Cole Murray CSU plug
Doug Cochran (Sport Focus Media)
76
Wright State WSU 19-10; 10-6 HL
83
Winner Northern Kentucky NKU 19-10; 10-6 HL
Wright State WSU
19-10; 10-6 HL
76
Final
83
Northern Kentucky NKU
19-10; 10-6 HL
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Wright State WSU 40 36 76
Northern Kentucky NKU 33 50 83

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Second half propels @NKUNorseMBB over Wright State, 83-76

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Three different Norse players scored at least 18 points on Tuesday as the Northern Kentucky men's basketball team closed the game on a 20-9 run to overcome a double-digit deficit and defeat Wright State, 83-76, at home.

With two games left in the regular-season, NKU is now one win away from a 20-win campaign. The Norse improve to 19-10 overall and 10-6 in the Horizon League. Wright State dips to 19-10 overall and 10-6 in League play.

STAT LEADERS
  • Cole Murray paced NKU with 23 points on an 8-for-14 showing that included a 5-of-10 performance from long range.
  • Lavone Holland II followed with 19 points, five rebounds and six assists. The junior went 7-for-12 from the field and 3-for-6 from three.
  • McDonald trailed close behind with 18 points and team-high six rebounds. He scored nine points in the final six minutes to fuel the comeback.
  • Carson Williams and Jordan Garnett posted eight points apiece. Williams added five rebounds while Garnett dished out three assists.
TURNING POINT
  • With 6:05 left in the game, a pair of McDonald free throws sparked nine uninterrupted points that gave the Norse a five-point edge at 72-67 with just under four minutes to play.
  • Wright State tied the game at the 1:20 mark and would knot it up again at 76-all with 45 seconds left.
  • The Norse held the Raiders scoreless throughout the remainder of the contest and scored seven-straight to seal the win.
  • The game-ending 7-0 run included five-straight points from McDonald as the Norse defense held Wright State to one field goal across the final three minutes.
FIRST HALF SUMMARY
  • Strong shooting to open the game allowed WSU to build up an early 10-5 advantage as NKU continuously overcame five-point deficits across the first portion of the half.
  • The Norse took their first lead of the contest at the 10:39 mark when Holland sank his third triple to cap off an 8-0 run.
  • The Raiders out-scored NKU 11-2 across the next four minutes but the Norse again used the perimeter to close the gap. Murray connected on two-straight 3-pointers to tie it at 26-26 with 5:02 left in the period.
  • A layup from Holland with 32 seconds left broke up a 7-0 Raider run just before halftime, bringing WSU's lead to 40-33 at the intermission.
  • Despite being down at the half, NKU shot 47.8 percent from the field including 54.5 percent from three compared to WSU's 39.4 percent from the field.
SECOND HALF SUMMARY
  • The teams traded buckets to open the second half as the WSU advantage hovered around the double-digit mark.
  • Northern Kentucky used a 13-6 run to cut the deficit to 53-50 with 12:50 left. The Norse forced four WSU turnovers in the 4:26 span of the run.
  • A put-back from Holland tied the game for the sixth time. Murray followed it up with his fifth trey of the game to put NKU ahead 55-53 at the 9:34 mark.
  • The teams battled for the advantage with the Norse scoring nine-straight to build up a 72-67 lead they would not relinquish with just under four minutes to play.
GAME NOTES
  • The Norse are now on a four-game win streak at BB&T Arena as they have overcome double-digit deficits in the second half in back-to-back games at home. NKU trailed 47-37 with 17:16 left in the game. In the come-from-behind win over Milwaukee on Homecoming, Northern Kentucky trailed by 13 with 8:30 remaining before closing out a 69-63 decision.
  • NKU's home record improves to 10-2.
  • The team's record increases to 15-3 when at least one player tallies at least 20 points in the scoring column. Further, NKU is now 6-4 when trailing at the half.
  • NKU outscored Wright State, 50-36, in the second half and shot 58.1 percent from the field (18-of-31).
  • Holland has posted five or more assists 12 times this season and has double-figures in 20 of NKU's 29 games.
  • The Norse have won seven of their last nine.
UP NEXT
  • With just two games left in the regular season, Northern Kentucky hosts UIC on Friday at 7:30 p.m. following the NKU women's game against Milwaukee at BB&T Arena. The Norse then wrap up the regular season against League-leading Valparaiso on Sunday at 1 p.m. before the women host Green Bay at 3:30 p.m.

 
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