HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky women's basketball continues its homestand with Detroit Mercy on Saturday, Feb. 10. Tip-off against the Titans is slated for 1 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3 with streaming available on computers, tablets, smart phones and streaming devices through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
GAMEDAY PROMOTIONS: Saturday is NKU's celebration of homecoming in conjunction with the men's game at 7 p.m. Homecoming weekend serves as the kickoff for a year-long celebration of NKU's 50th anniversary. Events throughout the year will celebrate NKU's historic past and unstoppable future, beginning with the annual Alumni Awards on Friday Night and culminating in a 50th Anniversary Gala in the fall. For more information on the anniversary, visit http://NKU.edu/50.
With regards to the women's game specifically, the Homecoming prince and princess will be announced at halftime. Following the game, various Norse women's athletics programs will run a Girls Skills Clinic to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
LAST TIME OUT: The Norse picked up their second-straight win, upending Oakland in a 66-59 Thursday night game. NKU has held its last three opponents under 60 points, going 2-1 in that span.
Molly Glick kept a streak of three 3-pointers in a game alive, marking the fifth-straight game that she has sunk at least three triples, to pave the way for a game-high 19 points.
Taryn Taugher and
Samari Mowbray also reached double figures with 10 points apiece, while
Mikayla Terry and
Kailey Coffey each had eight. NKU distributed the ball well, assisting on 15-of-19 field goals and shot 40.0 percent from the floor.
SCOUTING DETROIT MERCY: The Titans' story has not changed much since the two teams last met, with Detroit Mercy picking up just one win on the season. Since their victory over UIC on Jan. 13, the Titans have had a -27.3 scoring margin, with the closest contest being a 70-61 setback against Milwaukee on Jan. 20. Brianne Cohen leads the team with 13.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, followed by Anja Marinkovic with 10.3 ppg. Marinkovic gave the Norse trouble in the last meeting, going 5-for-10 from long range late in the game en route to a game-high 23 points. The sophomore is not the team's only threat from beyond the arc, with Nicole Urbanick and Lexey Tobel also registering more than 30 made triples on the season.
The Titans' primary weapon is their 3-point shot, averaging nearly seven triples a contest to rank in the top half of league standings. However, Detroit Mercy connects at just a .287 clip, eighth in the Horizon League. This equates to a high number of attempts, as more than 40 percent of the Titans' shots from the field come from beyond the arc.
NKU and Detroit Mercy have met just five times in the all-time series, which dates back to when the Norse joined the Horizon League in the 2015-16 season. The Titans hold a 3-2 edge, but the Norse look to equalize the series and sweep the season after a 78-67 win on Jan. 4.
ROOKIES IN THE RANKS: NKU has had some key performances from its freshman class, which has come in to contribute right away. Two rookies help lead the team in rebounding (
Kailey Coffey - 6.3 rpg;
Grace White - 4.1 rpg) to keep the Norse at a +2.9 rebounding margin over opponents, a number that ranks fifth in the Horizon League. Coffey has the 11th-highest rebounding average in the Horizon League, and sits at seventh in the League with 2.5 offensive boards a game Since entering League play, Coffey has been averaging 9.8 points per game at a .494 clip, a shooting percentage that ranks among the League's top performers. Both Coffey and White have been honored as the Horizon League Freshman of the Week during the season, making NKU the only institution this year to have two different rookies honored.
