If you’re looking for college basketball this weekend, Northern Kentucky isn’t a bad place to be.
Start with Thomas More, where there are three season-finishing home games for the Saints starting with a revenge meetup Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Connor Convocation Center against Great Midwest Athletic Conference-leading Kentucky Wesleyan. The visiting Panthers, with a win over Louisville to their credit this season, were taken into overtime last Saturday in Owensboro before prevailing, 91-85, against a TMU team led by freshman Nathan Dudukovich’s 27 points.
The 15-10 Saints conclude the season with a pair of home GMAC games next week – against Trevecca Nazarene Thursday at 7:30 and Ohio Dominican Saturday at 3 p.m.
Six teams are within two games in the race for second place in the GMAC from Walsh (10-5) to TMU, Trevecca Nazarene and Ashland all at 9-7 so with a three-game home finish, the Thomas More men could move up with the top four teams getting to host the first postseason playoff game.
But as a first-year NCAA Division II program, after moving over from the NAIA, Thomas More will not be able to participate in the NCAA Tournament for two years but can compete in the GMAC postseason.
The TMU women (15-10, 11-7 GMAC) are off this weekend but return to action next week hosting Trevecca Nazarene Thursday (5:30 p.m.) and Ohio Dominican Saturday (1 p.m.) on Senior Day in doubleheaders with the men. The TMU women are No. 6 in the GMAC but again, with a pair of finishing home games, could move up into the top four. The TMU women are just a game-and-a-half behind a 12-5 Trevecca Nazarene team.
BIGGEST CROWD EVER FOR FEBRUARY NKSHOF INDUCTIONS
They had to bring out rows and rows of extra chairs for Wednesday’s February induction class into the Northern Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame. Three members of the Houston family highlighted the day’s ceremonies.
But it was Richard Tyler, a Lloyd Memorial alum and longtime coach and administrator in the Erlanger school system and still an active basketball official, who really brought the crowd with a large number of family, friends, former players and coaches and just plain fans of a guy who calls himself “a basketball lifer.”
The former Berea College player thanked Bill Code and Dave Otte, who were both there, for being “the two best coaches any guy could ever play for.” And finally, Tyler concluded his lengthy list of thanks with this great line: “If I missed anybody, charge it to my head, not my heart.”
Holmes alum Bill Curley said his family’s “baseball gene passed over me” but the 1975 alum made up for it in football and track and field, a sport where he still competes in the Senior Olympics throwing the disc.
Mary Jo Hussey Meek nodded to NKSHOF VP Kenney Shields, who for years was in charge of Goebel Park for the Covington Recreation Park: “A lot of good people came out of Goebel Park, he (Shields) was my counselor.” Meek would go on from an outstanding softball career to that of a champions golfer for many years at Summit Hills.
Speaking of Goebel Park and the west side of Covington, that’s where the three members of the Houston family come in. Troy Houston came first. “The heart and soul of Holy Cross basketball from 1987 to 1989,” Shields called Troy after refereeing games at the Covington Turners when Troy was in grade school. “I’d like to thank my brother, Todd, who was always beside me,” Troy said of his late brother, teammate and Hall of Fame inductee.
Troy’s wife, Becky Verst Houston, took her Holy Cross basketball and volleyball experience to a full volleyball scholarship at the University of Louisville before the Kentucky Player of the Year returned to Holy Cross where she has coached the Indians to more than 200 wins in volleyball.
Accepting for Todd Houston was his coach at Holy Cross and friend, Jeff Trame, also a Turners alum. Who was a big-time scorer in both soccer and basketball. “Todd’s spirit will live on,” Trame said, from both is playing and coaching days.
And finally, there was Matt Guy, a Campbell County guy who moved over from pitching horseshoes where he was a champion to cornhole. Now he may be better known nationally than he is in Cold Spring, where he grew up, or Alexandria, where Matt Guy lives. He’s considered the greatest cornhole player of all time, “the Babe Ruth of cornhole,” they call him after becoming the winningest cornhole player ever and more than 10 times named the player of the year in both professional cornhole organizations for a sport that’s now on television and has him traveling 40 weekends a year. But as he thanked his “wife and three kids,” Matt couldn’t keep it together, tearing up, saying “it’s unbelievable how much I love them.” Then added of his inability to keep it together, with a laugh: “I should have had that drink.”
More about Matt Guy’s amazing story next week in the Northern Kentucky Tribune.
SENIOR DAY AT NKU SUNDAY
They’ll send off seniors Marques Warrick and Trey Robinson in style Sunday at 2 p.m. at Truist Arena in a Horizon game against IUPUI and Coach Darrin Horn is planning to say goodbye to “two guys who have spent four years here.”
“We’re here for the players,” Horn said, “no reason to be here if not for them. They’re everything you want in student-athletes. I’m hoping for the biggest crowd all season.”
And even though NKU beat a struggling IUPUI team that’s 6-22(2-15 Horizon) in Indianapolis, 71-55, way back on Dec. 2, this game matters with NKU’s bench so thin. With 6-foot-9 center Keeyan Itejere in doubt with an ankle injury suffered in the second half against Cleveland State Thursday and 6-8 backup Cade Meyer having left the team, the Norse finished the CSU game with a smaller lineup whose only size came from 6-8 LJ Wells and the 6-6 Robinson.
As Horn said when he dismissed the thought that the Thursday’s Cleveland State game was a “must win,” he asked what if NKU wins that game and loses Sunday? Every game matters for NKU these days as it tries to fight its way into the Horizon’s top four and earn a postseason playoff home game. At 10-7 in the league, NKU is just a game behind the teams tied for fourth place – Wright State and Youngstown State – both 11-6.
TMU BASEBALL WINS 1ST DIVISION II GAME
With a 17-7 win in eight innings Tuesday over Kentucky State at Thomas More Stadium, the Saints secured the program’s first-ever NCAA Division II win. Three pitchers shared the honors – freshman Jacob Murphy (Greenwood, Ind.) went 4.0 innings with freshman Ethan Stone (Hamilton, Ohio) and sophomore Ian Birnbaum (Cincinnati LaSalle) each going 2.0 innings).
Gavin Vogelsang (Cincinnati St. Xavier) and Jeremy Ward (Cincinnati Elder) each had two hits with two RBI to lead the offense. AJ Enginger (Hamilton Badin) scored four runs and Gavin Pearson (Burlington/Cooper) added three RBI.
TMU returns to action Saturday at Thomas More Stadium in Florence with a doubleheader against West Virginia Wesleyan starting at noon.
Contact Dan Weber at dweber3440@aol.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @dweber3440.
