Rebecca Lyttle went for 15 points and 18 rebounds, but the Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team couldn’t find the edge late, falling to Cincinnati on Wednesday, 71-68.
The Norse (2-1) got two good looks to tie things up in the game’s closing seconds, but Christine Roush’s attempt from the left corner was blocked away with 14 seconds left. Shar’Rae Davis had an open look as time expired, but her attempt rolled around the rim and out.
Roush finished with a team high 19 points, one of four Norse to finish in double figures. Rianna Gayheart added 13 points off the bench while Molly Glick chipped in with 11.
After the Norse got an opening bucket from Glick, the Bearcats went white hot from the floor, hitting five of their first six shots, including three treys, to open up a 13-2 lead in the first four minutes of the contest. NKU clawed back in, though, connecting on their final four field goal attempts, including a buzzer-beater by Gayheart to cut UC’s lead to 21-16 after one.
The second quarter opened as a low-scoring affair, with each team netting just one field goal through the first five minutes of the stanza, but the Norse exploded for a 9-0 run to take the lead back at 25-24, and a late 3-ball from Roush gave the Norse a two-point edge at halftime, 32-30.
The teams traded buckets to start the third before Ana Owens went on a 6-0 run on her own to give UC back the lead. The Norse did their damage at the charity stripe, going 11-for-14 from the line in the third to keep pace and go into the fourth quarter trailing by three, 53-50.
Glick knocked down a bucket and Lyttle converted a three-point play to tie things up at 55. Jasmine Whitfield hit a jumper to key an 8-3 run for Cincinnati and push the lead to five points. Three-pointers from Gayheart and Davis tied things back up at 68-68 with 1:59 to go, but a Bianca Quisenberry layup and a free throw put Cincinnati up for good. Brandey Tarver hit a free throw with six seconds left before the final attempt for the Norse by Davis.
Whitfield finished with 18 points and seven boards to lead the Bearcats (2-0), while Owens and Alyesha Lovett each had 14 points.
NKU now heads back home and prepares for a Saturday matinee against Marquette. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m., with the action broadcast live on ESPN3. The game is part of a full day of hoops with the men’s team, which takes on Morehead State on Saturday at 7 p.m.
NORSE NOTES
· Lyttle’s 18 rebounds set a Division I single-game record for the Norse, besting a 17-rebound effort from Tiara Hopper against Jacksonville on March 2, 2013
· Gayheart’s 13-point performance was her best scoring effort since another 13-point game against North Florida on Jan. 22, 2015.
· Despite the loss, NKU still holds the edge in the all-time series, 10-9. The teams are 2-2 against each other since NKU reclassified to Division I in 2012-13.
From NKU Athletics