HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky women's basketball enters the postseason this weekend when it heads to Detroit for the Little Caesars Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship, held March 2-6 in Little Caesars Arena. NKU earned the No. 8 seed into the tournament, which pits the team against No. 9 Detroit Mercy in the first round of action. The two teams square off on Friday, March 2 at 2:30 p.m., with the winner advancing to play top-seeded Green Bay at 2:30 on Saturday, March 3. All games of the tournament will be carried on ESPN3 with streaming available on computers, tablets, smart phones and streaming devices through WatchESPN and the ESPN App, while Tuesday's championship game will be broadcast on ESPNU.
LAST TIME OUT: NKU gave second-seeded IUPUI a run for its money in the regular-season finale, but fell 56-54 to the Jaguars.
Molly Glick led the Norse with 16 points, which included two 3-pointers in the last 20 seconds. Glick also paced the team in rebounding (8), steals (3) and assists (2).
Samari Mowbray also reached double figures with 11 points and dished out a pair of assists, while
Jazmyne Geist chipped in eight points, four rebounds and two steals.
COFFEY REAPS ROOKIE RECOGNITION: Freshman forward
Kailey Coffey was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team on Wednesday morning, making her the second Norse since NKU moved to the league to be named among its finest freshmen. In league games this year, Coffey ranked second on the team in scoring with 8.7 points per game and pulled down a team-high 5.1 rebounds a contest. She also added 24 assists, 19 steals and nine blocks throughout 18 games. Her .505 shooting percentage was not only second among all freshmen, but was fifth among all players in the league. She also ranked 16th among all Horizon League rebounders.
SCOUTING DETROIT MERCY: Detroit Mercy earned the No. 9 seed by way of a pair of wins over UIC, which are the Titans' only two wins for the entire season. Brianne Cohen leads the team with 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, followed by Anja Marinkovic with 11.1 ppg. Marinkovic gave the Norse trouble in the first meeting of the year, 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 her 59 made 3-pointers, as Nicole Urbanic and all-freshman team honoree Lexey Tobel have each sank 44 triples this season.
The Titans' primary weapon is their 3-point shot, averaging seven triples a contest to rank third in the league standings. However, Detroit Mercy connects at just a .303 clip, which is eighth in the Horizon League. This equates to a high number of attempts, as more than 35 percent of the Titans' shots from the field come from beyond the arc.
NKU and Detroit Mercy have met just six times in the all-time series, which dates back to when the Norse joined the Horizon League in the 2015-16 season. The series is tied at 3-3 after a pair of NKU wins this year.
