The Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team hosts Oakland University at BB&T Arena on Friday night.
It is $1 beverage night as the Norse and Golden Grizzlies meet for the second time during Horizon League play this season.
Game Information
Northern Kentucky University Norse (12-7 Overall, 3-3 Horizon League)
Oakland University Golden Grizzlies (14-5 Overall, 4-2 Horizon League)
Friday, Jan. 20 – 7 p.m. (ET)
BB&T Arena (9,400) in Highland Heights, Ky.
TV: SpectrumSports*/ESPN3** with Neil Sika (play-by-play) and Dave Cecutti (analysis)
Radio: ESPN1530 (1530 AM) with Jim Kelch (play-by-play) and Steve Moeller (analysis)
Fast Break Points
• NKU returns to the court following an eight-day layoff, which came on the heels of a stretch that included four games in eight days. The Norse went 2-2 during the stretch, winning the first two at home before dropping the last two on the road.
• NKU sits at 12-7 on the year and needs just one win to match it’s Division I-era record for wins (13) set in the 2014-15 season as a member of the Atlantic Sun.
• The 70-point plateau is key for NKU this year. Northern Kentucky is 12-2 when scoring at least 70 points and 9-1 when holding opponents to 70 or fewer points.
• NKU has scored 80 points or more eight times this season, including all three Horizon League wins.
• The Norse have established themselves as one of the top rebounding teams in the country, winning the rebounding battle in 16 of 19 games. They have only truly lost the rebound battle twice and are averaging 39.68 rpg (34th in the nation).
• The Norse have combined to post 17 efforts with 20 points or more. The team is 10-3 in games where a player reaches at least 20 points in the scoring column.
• NKU is also one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the nation, ranking No. 49 with 164 made threes.
• F Drew McDonald has posted eight double-doubles this year and 13 in his career. He is averaging a team-high 16.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.
• McDonald’s numbers balloon to 19.0 ppg and 9.3 rpg during league play, which rank fourth and second in the league, respectively.
• G Mason Faulkner has established himself as one of the top freshman in the Horizon League. Faulkner is third among all freshman in scoring in league-only games at 11.7 ppg.
• G Lavone Holland II is second in scoring at 14.3 ppg, but leads the team in assists (3.8 apg).
• F Carson Williams, a two-time Horizon League Freshman of the Week honoree, is third on the team in scoring at 10.8 ppg and second in rebounding (6.1 rpg).
• F Cole Murray ranks among the nation’s top 3-point shooters, checking in at No. 18 with 58 made threes this year. He is also 43rd in 3-point field-goal percentage (41.7).
* Time Warner Cable recently changed names and is now called Spectrum. Consequently, Spectrum Sports is the former Time Warner Cable SportsChannel, which can be found locally on channels 510/511 in Northern Kentucky and Central Ohio, as well as 1311/311 throughout the rest of Ohio.
**The game will be blacked out on ESPN3 in the Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati market.
From NKU Athletics