Northern Kentucky University hosts Ohio Northern on Saturday at BB&T Arena in a men’s basketball exhibition contest. The Norse will take to the hardwood for the first time this season with a 1 p.m. tipoff.
Jalen Billups and Tyler White return to lead the Norse for their senior seasons. Billups was the nation’s most prolific shooter last season, connecting on 69.6 percent of his field-goal attempts and is NKU’s top returning scorer (11.1 ppg) and rebounder (5.9 rpg). He moved into 39th all-time at NKU in scoring with 819 points.
Billups is joined by White in NKU’s top 50, as White has amassed 753 career points and sits 44th all-time. White averaged 10.2 points per game a season ago.
Seniors Todd Johnson, Jake Giesler and Jared Bryant also return for their final campaign in the Black and Gold.
Deontae Cole and Cole Murray will help provide firepower for the Norse offense from long-range. Both Cole and Murray shot 39.5 percent from beyond the arc last season.
NKU also welcomes transfers Lavone Holland II and Jeff Garrett, as well as freshmen Brennan Gillis, Drew McDonald and walk-on Skyler Kolli to the lineup this year.
Leading the Norse this season is first-year head coach John Brannen. Brannen brings an exciting brand of basketball that utilitizes the entire court, 94-feet both ways. He previously served as interim head coach at Alabama, where he went 1-1 in the NIT after a six-year stint as an assistant and associate head coach.
NCAA Division III member Ohio Northern went 12-13 last year and returns 13 letterwinners. Junior Konnor Baker led the Polar Bears in scoring at 11.2 points per game.
For more information on Northern Kentucky men’s basketball, visit NKUNorse.com or follow the team on twitter at @NKUNorseMBB. Live stats for the game can also be found at NKUstats.com.
Norse volleyball squad travel to Youngstown
The Northern Kentucky University volleyball team continues its push towards securing a postseason berth on Saturday when the Norse travel to Youngstown State for a Horizon League match.
ABOUT YOUNGSTOWN STATE: The Penguins begin a string of five matches in eight days to close the regular season on Friday, hosting Oakland before the Norse head to Youngstown on Saturday. Aly Ryan leads the way offensively for YSU, averaging 2.43 kills per set, while Lori Vanbeek’s 99 blocks set the tone defensively up front. On the back row, Nikki Thompson is averaging 4.67 digs per set to lead the defensive efforts.
LAST MEETING: Four Norse finished in double-figures for kills on Oct. 9, as NKU took a straight-set victory over Youngstown State. Haley Libs picked up a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs while Keely Creamer and Jayden Julian shared the team lead with 12 kills each. Mel Stewart added 27 digs and Taylor Snyder dished out 41 assists to go with nine digs.
DOUBLE DOWN: Two Norse earned Horizon League Player of the Week honors, as Haley Libs was named the Offensive Player of the Week and Mel Stewart was tabbed as the Defensive Player of the Week. Libs averaged almost five kills per set and hit .393 over three matches in taking the honor, including an 18-kill, .581 effort against Wright State on Oct. 27. Stewart averaged five digs per set with three 20-dig performances, marking five in a row through the second half of the League schedule.
SORTING IT OUT: The Norse have had a strong showing over their last eight matches since the team returned to full strength following missed time by Taylor Snyder and Keyaira Lankheit, posting a 6-2 record, all in League play, and hitting .211 as a team turn the span. The Norse have picked it up defensively as well, averaging 2.32 blocks per set and 16.6 digs per set over their last eight matches as well.
BIG WEEKEND FOR CREAMER: Keely Creamer tied a season high with 18 kills in Saturday’s win over Green Bay, hitting .571 in the process. She also set a new career high with eight blocks in Friday’s five-setter against Milwaukee.
UP NEXT: The Norse head northeast once more on Tuesday, taking on Cleveland State in a Horizon League showdown. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
From NKU Athletics