HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team completes its two-game road trip in Jacksonville, Florida, on Saturday afternoon as the Norse take on Jacksonville in Atlantic Sun Conference action.
 
Tipoff from Swisher Gymnasium is scheduled for 2 p.m.  Links to live stats and the ESPN3 broadcast can be found at NKUNorse.com.  Fans can follow @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter for live in-game updates as well.
 
NKU fell to 11-8 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic Sun on Thursday evening after dropping an 81-79 double-overtime decision to North Florida.  Destinee Smith's 3-point field goal with five seconds remaining lifted the Ospreys to their first conference win of the season.  Christine Roush hit a long range shot to force the first overtime period before a Kasey Uetrecht layup sent the game into the last extra period.
 
Roush led the Norse effort with 28 points, one shy of tying her career high, on 9-for-16 shooting from the floor and a 6-for-9 performance from 3-point distance.  Melody Doss recorded her third double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and she finished with a game-high six assists, three blocked shots and one steal.  Rianna Gayheart rounded out the double-figure scorers, adding 13 points to go along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
ABOUT JACKSONVILLE: The Dolphins are 6-11 on the year and 1-3 in the Atlantic Sun.  Lipscomb handed Jacksonville a 75-63 loss on Thursday night despite Sherranda Reddick and Kayla Gordon combining for 33 points to lead the Dolphins effort.  Reddick led the way with 18 points on 5-for-10 shooting, including a trio of 3-pointers, with three rebounds and four assists, while Gordon added 15 points and a game-high nine rebounds off the bench.
 
Reddick leads the way offensively for Jacksonville, averaging 12.4 points per game, while Briona Brown is adding 10.5 points.  Kimberly Dawkins is pulling down a team-high 7.6 rebounds per contest to go along with a team-best 15 blocked shots.  Gordon is averaging 7.4 points and 6.8 boards, while  Ladeyah Forte's 50 assists directs the Dolphins' offense and ranks sixth in the Atlantic Sun.
 
Head coach Yolette McPhee-McCuin is in her second season with Jacksonville.  Last season, the Dolphins posted a 13-17 overall record and a 10-8 mark in the Atlantic Sun under her direction.  McPhee-McCuin led the Dolphins to the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament, the highest for Jacksonville since the 2008-09 season.  McPhee-McCuin also serves as the Bahamian women's national coach and was named to the 2013 New England Basketball Hall of Fame.
 
NKU-JACKSONVILLE SERIES: The all-time series between NKU and Jacksonville is tied at 2-2.  Each team has defended its home court in each of the last two seasons.  The Dolphins posted a 65-60 victory in the series opener on Dec. 31, 2012, before the Norse avenged the early-season loss with a 76-71 overtime win in The Bank of Kentucky Center just over one month later. Jacksonville handed NKU its first conference loss of the 2013-14 season, taking a 67-56 decision in Swisher Gymnasium, but the Norse brought the series even by defeating the Dolphins, 69-61, on Feb. 15, 2014.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST JACKSONVILLE: Kelley Wiegman scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed five rebounds to lead NKU to a 69-61 victory over Jacksonville Feb. 15, 2014, at The Bank of Kentucky Center.
 
Wiegman, who scored 16 points in the second half, finished 6-for-10 from the floor and knocked down a career-high five 3-pointers for NKU, and she dished out four assists and collected two steals.  Melody Doss finished with 19 points, five rebounds and four assists, while Kayla Thacker added 12 points and six rebounds for the Norse.
 
NKU took a 31-27 advantage into the locker room at half time, and Jacksonville started the second half with a basket by Sherranda Reddick to bring the Dolphins to within two (31-29), and the two teams traded runs until NKU built its lead to 56-45 with 5:16 left in the game on a 3-pointer by Wiegman.
 
Queen Alford scored five of the next six Jacksonville points to cut the Dolphin deficit to 56-51 with 3:59 on the clock.  Christine Roush forced a turnover and drove the length of the court on the next Dolphins possession, converting a conventional three-point play to stretch the Norse advantage back to eight (59-51) with just over three minutes left.
 
The two teams traded points over the next two minutes, and Thacker knocked down two free throws to give NKU a 65-59 advantage with just under a minute left in the game.  Reddick missed a 3-pointer on the other end, and Wiegman hit two free throws for a 67-59 Norse lead.
 
Ronisha Mitchell's jumper with 28 seconds remaining in the game was followed by two more free throws by Thacker to seal the victory for NKU.
 
Alford led four Jacksonville players in double figures with 17 points and 10 rebounds.  Stephanie Edwards finished with 12 points and four assists, while Reddick and Briona Brown each added 10 points.  Brown also grabbed six rebounds for the Dolphins.
 
AMONG THE TOP: NKU leads the Atlantic Sun in points per game against conference opponents.  The Norse are averaging 73.8 points over their first four Atlantic Sun contests.  NKU has scored 70 or more points in three of its four conference games, including a season-high 81 points at Lipscomb to open league play.  The Norse scored 77 points, including 44 in the first half, against South Carolina Upstate on Jan. 17 before recording a 79-point effort against North Florida on Thursday evening.
 
NKU ranks second in Atlantic Sun action in 3-point shooting, knocking down 39.6 percent (38-for-96) of its attempts from long range in conference games.  The Norse drained 13 3-point field goals, led by Christine Roush's six treys, against the Ospreys Thursday.  Lipscomb is shooting 41.3 percent (38-for-92) from behind the arc to lead all conference teams in Atlantic Sun action.
 
REJECTING SHOTS: NKU turned away seven North Florida shots as a team on Thursday evening to improve its season total to 70.  The Norse rank second in the Atlantic Sun in blocked shots per game at 3.7 and just trail Stetson, which is turning away 4.7 shot attempts per contest.
 
NKU boasts three of the conference's top 15 shot blockers.  Kaitlyn Gerrety's team-leading 1.3 rejections per game ranks third among Atlantic Sun players, while Christine Roush is turning away one opponent shot per contest to land seventh.  Melody Doss, who blocked a game-high three North Florida attempts on Thursday, is 13th in the league at 0.8 rejections per game.
 
UP NEXT: NKU returns home to The Bank of Kentucky Center next week to host a pair of Atlantic Sun contests.  The Norse welcome Stetson on Thursday for County Night, where residents of Boone, Campbell and Kenton County will receive $3 admission with proof of residency. 
 
Two days later, NKU welcomes conference-leader Florida Gulf Coast.  The contest will feature a second County Night along with $1 Select Beverage Night.  It will also be Shoot Around Saturday, where girls through eighth grade and boys through sixth grade can take the court to take a few shots at various baskets around the court after the game.  Players will also be available at the conclusion of the shoot around period for autographs.
 
Tipoff for both contests is set for 7 p.m.  Links to live stats and the ESPN3 broadcast are available at NKUNorse.com, and live in-game updates will be available on Twitter by following @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter.