Cadets reached double figures in the narrow defeat, led by a 21-point performance off the bench from Mike Johnson-Correia (Mattapan, Mass.), who went 8-16 from the field and sank a pair of three-pointers.  Joe Joe DuBrul (Shelburne, Vt.) added 17 points behind three makes from beyond the arc, while Michel Ndayishimiye (Colchester, Vt.) turned in a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double.  Jordan Ricketts (Stratford, Conn.) chipped in a career-high 16 points along with three steals.

MCLA opened the scoring with a three-pointer and held the lead throughout the first half.  Ricketts got Norwich on the board with a strip and score just over a minute in, and although the Trailblazers kept the Cadets at arm's length, they were unable to build a double-digit margin until the nine-minute mark.  Norwich stayed within striking distance, and a late first-half surge featuring three-straight baskets from Ndayishimiye sliced an eight-point deficit down to two.  The Cadets entered halftime trailing, 35-33.

After the Trailblazers opened the second half on a 5-0 run, Norwich responded with an 8-0 burst, punctuated by a DuBrul triple off a Ndayishimiye feed to take its first lead of the night.  The Cadets built that margin to as much as six, with Johnson-Correia scoring 14 of his 21 points in the second half, but MCLA clawed back to tie the game at 57-all with 6:40 remaining.

The teams traded blows down the stretch, with the Trailblazers briefly going ahead, 65-61.  Norwich answered with a 6-0 spurt, including five points from Johnson-Correia, to recapture the lead at 67-65 with just over a minute to play.  MCLA drew even once more on a Jayden Mills layup with 23 seconds remaining to force overtime.

Norwich struck first in the extra frame, as Johnson-Correia scored in the paint and Ndayishimiye added two free throws to give the Cadets a quick 4-0 spurt.  Norwich remained in front for over two minutes, but MCLA eventually reclaimed the edge and used a 6-0 run to create enough separation.  A last-second three-quarter-court heave from DuBrul found the net as time expired, but the Trailblazers escaped with the two-point win.

The Cadets finished with advantages in points in the paint (44-30), bench points (25-11), and fast break points (6-2), while shooting 41.8% from the floor and attempting 27 free throws on the night.

Norwich will now head into the holiday break and return with a two-game road swing to open the new year.  The Cadets will visit Anna Maria College on Thursday, Jan. 1, for a 1:00 p.m. tilt, followed by a trip to Plymouth State University on Saturday, Jan. 3.  Norwich then returns home to host Vermont State University Randolph on Thursday, Jan. 8, inside Andrews Hall.