Northern Kentucky placed four in double figures and the Norse use a pivotal 16-4 second-half run to cruise to an 81-60 win over Norfolk State Sunday at BB&T Arena.
NKU had a pair of players, Cole Murray and Jalen Billups, post 20 or more points in the same game for the first time in Northern Kentucky’s Division I era.
Billups led all players with 23 points and fell one rebound shy of a double-double. Murray issued a 6-of-8 performance from long range and 4-of-4 showing from the line to follow Billups with 22 points.
Four Norse women scored in double-figures to lead Northern Kentucky to a 92-47 victory over West Virginia State at BB&T Arena on Sunday as NKU bested its Division I single-game scoring record (NKU Athletics Photo)
Tyler White chipped in 13 points while Jordan Garnett set a career high with 10 points.
A 74.1 second-half shooting percentage propelled NKU to post a season-best 57.4 percentage (31-of-54) from the floor including 55 percent (11-of-20) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the defense held NSU to 34.5 percent shooting.
The Norse (2-5) and Spartans (4-5) traded buckets to open the game before a pair of layups from Billups sparked a 10-2 NKU run where the Norse held NSU to one field goal over four minutes. The run pushed the Norse lead to 18-12 with 7:42 left in the half after back-to-back triples from Murray.
A game-tying 7-1 NSU run was halted by a Garnett layup that keyed eight uninterrupted points from the Norse. The Spartans managed a single field goal over the final six minutes of the half to hand NKU a 27-21 advantage at the intermission.
Norfolk State returned to the court and briefly stole the NKU momentum, putting up seven-straight points to come within one point of the Norse. However, five different Norse combined to help Northern Kentucky outscore Norfolk State, 16-4, over a span of four minutes to lead 50-36 with 12:07 to play.
The Norse maintained a double-digit lead throughout the remainder of the game.
Northern Kentucky returns to action on Tuesday when it travels to take on Michigan at 7 p.m. in a game set to air on the Big Ten Network.
NORSE NOTES:
— NKU held the NSU offense to 26.9 percent (7-of-26) shooting from the floor in the first half to mark the second time this season the Norse have held an opponent to less than 30 percent shooting in a half. No. 23 Xavier shot 28.13 percent in the second half against NKU on Nov. 23.
— The Norse never trailed past the 18:16 mark of the opening half when Norfolk State was ahead 10-8.
— NKU outrebounded its opponent for the second-straight game, winning the battle of the boards 33-30 including 25-17 on the defensive end.
— Murray entered the contest shooting 44 percent from three on the season and improved to 51 percent (17-of-33).
Roush leads balanced attack as Norse top West Virginia State
Four Norse scored in double-figures to lead Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team to a 92-47 victory over West Virginia State at BB&T Arena on Sunday as NKU bested its Division I single-game scoring record.
Christine Roush led the charge with 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor and a 3-for-4 showing from long range. Roush netted 16 points in the first half alone and totaled three blocks on the day, one shy of her career-high.
Roush was followed by Kasey Uetrecht with 16 total points and six boards, all on the defensive end.
Courtney Roush posted a career-high 14 points, all coming in the second half within a span of 11 minutes while Sarah Kinch rounded out NKU’s top scorers with 13 points. Kinch tied Shar’Rae Davis with a team-high seven rebounds.
The Norse (7-2) shot 59.3 percent from the floor en route to the victory and outrebounded the Yellow Jackets (3-6), 36-23.
In the first quarter, NKU forced three early turnovers and netted 11-straight points to lead 16-4 at the 4:04 mark. Roush contributed seven points to the run while the defense held West Virginia State scoreless for five minutes. The Norse led 18-8 heading to the second quarter.
The Norse rode an 8-2 run to open the second period with four points coming from Davis who pushed the NKU advantage to 26-10 on a jumper with just over six minutes left in the half.
Roush and Uetrecht paired up to lead the Norse throughout the remainder of the half with Roush scoring six points and Uetrecht netting five. Northern Kentucky led 38-21 at the intermission.
The Norse expanded their lead to 27 points after an 8-2 run over the first two minutes of the third quarter while the fourth quarter saw the Norse lead increase to a game-high 44 points at the 6:49 mark on a layup from Kinch.
The Norse return to the court Wednesday when they play host to IU Kokomo. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at BB&T Arena.
NORSE NOTES
— NKU held the Yellow Jackets to eight points in the opening period, marking the fourth time the Norse have held an opponent to single digits across a full quarter this season. NKU held Marquette and Miami (Ohio) to eight points and held Cincinnati to nine points in the second quarter of each contest.
— The Norse forced 19 West Virginia State turnovers and converted the miscues into 21 total points.
— Northern Kentucky is in the middle of a seven-game home stand as the victory pushes NKU’s record to 5-1 at BB&T Arena.
— The NKU bench has posted 40 or more points in back-to-back games after averaging 23.2 entering Saturday’s contest.
From NKU Athletics
