Game NotesHIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - A key Atlantic Sun Conference matchup with North Florida awaits the Northern Kentucky men's basketball team at 7 p.m. on Thursday night at The Bank of Kentucky Center. The Norse trail the Ospreys by one game in the conference standings, as UNF joins Lipscomb as the only two unbeaten teams in the league at 3-0 and NKU enters at 2-1. Northern Kentucky will honor approximately 100 student-athletes at halftime of the game for achieving a 3.5 GPA or better in the fall semester. The game will also serve as Faculty/Staff Appreciation Night, Military Appreciation Night presented by the Kentucky National Guard and $1 select beverages night.
Northern Kentucky University Norse (8-10 Overall, 2-1 Atlantic Sun)
University of North Florida Ospreys (11-9 Overall, 3-0 Atlantic Sun)
Thur., Jan. 22 - 7:00 p.m. (ET)
The Bank of Kentucky Center (9,400) in Highland Heights, Ky.
TV: ESPN3 with Brady Laber (play-by-play) and Amber Stocks-Whitford (analysis)Â
Radio: ESPN 1530 (AM) with Richard Skinner (play-by-play) and Steve Moeller (analysis)
Fast Break Points
- Northern Kentucky won both A-Sun Conference games last week, defeating Kennesaw State (76-72) and at USC Upstate (66-65).
- NKU rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit, surging ahead by seven and withstanding a late Upstate charge to win.
- NKU's rally from 11-down in the second marked the first double-digit come-back win since rallying from 13 down versus Jacksonville (3/2/13).
- The Norse trailed by eight at halftime against Upstate, marking the first time this season NKU won after trailing at half.
- Three Norse are averaging double-digits in A-Sun play, Billups (15.3), Persons (11.3) & White (11.0).
- In the last 10 games, NKUís bench has outscored its opponents, 372-158.
- F Jalen Billups ranks among NKU's all-time leaders in FG % (2nd, .618), blocks (10th, 77) & blocks per game (12th, 1.0).
- Billups leads the league in field goal percentage (67.9), a mark that currently tops NKU's record books.Â
- In each of the last two games, Billups has put up 16 points and eight rebounds on a combined 13-of-14 shooting (92.9%).
- G Todd Johnson made four threes, all in the second half, to help NKU rally past USC Upstate.
- #DiaperDandy G Tayler Persons leads NKU in scoring (12.6 ppg), assists (3.9 apg) and steals (1.2).
- Persons is 10th in the A-Sun in scoring and second in assists. He is also 11th in steals and 26th in rebounding.
- In the last 10 games, Persons is averaging 14.5 ppg, while Billups is at 12.0 and White at 11.1.
- G Tyler White has started 7-of-the-last-8 games. He leads NKU in made threes (33) & is 16th in NKU's record books with 109-career treys.
Billups Is Rewriting Career Marks
Redshirt junior forward Jalen Billups is leaving his mark on NKU's record books. He ranks among NKU's all-time leaders in FG percent (2nd, .618), blocks (10th, 77) and blocks per game (13th, 1.0).
So far this season, the Cincinnati, Ohio, native is 74-of-109 for 67.9 percent, a total that leads the A-Sun and, if the season ended today, would be the best in program history. Adam Norwell made 125-of-190 attempts (65.8 percent) during the 2000-01 season. Billups connected on 65.1 percent (54-of-83) of his shots during the 2011-12 campaign, a mark that currently ranks third (does not factor in this season) in NKUís single-season records list.Â
Billups' 9.8 points per game average is second-most on the team. In the last two games, Billups has averaged 16 points and eight rebounds, while shooting 92.9 percent (13-of-14) from the floor.
Scouting North Florida
North Florida is currently tied atop the A-Sun standing at a perfect 3-0 in league play and 11-9 overall. Two of UNF's conference wins are against Jacksonville and Stetson, which are a combined 1-5 in the league. The third win, however, is an 80-64 thrashing of Florida Gulf Coast in which Dallas Moore dropped 27 points. North Florida also boasts a win over Purdue (73-70) and losses to South Carolina, Northwestern, Florida State, Iowa and Alabama.
Moore is scoring at 17.1 points per game to lead the league's top scoring offense, as UNF averages 75.0 points per game.
Series Stuff - North Florida
The Norse are 3-1 all-time versus the Ospreys, including a series split last season. NKU won the first, 70-64, behind 16 points from Jordan Jackson and 12 points and eight rebounds from Jalen BIllups. North Florida clipped NKU with 1.1 seconds remaining in the second contest, 67-66, on Joel Nesbitt's tip-in.
Last Time Out: USC Upstate
Northern Kentucky rallied from an 11-point second-half hole to stake claim to a 66-65 victory over USC Upstate at The G.B. Hodge Center in Spartanburg, S.C., last Saturday. Jalen Billups led the way for NKU with 16 points on perfect 7-for-7 shooting. He added eight rebounds to his stat line. Todd Johnson knocked down four second-half 3-pointers for 12 points and both Tayler Persons (15 points) and Tyler White (8 points) connected on timely threes in the come-back. The last time NKU rallied from a double-digit deficit in the second half came on March 2, 2013 against NKU's opponent on Saturday, Jacksonville. The Dolphins led by 13, 58-45, with 2:36 remaining in the game. The Norse closed on a 19-4 run to pull out a 66-62 victory.
NKU won the rebound battle against Upstate (38-32) and also led in bench points (39-11), points in the paint (30-24) and second-chance points (11-8).
