Blazer Men's Basketball Picks Up Second Straight Win, 54-48 At Norwich

NORWICH, Vt. -- For the second time this week, the Elms College men's basketball team used a second-half charge to pick up a highly contested win, this time earning a 54-48 road win at Norwich in non-conference action on Thursday.

The Blazers (2-10) held Norwich (6-8) to just 25.9 percent shooting (7-of-27) in the second half and out-rebounded the Cadets 22-18 in the final 20 minutes to erase a 31-27 halftime deficit. Elms held a 34-28 rebounding advantage overall and led 10-4 in second-chance points. The Blazers also took care of the basketball, finishing with just 14 turnovers, the team's second-lowest total of the season after a season-low 11 on Tuesday against Lesley.

Elms trailed by 10, 43-33, with under 10 minutes to play before going on a 10-0 run to tie the game. The Blazers took a 45-44 lead on a D.J. Edelen (Prince George, Va.) layup with 4:49 to play and used a strong defensive effort to cling to a narrow advantage over the remaining minutes.

Andre Peguero (Boynton Beach, Fla.) had the hot hand for Elms, going 7-for-8 from the field to lead three Elms double-digit scorers with 14 points. Edelen added 13 points and Kewan Smoot (Windsor, Conn.) chipped in with 10 points off the bench, hitting all six of his free-throw attempts.

Daniel Haimes (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) and Christopher Bryant (Crestview, Fla.) each scored 12 points for Norwich and Dan Bertrand (Saugus, Mass.) added a game-high eight boards.

The win is Elms' second-straight, after the Blazers overcame an 11-point halftime deficit in an 84-71 win over Lesley on Tuesday. Elms returns to New England Collegiate Conference action on Saturday at Newbury. Norich will face Great Northeast Athletic Conference foe Regis on Saturday.