Tony Rack (10) scored 15 points against Saint Joseph's.
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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. –
Ethan Faulkner scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed five rebounds as No. 16 Northern Kentucky University won its fourth straight game with an 85-72 victory over Saint Joseph's on Saturday.
Chad Jackson and
Tony Rack added 15 points apiece for NKU, which improved to 19-4 overall, 11-4 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Norse connected on 52.2 percent of their shots from the field and converted 30-of-43 free throws to wrap up the season sweep against the Pumas.
NKU shot a blistering 63.6 percent from the field in the first half and built a 45-37 lead at the break. Rack buried a trio of 3-pointers in the first half en route to 11 points, while Jackson scored nine before intermission.
Faulkner netted 13 points in the second half, including 6-for-7 shooting from the free-throw line. The junior guard's previous career-high point total was 16, set against Illinois-Springfield on Jan. 28, 2010.
Jon Van Hoose and newcomer
Antonio Bumpus each added nine points for NKU, which now holds a 40-20 lead in the all-time series with Saint Joseph's. Earlier this season on Dec. 1, the Norse cruised to an 82-70 win in Rensselaer, Ind.
Bumpus, a transfer from Utah State who made his NKU debut on Saturday, was 7-for-8 from the line and added three rebounds. Jackson led NKU by grabbing seven rebounds.
DeAndre Nealy finished with eight points and three blocked shots, bringing his season's total to 68 rejections. The all-time NKU single-season record for blocked shots is 73, set by Patrick Holt during the 1985-86 campaign.
Dayvon Sloan led Saint Joseph's (7-16 overall, 2-13 GLVC) with 17 points. Sloan, who scored 34 points against NKU in the first meeting this season, was just 4-for-13 from the field on Saturday.
NKU will make its final trip to Owensboro, Ky., on Thursday night to meet No. 7 Kentucky Wesleyan in the Owensboro Sportscenter. Two weeks ago, Kentucky Wesleyan posted a 74-57 victory over NKU in The Bank of Kentucky Center.
The Norse then return home for a Saturday afternoon showdown against No. 14 Southern Indiana, and close out the regular season by hosting top-ranked Bellarmine on Feb. 23.
NKU needs just one victory to reach the 20-win mark for the fifth time in the past six years. The Norse have won at least 20 games 13 times in the program's history.
