HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Coming off of its double-overtime win at Northern Illinois Friday night, the Northern Kentucky men's basketball team has a short turnaround for a Sunday evening tilt against Wabash. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at NKU's BB&T Arena.
 
Game Information
Northern Kentucky University Norse (2-0 Overall, 0-0 Horizon League)
Northern Illinois University Huskies (1-0 Overall, 0-0 MAC)
Sunday, Nov. 11 – 6:00 p.m. (ET)
NIU Convocation Center (10,000) in DeKalb, Ill.
TV: ESPN+
Radio: 55KRC (550 AM)
Stats: Live Stats
Tickets
 
Fast Break Points
• It took two overtimes, but NKU pulled out an 88-85 road win over Northern Illinois Friday.
• NKU last played an overtime game nearly 34 months ago, when it defeated UIC, 82-69, in overtime at BB&T Arena. The last double-overtime game was the final contest of the 2008-09 campaign when NKU fell 75-72 to Lake Superior State in the NCAA DII Midwest Regional. NKU last won a double overtime game on Dec. 22, 2003, defeating Wayne State 91-85.
• Trailing by 11 with 17:12 remaining in regulation, NKU came back to win after facing a double-figure second- half deficit for the first time since rallying from 10 down to defeat Wright State on Feb. 21, 2017.
• NKU is set to play Wabash for the first time in nearly 35 years. NKU is 3-0 all-time.
• NKU is coming off a 22-10 campaign in which it won the Horizon League regular-season title and played in the NIT.
• Since the start of the 2016-17 season, NKU is a combined 48-21, has won the Horizon League regular season (2018) and league tourney (2017), and has played in the NCAA Tournament (2017) and NIT (2018).
• The Norse were picked to finish second in the Horizon League preseason poll, receiving 356 points and 10 first-place votes. Wright State was picked first with 377 points.
• NKU opened the season No. 136 in KenPom.com's ratings and is currently 131st. The Norse finished No. 90 last season thanks in part to the 23rd-best effective defensive field-goal percentage (47.1) and the 61st-highest effective offensive field-goal percentage (53.8).
• NKU was stout in its 3-point defensive field-goal percentage, allowing teams to convert just 31 percent from beyond the arc last year, the 9th-best in the country. Through two games this season, opponents are converting just 23.4 percent (11-of-47).
• NKU also shared the ball well last season, ranking 25th nationally at 16.3 assists per game. NKU is currently averaging 17.5 assists per game.
• F Drew McDonald notched his first double-double of the season with 28 points and 14 boards at NIU. He now has 35 double-doubles for his career.
• McDonald is chasing NKU's all-time rebound record. He ranks third with 785 and is 74 away from LaRon Moore's Norse record, 859.
• G Jalen Tate followed last season's Horizon League All-Defensive and All-Freshman honors with preseason All-Horizon League Second Team accolades to begin the season. He's found a way to impact both of NKU's games  and is averaging 12 points, 4.5 boards and 4.5 assists.
• G Zaynah Robinson, a graduate transfer from Norfolk State, hit two big threes near the end of the first overtime and scored all 13 of his points in the two overtime periods to help NKU defeat NIU Friday night. In the 10 minutes of overtime play, Robinson tallied 13 of NKU's 23 points.
• F Dantez Walton began his junior campaign with a 10-point, eight-rebound effort versus Wilmington and followed with 16 points, behind 6-of-10 shooting, and nine rebounds against NIU.
• G Tyler Sharpe dropped 16 points, including several timely threes, to help the Norse get past NIU Friday night.
 
Last Time Out
An extra 10 minutes was necessary to decide the outcome, but Robinson scored all 13 of his points in the two overtime periods as Northern Kentucky outlasted Northern Illinois for an 88-85 road win. McDonald put forth a Herculean effort with 28 points and 14 rebounds, while Dantez Walton and Tyler Sharpe knocked down several timely threes en route to 16 points each. Jalen Tate dished out a career-high seven assists. NKU did its damage from 3-point range, outshooting NIU 42.4 percent to 26.1.
 
Scouting Wabash
Wabash is coming off of a 12-14 record last season. Guard Jack Davidson led the team averaging 18.2 points per game. In the Little Giants lone exhibition to date, an 88-58 loss to Bellarmine, Davidson poured in 18 points.
 
Series Stuff
In just its second season of NCAA Division I eligibility last year, Northern Kentucky won the Horizon League regular-season title. NKU finished the conference schedule with a 15-3 mark, its winningest conference season at the DI level to date. In fact, NKU only had four seasons at the DII level with more league wins when it posted 16 in 1994-95, 1996-97, 1999-2000 and 2002-03.