NKyTribune staff
Freshman forward Kailey Coffey stuffed all the statistical categories with big numbers Friday afternoon during Northern Kentucky University’s 76-61 victory over Detroit Mercy in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament in Detroit.
Coffey finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, four blocks and two assists as the eighth-seeded Norse rallied from an early nine-point deficit to advance to the second round of Motor City Madness. Coffey also shot 7-for-9 from the field and made all six of her free throws.
NKU’s Mikayla Terry scored 11 points, grabbed eight rebounds and had eight assists against Detroit Mercy. (Photo by Chloe Smith)
The Norse finished with a whopping 53-22 advantage in rebounds as Jazmyne Geist pulled down 12 boards and teammate Grayson Rose grabbed 10. The Norse hauled in 24 offensive rebounds that led to 19 second-chance points.
“This time last year, we were headed home,” said NKU head coach Camryn Whitaker, who recorded her first postseason victory with the Norse. “I’m happy for our kids and I’m happy for our program. Our goal was to try and get past this first day. It’s really exciting for our kids to have the opportunity to play a team like Green Bay.”
Taryn Taugher chipped in 20 points for NKU, while Grace White added nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
Detroit Mercy, which finished the season with a 2-28 record, made 37.3 percent of its shots from the field. Nicole Urbanick led the Titans with 13 points.
NKU (9-21) will meet top-seeded Green Bay (26-3) Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The two teams split during the regular season, with NKU upsetting then-No. 19 Green Bay by a 62-54 score on Dec. 30 at Highland Heights. The Phoenix later knocked off the Norse, 58-41, in the rematch on Feb. 1 at Green Bay.
Going into the Horizon League Tournament, Green Bay is ranked No. 21 nationally.
