After a back-and-forth game, Morehead State pulled away in the final minutes to defeat Northern Kentucky 64-56 on Saturday night at BB&T Arena.
The Norse fall to 1-2 on the year, while the Eagles improve to 2-1. Lavone Holland scored 11 points and added seven rebounds and six assists.
“This is all about the process,” said John Brannen, NKU head coach. “I am learning our guys and what position to put them in for us to be the most successful. It’s not about the wins and losses and I tell our guys this even after a win. We just need to keep getting better and we are, but it’s a process.”
After a fast paced game in the first half, NKU trailed MSU by two points at the half, 34-32. Jalen Billups led the team in scoring with seven points, all coming on a 9-2 run by the Norse to open the game. Deontae Cole made two huge three’s in the stanza. Corban Collins of Morehead led all scorers with 13 points in the first half.
The back-and-forth pace continued to start the second half with neither team getting more than a four point lead until Morehead began to extended its advantage with about two minutes left to play.
Billups and Cole both reached nine points on the night. Jake Giesler grabbed nine boards to lead the Norse in rebounding.
Morehead was led by Collins who finished with a game-high with 22 points. Xavier Moon scored 11 while Miguel Dicent and Anthony Elechi scored nine points each for the Eagles.
NKU’s next game will be at Xavier on Monday, November 21. The Norse will then play two more road games against North Carolina A&T and Eastern Illinois before returning home to play Norfolk St. on Sunday, December 13.
Norse Notes
· Jalen Billups scored seven points in the first half and shot a perfect 100 percent (3-for-3) in the first half.
· Jake Giesler hauled in nine boards in 13 minutes of action off the bench.
· Every Norse that played in tonight’s game recorded at least one point.
Roush passes 1,000 point plateau in NKU win
Christine Roush scored 27 points to lead the Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team to an 83-78 win over Marquette on her way to joining NKU’s 1,000 point club.
Roush went 9-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-8 shooting from long range, and converted all five of her free throws to become the 29th player in NKU women’s basketball history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
Rebecca Lyttle also made history, becoming the first player in NKU’s Division-I era to record back-to-back double doubles. She finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds after scoring 15 points and grabbing 18 rebounds against Cincinnati earlier in the week. Kasey Uetrecht also chipped in 16 points for the Norse.
As a team, the Norse shot 50 percent (28-for-56) from the field, including 64 percent (16-for-25) in the second half, and drained eight three-pointers. The Norse won the battle on the boards, 37-35, netting 16 second-chance points off 11 offensive rebounds.
Trailing 68-56 in the fourth quarter, Marquette took the lead after a 13-0 run keyed by seven points from Allazia Blockton and five from Natisha Hiedeman, including the trey that pushed the Golden Eagles ahead, 77-76, with 1:21 left in the game. After Shar’Rae Davis tied the game with a free throw, a Kelley Wiegman layup gave the Norse the lead back for good, as NKU was converteed from the line down the stretch.
NKU pulled away in the second quarter, using a 13-2 run to take a 34-24 edge at the half. Roush, Lyttle and Sarah Kinch each chipped in five points in the stanza.
Roush came out firing again in the second half, scoring 10 of NKU’s first 17 points, but after a 12-2 run late in the quarter, Marquette had climbed back in the game, trailing 53-46 through 30 minutes.
Blockton finished with 22 points to lead the Golden Eagles, while Hiedeman had 17 and Amani Wilborn scored 14. Marquette hit 11 treys in the contest and shot 43.1 percent from the field.
NKU returns to the court on Friday, Nov. 27, to take on Tennessee Tech at BB&T Arena. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m., with the game broadcast live on ESPN3.
From NKU Athletics