Frank Speziale Photo

NORWICH – The Norwich Purple Tornado overcame a 10 point deficit at halftime by out scoring the Yellowjackets of Oneonta 34-20 in the second half to win 58-54 at home on Wednesday night.

Norwich’s J.T. Vinal paced the offense with 22 points for the game and the stiff man-to-man defense by the Tornado were the key factors in the victory over long time rival Oneonta.

The Yellowjackets had a chance on the offensive end with 8.6 left but during the play, Graham Wooden’s feet got tangled up with his teammate Teddy McGraw, who was setting a screen for him on the inbounds play. Norwich’s Marcus Cashman picked up the loose ball and finished at the rim to secure the four point win for the Tornado.

The opening quarter saw Norwich take a 16-10 lead after both teams struggled to put the ball in the basket for the first five minutes. Once both teams settled in, shots were falling like rain.

In the second, the Yellowjackets took advantage of the Tornado’s help defense by making the extra pass, finding the open teammate to knock down the shot. During the eight minutes of play, Oneonta went on a 24-8 run with half of the team’s points coming from behind the 3-point arc.