Thurs., Feb. 21 - Kennesaw, Ga. - 7 p.m.
KSU Convocation Center (4,600)
NKU (8-14, 6-8 A-Sun) at Kennesaw State (3-23, 2-12)
NKU Radio: WQRT 1160 AM
•Richard Skinner (play-by-play) & Steve Moeller (color)
Series Record: NKU leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: NKU 64, KSU 53 (1-26-13)
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Northern Kentucky travels to the state of Georgia for two Atlantic Sun Conference games this week, starting with a Thursday night contest at Kennesaw State. The tip is set for 7 p.m.
The Norse conclude the road trip Saturday with a game at Mercer in Macon, Ga., with the tip scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
Northern Kentucky enters this week with an 8-14 overall record, 6-8 in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Norse dropped a 62-46 decision to Stetson on Saturday night in The Bank of Kentucky Center.
Kennesaw State is 3-23 overall, 2-12 in the A-Sun. Mercer is currently 18-9 overall, and the Bears are atop the A-Sun standings with an 11-3 mark.
AIMING FOR 1,000: Northern Kentucky senior guard
Eshaunte Jones enters Thursday night with 945 points as a collegiate player. Jones scored a total of 287 points in two years at Nebraska, and he now has 658 points in two seasons with Northern Kentucky.
Jones leads the Norse in scoring at 15.8 points per game, which is sixth in the Atlantic Sun Conference. He is also second in the A-Sun in 3-pointers made per game (3.2) and is sixth in 3-point shooting percentage (.395).
In conference-only games, Jones is No. 3 in the A-Sun in scoring at 17.4 points per contest. He also also made 50 shots from 3-point range (3.6 per game) during A-Sun play.
Jones has scored in double figures the past eight games. He has netted at least 20 points six times this season, including a career-high 26 points in a win over Mercer. Jones has scored in double figures 17 times this season.
GETTING DEFENSIVE: Northern Kentucky is No. 2 in the A-Sun in points allowed per game at 61.4. The Norse are No. 4 in field-goal percentage defense at .434. Kennesaw State is No. 10 in the A-Sun in both field-goal percentage defense (.496) and 3-point shooting percentage defense (.376).
MAGIC NUMBER: The Norse are 6-2 this season when scoring at least 60 points, but 2-12 when netting below 60 points.
MOVING UP THE LIST: Senior point guard
Ethan Faulkner enters Thursday with 682 career points, which is 50th on the Norse all-time scoring list. Deron Blasingame (688 career points) is 49th on the Norse's all-time list.
Faulkner enters Thursday with 335 career assists, which is 12th in school history. Faulkner needs seven assists to move past Ryan Schrand (341) for 11th place on the Norse career list. Brenden Stowers (344 assists) is currently 10th in Norse history in that category.
NOT BAD FOR A BEGINNER: Northern Kentucky continues to lead the conference in attendance with an average home crowd of 3,127 per game. Mercer is second in home attendance at 2,621 per game.
BEZOLD IN FEBRUARY: Northern Kentucky head coach
Dave Bezold owns a 39-25 record in the month of February during his career. Bezold is 169-93 in nine seasons at NKU. With one more victory this season, Bezold will reach the 170-win mark faster than any previous Norse head coach.
THE LAST TIME AGAINST KSU: On Jan. 26, Northern Kentucky cruised to a 64-53 win over Kennesaw State. The Norse held the visiting Owls to 36 percent shooting from the field, won the rebounding battle by a 37-28 count and rode the scoring prowess of
Eshaunte Jones in front of a Homecoming crowd of 4,716 in The Bank of Kentucky Center.
Jones scored 25 points against Kennesaw State, and he made four 3-pointers in that win. Jones also dished out three assists.
Tyler White added 13 points off the bench for the Norse. White buried a pair of 3-pointers and finished 5-for-6 from the field.
Chad Jackson scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He also provided the highlight of the evening by grabbing an offensive rebound of a Jones missed jumper and jamming the ball in with two hands over two Kennesaw State defenders. Jackson's dunk later made ESPN's SportsCenter's Top 10 plays, the first time an NKU athlete has been featured on that segment.
Stretch Watson grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds for NKU, which is now 2-0 all-time against Kennesaw State. Watson also blocked three shots and collected three steals.
