By Don Owen
NKyTribune reporter
DETROIT — Less than 48 hours removed from winning on the home floor of Horizon League preseason favorite Oakland, Northern Kentucky University faced cellar-dwelling Detroit Mercy on Sunday afternoon.
Call it a letdown, shrug it off as the proverbial “trap game,” or just attribute it to the wide emotional swings every college basketball team experiences in a long season, Detroit Mercy nearly pulled off a major upset. But NKU’s Lavone Holland II had other ideas in the final seconds.
Holland’s heroics sent Detroit Mercy (4-13 overall, 0-4 Horizon League) to its 11th straight loss. The senior guard’s clutch shot did not surprise head coach John Brannen.
“I have a tremendous amount of belief in Lavone, and I’ve told him before that I’d be coming back to him in late-game situations,” Brannen said. “He’s fearless as far as taking that last shot, and he’s done it before. They didn’t drop a couple of times earlier this season, but I wanted him with the ball.”
Unable to sustain the momentum from Friday night’s huge 87-83 victory at Oakland, NKU found itself trailing at halftime to Detroit Mercy, 22-21. The Norse shot just 21.9 percent from the field before the break, including 2-for-13 from 3-point range.
“Our guys didn’t have the same energy today as they had Friday, but give Detroit Mercy credit because they did a very good job inside,” Brannen said. “We just wanted to win, and the guys were able to get it done. Coming off the emotional win Friday, it was a quick and tough turnaround.”
After Josh McFolley made a pair of free throws with 18 seconds to tie the game at 54-all, NKU called a timeout. The Norse put the ball in Holland’s hands, and he drilled an 18-footer to give NKU a 56-54 lead.
Following a timeout, Detroit Mercy’s Corey Allen launched a desperation heave from midcourt, but the ball was well short of the rim as the buzzer sounded and NKU escaped with its second straight road win.
Drew McDonald led NKU with 16 points and nine rebounds, while Carson Williams added 12 points and five rebounds. Holland finished with nine points, and Jordan Garnett pulled down eight rebounds.
NKU shot 33.3 percent from the field for the game, while Detroit Mercy only connected on 33.9 percent of its attempts. The Titans won the rebounding battle by a 48-37 margin, with Allen grabbing 13 boards and Roschon Prince finishing with 10.
Trailing by a point with 4:25 left in the game, NKU employed a 1-3-1 zone and held Detroit Mercy to just two free throws the rest of the way. “The guys were really active in the zone,” Brannen said.
The game featured 13 ties and 15 lead changes, and neither team led by more than four points in the second half. Jalen Tate keyed NKU’s defense with three steals and three blocks.
NKU will play host to Wright State at 7 p.m. Thursday in a first-place battle at BB&T Arena. The Raiders are also unbeaten (4-0) in the Horizon League after defeating Oakland in overtime, 86-81, on Sunday.
Contact Don Owen at don@nkytrib.com