Tabb pours in 24 points as No. 25 NKU men knock off No. 4 Grand Valley State, 81-65
Josh Tabb (25) defends against Grand Valley State's Justin Ringler (14).

Tabb pours in 24 points as No. 25 NKU men knock off No. 4 Grand Valley State, 81-65

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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – How big was Northern Kentucky University's 81-65 win over Grand Valley State on Saturday? Consider that:

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•Both teams entered the game unbeaten and nationally ranked in the NCAA Division II poll, with Grand Valley State at No. 4 and NKU at No. 25.

•NKU had lost four straight games to the Lakers.

•NKU now holds a key head-to-head regional victory against Grand Valley State, which is the favorite to capture the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference North Division title.

In terms of national rankings, the win should elevate NKU near the top 10 of the next poll. But Saturday's victory could do wonders for the Norse sometime in March, when the pairings for the NCAA Division II Tournament are announced.

Josh Tabb keyed NKU's victory with a career-high 24 points. The senior guard scored 14 points in the first half as NKU built a 38-25 lead at the break. Tabb poured in 11 of NKU's first 13 points as the Norse jumped out to a 13-8 lead.

“They're the number four team in the country and to come out and get the win, that was big for us,” said Tabb, who finished 8-for-12 from the field. “It just shows you can't leave our shooters out there wide open. They will knock down big shots for us.”

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Malcolm Eleby and Dennis Gagai each scored 11 points for NKU, which led by as many as 22 points in the second half. NKU is now 3-4 all-time against Grand Valley State.

“Grand Valley State is a nationally ranked team and a very historic program that has been in the Elite Eight many times,” NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. “I really felt coming in that they may have been further along as a team than we are right now because they don't have a lot of new parts. I'm really proud of our guys and the way they handled that.”

Bobby Shannon and Ethan Faulkner both finished with nine points for NKU, which shot 48 percent from the field. Justin Ringler led Grand Valley State with 18 points and seven rebounds.

NKU begins Great Lakes Valley Conference action Thursday night by playing host to unbeaten Southern Indiana (4-0) Thursday at 7:45 p.m.
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