HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. –
Melody Doss posted a season-high 22 points to lead the Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team to a 78-57 victory over Georgetown (Ky.) College on Tuesday night in The Bank of Kentucky Center to close nonconference action.
Two additional Norse players finished in double-figures with Doss as
Shar'Rae Davis poured in 14 points and
Sarah Kinch posted 10 points on 3-for-4 shooting from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
Kaitlyn Gerrety finished with a career-high and game-high 11 rebounds along with four points, three steals and one blocked shot.
Christine Roush held down the post on the defensive end of the court with a game-high four blocks, which tied her personal best, to go with eight points and four boards as NKU improved to 9-6 on the season.
Devanny King produced 16 points, six rebounds and three assists to lead the way for Georgetown (10-6). Forward Emilie Ziese finished with a double-double, collecting 10 points and 10 rebounds to go with three assists, one blocked shot and one steal for the Tigers.
Both teams traded baskets through the early portion of the first half. The largest lead the Tigers could build was four points at 8-4 with 15:47 left in the frame. NKU kept it close in the early going, holding a 12-10 lead with 10:45 remaining, as Georgetown drew even with the Norse one last time on a pair of free throws from Olivia Coleman to bring the game to 12-12 with 10:33 remaining until halftime. The Norse then took control.
Doss got the scoring started with five quick points on back-to-back possessions giving the Norse a 17-12 lead with 9:36 remaining. The Norse used stout defense and a hot shooting streak to build their largest lead of the first half, 36-18, with 2:34 left in the half and eventually took a 40-26 advantage into the break.
The Norse forced seven Tiger turnovers through the closing 10 minutes of the first half to take control of the game. NKU posted a 50.0 percent (13-for-26) shooting performance from the floor in the first 20 minutes while shooting 40 percent (4-for-10) from beyond the 3-point line. The Norse held the Tigers to 34.4 percent (11-for-32) from the field and 0-for-7 from beyond the arc. NKU outrebounded the Tigers, 19-18, through the opening stanza.
The Norse would maintain control until the final buzzer as they outscored the Tigers 38-31 in the second half. Davis hit a mid-range jumper to spark an 8-0 run by NKU that put the Norse up 57-41 with 10:45 remaining. Doss closed the door with three buckets from behind the 3-point line in the final 9:23 of the game. NKU reached its largest lead of 23 points (78-55) when capped off the Norse offensive effort with a layup with 0:28 remaining in the contest.
The Norse finished the night shooting 44.1 percent (26-for-59) from the field and 38.1 percent (8-for-21) from 3-point range. NKU forced 28 Tiger turnovers throughout the evening, scoring 32 of its points off miscues, and held Georgetown to 2-for-10 shooting from long-range. The Tigers finished with a 37-33 edge rebounding edge and shot 40.4 percent (23-for-57) shooting from the field.
NKU begins their Atlantic Sun Conference schedule on the road on Saturday, Jan. 10 as the Norse face the Bisons of Lipscomb. The Norse will then travel to Kennesaw State on Wednesday, Jan. 14 before the Black and Gold return home to host USC Upstate three days later with a 7 p.m. tip. Links to live stats and the video broadcasts for each contest are available at NKUNorse.com. Be sure to follow @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter for live in-game updates this season as well.
