Three more games have been added to the 2021-22 Northern Kentucky men’s basketball schedule, as the Norse are set to compete in the Blue Demon Classic hosted by DePaul. In addition to playing at DePaul on Nov. 26, NKU hosts Eastern Michigan on Thursday, Nov. 18, and Western Illinois on Monday, Nov. 22, at BB&T Arena.
(Photo by Bryan McEldowney/NKU)
Eastern Michigan went 6-12 overall last year with a 3-11 mark in the MAC. Bryce McBride is one of three Eagles who averaged double figures in the scoring column (13.7 ppg), but is the only returning player from the team’s top-6 scorers a season ago. Stan Heath, who has previously made head coaching stops at South Florida, Arkansas and Kent State, takes over in his first season at EMU.
Western Illinois posted a 7-15 mark with a 5-9 Summit League record in 2020-21. The Leathernecks are coached by Rob Jeter, who spent 11 years as Milwaukee’s head coach. Two players posted double-figures in the scoring column for Western Illinois last year, Will Carius (14.7 ppg) and Tamell Pearson (10.4).
DePaul is coming off of a 5-14 campaign in which it went 2-13 in the BIG EAST. The Blue Demons are now under the direction of first-year head coach Tony Stubblefield. Javon Freeman-Liberty led DePaul in scoring at 14.4 points per game and second in rebounding at 5.3 per contest.
The trio of games in the Blue Demon Classic give the Norse five announced non-conference contests. In addition to the home matchups versus EMU and Western Illinois, NKU previously announced home contests against UNC Greensboro on Nov. 12 and Canisius on Dec. 8.
Four starters return for Northern Kentucky, seniors Trevon Faulkner, Bryson Langdon and Adrian Nelson as well as sophomore Marques Warrick. Fellow sophomores David Böhm and Trey Robinson were also significant contributors who return to the fold. The Norse have welcomed six newcomers for the 2021-22 season as well, including upperclassmen Chris Brandon and Seybian Sims in addition to freshmen Sam Vinson, Isaiah Mason, Imanuel Zorgvol and Hubertas Pivorius.
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