NKyTribune staff
Justyn Hamilton, Danny Pippen and Michael Nuga combined for 60 points to lead Kent State to a 92-73 win over visiting Northern Kentucky on Sunday.
The 6-foot-11 Hamilton finished with 22 points on 11-for-13 shooting from the field. He netted 14 points in the first half as Kent State built a 52-37 lead at the break. The Golden Flashes shot 62.9 percent from the field in the first half.
Pippen and Nuga added 19 points apiece for Kent State, which improved to 3-1. The Golden Flashes led by as many as 20 points in the second half and defeated NKU in the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
Trevon Faulkner scored a career-high 28 points to lead NKU, which dropped to 2-3. Faulkner shot 10-for-20 from the field and added four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
David Böhm added a career-best 19 points for NKU, while teammate Marques Warrick finished with 11 points. Böhm drained a trio of 3-pointers, and Warrick connected on a pair of treys.
Adrian Nelson grabbed a game-leading 14 rebounds and scored eight points for the Norse. Nelson is now averaging 12.4 rebounds per game.
Malique Jacobs scored 13 points and collected four steals for Kent State, which shot 55.2 percent from the field. Gabe O’Neal added 10 points and nine rebounds off the bench.
Kent State used a 12-0 run in the first half to turn an 8-6 deficit into an 18-8 lead. Jacobs keyed the spurt with five points and an assist.
NKU shot 37.5 percent from the field and was 7-for-30 from 3-point range. The Norse have dropped three consecutive games — all on the road — since starting the season 2-0.
NKU begins Horizon League play on Saturday by playing host to Youngstown State at BB&T Arena. The game is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. The Norse and Penguins will then conclude the two-game weekend series next Sunday at 3 p.m.
NKU WOMEN SWEEP RMU: Ivy Turner scored 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting from the field to lead the NKU women’s basketball team to a 62-50 win over Robert Morris on Sunday, sweeping the two-game weekend series at BB&T Arena.
Turner added six rebounds and three assists as NKU improved to 2-4 overall, 2-0 in the Horizon league. Lindsey Duvall chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds for the Norse, while Grayson Rose netted all 11 of her points in the first half.
NKU ended the first half with an 11-2 run to build a 37-23 lead at the break. Nina Augustin led Robert Morris (0-2, 0-2 Horizon League) with 10 points.
The Norse play at Purdue Fort Wayne in a two-game series next week, beginning on Saturday afternoon.
(Information compiled from NKU Athletics Communications, Kent State and staff reports)