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Don Owen: NKU cools off blistering-hot Youngstown State, extends home winning streak to 20


The hottest team in the Horizon League took the court at BB&T Arena on Thursday night, and it wasn’t Northern Kentucky University. No, the blistering-hot label belonged to Youngstown State, which had won six consecutive games entering the showdown at NKU.

The visiting Penguins — once 2-7 in Horizon League play — had vaulted to fifth place in the standings with an 8-7 record. As a result of the recent winning streak, Youngstown State players were openly talking about potentially hosting a first-round game in the Horizon League Tournament.

NKU’s Drew McDonald scores over Youngstown State’s Garrett Covington late in the second half. McDonald finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds. (Photo by Jeff McCurry)

Youngstown State could still very well finish in the top four of the Horizon League and earn a home game, but the suddenly-torrid Penguins were cooled off just a bit Thursday night during a narrow 76-69 loss to NKU. Not that anyone was shocked by the outcome. After all, NKU is tied with Wright State for first place in the Horizon League standings with an 11-4 record.

The Norse — still seething after dropping a road game at Wright State last Friday — upped their overall mark to 21-7 and defeated the Penguins for the fifth consecutive time. NKU also extended its home winning streak to 20 games and remained unbeaten (16-0) this season at BB&T Arena.

The Norse haven’t lost at home since suffering an 83-70 setback against Oakland on Jan. 26, 2018. And, despite the red-hot resurgence of Youngstown State hoops, there was no way NKU’s streak was going to end Thursday night.

Think of Thursday night as the polar vortex (NKU) that rammed headlong into an unseasonably warm — or unusually hot, in this case — weather system (Youngstown State). We all know what prevails in that collision of systems. Same thing applies to Thursday night’s game, though Youngstown State certainly made the Norse sweat until the final minute.

“It was execution down the stretch. Offensively and defensively we had to lock in and start getting defensive rebounds,” said NKU’s Jalen Tate, who finished with 15 points and five assists. “They were killing us on the [offensive] boards. We just locked in, got connected defensively and started executing our sets on the offensive end.”

Drew McDonald finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds for NKU, which is now 9-9 all-time against Youngstown State. McDonald also scored nine points in the final 2:12 of the game to help the Norse avert the upset. Youngstown State had taken a 64-63 lead with 3:37 remaining when Garrett Covington converted two free throws, but NKU responded with a game-ending 13-5 run to escape with the victory.

“I really think that run was made through the course of the week and the grind we put ourselves through in great practices,” McDonald said. “I think it showed up at the end when we were executing plays, getting stops when we needed them. Just getting back to our habits.”

NKU’s Chris Vogt finishes off a dunk in the second half against Youngstown State. Vogt scored six points and grabbed two rebounds. (Photo by Jeff McCurry)

McDonald went 12-for-12 from the charity stripe on Thursday night to set the all-time NKU record for most free throws made in a career. The Cold Spring native has now converted 435 free throws, which surpassed Craig Conley’s previous record of 431.

McDonald also has netted 1,976 career points and is No. 3 in school history in that category. He needs 32 points to pass Craig Sanders (2,007 points) as NKU’s all-time leading scorer.

Naz Bohannon scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Youngstown State, which dropped to 12-17 overall, 8-8 in the Horizon League. The Penguins played the entire second half without leading scorer Darius Quisenberry, who suffered an ankle injury early in the game and saw just nine minutes of action.

“I knew (Youngstown State) would be a tough out, and then they lose possibly their best player (Quisenberry) on the first play of the game,” NKU head coach John Brannen said. “It was an extremely hard-fought basketball game. I thought our guys were really good down the stretch, the way they executed offensively and made plays.

“Youngstown State had won six straight games for a reason — they’re really good. They have the toughness and really make the game difficult on their opponent. They have a culture of guys who enjoy playing together and a good chemistry. They’re a team to be reckoned with certainly the rest of this season and years to come.”

Tyler Sharpe finished with 14 points for NKU, which shot 51.1 percent from the field. The Norse were 4-for-16 from 3-point range but converted 26 of their 32 foul shots.

Youngstown State made 44.8 percent of its shots from the field and was 7-for-24 from 3-point range. NKU won the rebounding battle by a 33-26 margin.

“They’re definitely a much better team this season, and they play really, really hard,” Tate said of Youngstown State. “Their coach has them believing. They’re really coming together as one. They are a tough group for sure.”

NKU plays Cleveland State in its regular-season home finale at 7 p.m. Saturday, but the Norse will return to BB&T Arena for a first-round game in the Horizon League Tournament the first week of March. So McDonald and fellow senior Zaynah Robinson will get an encore performance at home in two weeks.

“I’m hoping a big crowd is here Saturday night for Drew and Zaynah, because both of them have done so much to help this team get to 21 wins this season,” Brannen said.

NKU’s Jalen Tate blocks a shot attempt by Youngstown State’s Devin Morgan (22) in the second half on Thursday night. Tate added 15 points in the win. (Photo by Jeff McCurry)


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