HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky men's basketball will make the trip to in-state foe Morehead State for a Tuesday evening tilt on the hardwood. The Norse enter at 6-1 overall, while the Eagles are just 2-4 after faltering on Sunday to Lipscomb.
 
Schedule & Game Information
Northern Kentucky University Norse (6-1 Overall, 0-0 Horizon League)
Morehead State University Eagles (2-4 Overall, 0-0 OVC)
Tuesday, Nov. 27 – 7:35 p.m. (ET)
Johnson Arena (6,500) in Morehead, Ky.
TV: ESPN+
Radio: FOXSports1360
Stats: Live Stats
 
Fast Break Points
• NKU suffered its first setback off the season in a 66-53 decision at UCF, ending NKU's six-game winning streak to open the year.
• NKU's six-game winning streak matched the longest of its DI tenure, set twice during the 2016-17 campaign, the second of which included the Horizon League Tournament Championship.
• NKU matches up with Morehead State for the 11th time. MSU holds a 7-3 advantage in the series, but the Norse have won three of the last four, including each of the last two overall as well as the last two at MSU's Johnson Arena.
• NKU is forcing teams into 17.3 turnovers per game, the 43rd most in the country. As part of the defensive pressure, NKU's 59 total steals are the 7th most and its 8.4 steals per game are 46th-best.
• While the Norse force teams to turn the ball over at a high rate, 22.4 percent of the time (47th in the country), they take care of the ball on the offensive end, with only 15.7 percent of their possessions resulting in a turnover (38th in nation).
• Foes are also converting just 37.2 percent of their shots versus NKU, 21st-best nationally.
• NKU is ranked No. 24 in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Mid-Major Top-25 and is receiving votes in Mid-Major Madness' The Other Top-25 Poll.
• 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 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 52-22, has won the Horizon League regular season (2018) and league tourney (2017), and has played in the NCAA Tournament (2017) and NIT (2018).
• F Drew McDonald leads four Norse averaging double digits on the year at 19.7 points (67th in nation). He also leads NKU at 9.9 rebounds per game (29th in nation). His three double-doubles rank 14th in the country.
• In the last two games, McDonald is averaging 26.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. He's converting 57.1 percent of his field-goal attempts during that time.
• McDonald is chasing NKU's all-time rebound record. He is second with 831 boards and is 28 away from LaRon Moore's Norse record, 859.
• G Jalen Tate is averaging 11.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game this year. He's registered 23 assists to only seven turnovers and is making 51.1 percent (23-of-45) of his shots. Tate's 3.29 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks 55^th in the country.
• F Dantez Walton is averaging 11.6 points and 6.1 rebounds. He's shooting 50.9 percent (28-of-55) from the floor and 48.6 percent (18-of-37) from three, which ranks 53rd in the country.
• G Tyler Sharpe is getting after it on the defensive end, averaging 2.43 steals per game, which ranks 29th in the nation while his 17 totals steals is 10th. He's averaging a career-best 11.3 points per game on the season.
 
Last Time Out
After trailing by just two points at intermission, NKU surrendered a 17-4 spurt to UCF to open the second stanza and never fully recovered in a 66-53 setback in Orlando. McDonald continued to prove why he's the Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year, pouring in a game-high 22 points and hauling in eight caroms. McDonald was 8-of-16 and Walton, who finished with 11 points and five rebounds, converted 4-of-7 field-goal attempts, but the rest of the Norse were just 7-of-36 (19.4 percent) from the floor. Sharpe also reached double-figures for the Norse, tallying 13.
 
Scouting Morehead State
Morehead State enters Tuesday's matchup at 2-4 overall, but has lost its last two games and four of its last five, with the lone win being a 99-89 decision versus UMKC as part of the 2K Empire Classic. The Eagles also lost to NKU's Horizon League counterpart Green Bay, 87-70, as part of that event. The Eagles are averaging 77.7 points per game, but allowing 84.8. Jordan Walker leads a quartet of Eagles averaging double-figure scoring with 16.3 points. Lamontray Harris is pouring in 12.7 points, while A.J. Hicks and Malek Green are contributing 11.8 and 10.8, respectively.
 
Series Stuff
The Norse are just 3-7 all-time versus Morehead State, but have won three of the last four and the last two games in the series. NKU faired well the last two times the teams played in Johnson Arena. The Norse posted an 83-60 road victory in the 2014-15 season and won 84-79 in the 2016-17 campaign. The Norse also won at BB&T Arena, 86-49, last year. Drew McDonald has played well against MSU the last two meetings, going for 22 points, five rebounds and three assists while scoring his 1,000th point against the Eagles last season. Two years ago in Morehead, Kentucky, NKU's power forward went off for 32 points and 11 rebounds in the road win. Combined, McDonald has averaged 27 points behind 66.7 percent from both the field (20-of-30) and from 3-point territory (8-of-12).