HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky women's basketball returns home to BB&T Arena for a Thursday night matchup with Omaha. Tip-off against the Mavericks is set for 7 p.m. ET and the contest will be broadcast on ESPN3. Thursday's game also serves as NKU's Canned Food Drive through a partnership with FUEL NKU, which provides free admission for fans who bring a canned item.
LAST TIME OUT: Northern Kentucky took on Belmont, which was receiving votes in last week's AP Top 25 poll, and fell to the Bruins in a 62-45 decision. The Norse got out to a slow start, but ended the game strong by outscoring Belmont 22-12 in the fourth quarter. Redshirt-senior
Molly Glick had a career scoring performance for the second-straight game, pouring in 23 points.
Ivy Turner also reached double figures with 11 points to go with six rebounds and two assists.
MILESTONE TRACKER: Glick currently has 951 career points, putting her just 49 away from scoring the 1,000th point of her career. Accomplishing the feat would make Glick the 30th Norse to hit the milestone, and she would also be just the second player to score 1,000 points in the Division I era. Christine Roush was the first fully D-I player to hit 1,000 career points, as she finished her 2012-16 career with 1,439 points. Melody Doss (2011-15) also reached 1,154 points in her career, but played her freshman campaign in the Division II era.
Glick also has 154 career 3-pointers and is just five triples away from tying Michele Tuchfarber (1997-2001) for third on NKU's all-time career 3-pointers list.
SCOUTING OMAHA: The Mavericks hold a 2-3 record, but have not shied away from big programs as two of their losses are against Big 12 members Kansas and Kansas State. Omaha most recently secured a 70-64 win over Morgan State and also defeated NAIA institution Peru State, 92-58. Sophomore center Elena Pilakouta leads the squad with 11.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, while senior Clair Killian adds 9.2 points per game thanks to nine 3-pointers made at 50 percent from beyond the arc. Omaha boasts an efficient offense, shooting 42.3 percent from the field and 30.3 percent from long range, and the team is also averaging 39.6 rebounds per game. The Mavericks have struggled with protecting the ball as they average 20.2 turnovers per game, 10 of which come by way of steals by their opponents.
Omaha is one of five first-time opponents that the Norse will face this season. NKU is currently 0-1 against such teams, falling to Saint Louis on Nov. 12.
A LOOK AT THE NORSE: Northern Kentucky returns 91.1 percent of its scoring from a season ago, including all five starters. Redshirt-senior
Molly Glick, a preseason all-league honoree, is the lone senior on the squad.
Ally Niece returns for her sophomore campaign after being named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team, averaging 12.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game in league play. Northern Kentucky also welcomes four newcomers who look to make an immediate impact:
Janna Lewis,
Carissa Garcia,
Tayah Irvin and
Ivy Turner. Lewis joins the Norse out of Motlow State Community College, where she was named an NJCAA All-American. Garcia, a guard out of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was named to the Indiana All-Star team and was the Summit Athletic Conference's most outstanding player. Irvin, a forward from Fishers, Indiana, was heralded as the top defensive player for Hamilton Southeastern. Turner, a guard from Danville, Kentucky, was named the 12th Region Co-Player of the Year and ended her prep career as Danville's all-time leading scorer.
