The Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team waged a back-and-forth second-half battle against Milwaukee but fell in the final minutes to the Panthers, 76-67, Monday night.
Lavone Holland II registered a career-high 19 points and team-best marks in rebounds (eight) and assists (four) after posting 13 points in the first half alone.
Reigning Horizon League Freshman of the Week Drew McDonald tacked on 14 points with 10 coming in the second half. McDonald also finished with seven boards and issued a perfect 6-for-6 performance from the line.
Lavone Holland II registered a career-high 19 points and team-best marks in rebounds (eight) and assists (four) after posting 13 points in the first half alone (NKU Athletics Photo)
Jordan Garnett turned in a complete game for the Norse (4-9, 0-2 Horizon League) with nine points on 4-of-7 shooting along with three assists and a career-high seven rebounds.
NKU opened the game with a trio of triples as it propelled to a 9-0 advantage. Meanwhile, the Norse defense held Milwaukee (10-5, 1-1 Horizon League) to 2-for-17 shooting in the early going.
The Panther momentum picked up as they came within four of the Norse, but six-straight NKU points restored a 20-10 lead with 7:48 remaining in the first.
Milwaukee closed the half riding an 8-2 run to cut the Norse advantage to 34-32 at the intermission. Nearly half of UWM’s points came from the line with the Panthers going 14-for-19 from the charity stripe.
The teams returned to the floor and jockeyed for the lead. A 7-0 NKU run helped the Norse overcome a five-point deficit and regain control with just under 12 minutes to play.
The Norse led 61-57 with 7:41 after McDonald netted six-straight Norse points. However, Northern Kentucky struggled from the floor, connecting on 2-of-12 attempts throughout the remainder of the contest. The Panthers ended the game sinking six of their last eight attempts to pull away with the victory.
After not committing a turnover in the first half, NKU forced 12 total Milwaukee miscues while posting just seven giveaways of its own on the night.
NKU returns home on Saturday, Jan. 9 to open a three-game home stand against Wright State. The contest with the Raiders will be the first home-game of the Horizon League era for the Norse. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. at BB&T Arena.
NORSE NOTES:
· Holland has eclipsed his career-high in scoring in two of the last three games. The sophomore posted 18 points against Toledo before besting his mark with 19 points on Monday.
· Despite being narrowly out-rebounded, 39-36, the Norse edged the Panthers in second-chance points, 12-4.
· Tyler White is just six points shy of becoming the 32nd player in NKU history to reach 900 career points. White netted six points against Milwaukee.
· Jalen Billups is just five points away from 1,000 career points.
From NKU Athletics
