HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky women's basketball concludes the weekend of Horizon League competition in Chicago, taking on UIC on Saturday, Jan. 11. Tip-off against the Flames is set for 2 p.m. CT/3 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
LAST TIME OUT: Northern Kentucky fell in an 89-61 decision at league-leading IUPUI, which used a big third quarter to secure its lead. The Norse were led by
Grayson Rose and
Ivy Turner, who both scored 12 points in the setback, while
Carissa Garcia also added 10 points.
NORSE VS THE HORIZON LEAGUE: Since entering Horizon League play, the Norse find themselves among the top of the league in several statistical categories. NKU has been crashing the boards hard through five games, ranking third with a +3.6 rebounding margin. The Norse have also been taking care of the ball well, surrendering just 13.2 turnovers per game, the fourth-fewest in the league. NKU also sits at fourth in free-throw percentage (.763) and blocked shots per game (3.2). Individually, Rose is second with 1.8 blocked shots per game, while
Ally Niece ranks third with 3.6 assists per game and ninth with a 1.50 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Kailey Coffey is seventh with 8.8 rebounds per game, including 3.4 offensive boards per game to rank fourth.
FRESHMAN PHENOMS: Ivy Turner has been making an immediate impact in her rookie campaign, starting in all 16 contests for the Norse. The Danville, Kentucky, native is fourth on the team in scoring with 8.5 points per game, and is doing so at 40.2 percent from the floor. Turner also averages 2.1 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game. On Dec. 2, she was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week after helping the Norse record three victories over the course of the past week. Turner had double-digit scoring efforts in all three contests, averaging 12.7 ppg at 55.0 percent from the floor. She also added 5.3 rpg and dished out five assists while nabbing three steals in wins over Central Arkansas, Jacksonville State and FIU.
Carissa Garcia was also named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week on Dec. 9 following her performance against No. 2/2 Louisville, in which she led the team with 13 points and five assists.
MILESTONE TRACKER: On Dec. 1, Glick was sent to the free throw line following a technical foul called on Florida International. Making both shots gave the redshirt-senior her 1,000th career point, making her the 30th Norse to hit the milestone in program history. Glick is also 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 183 career 3-pointers, overtaking Michele Tuchfarber (1997-2001) for third on NKU's all-time career 3-pointers list. She has made at least two 3-pointers in 12 of NKU's 16 contests.
SCOUTING UIC: The Flames have posted just two wins on the season, picking up a nonconference victory over Chicago State before upending Oakland in overtime last weekend. Tylah Lampley leads UIC's offense with 11.6 points per game, and 2019 Horizon League All-Defensive Team honoree Jada Nneji has been contributing in many ways with 11.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game, the latter of which ranks 31st nationally. As a team, the Flames average 50.4 points per game and allow opponents to score 73.3 ppg. Nonetheless, UIC has seen defensive success, leading the league and ranking 79th nationally in 3-point field-goal defense (28.3 percent) and second in the league and 104th nationally with 3.9 blocked shots per game.
NKU is 7-2 all-time against UIC. The Norse won both meetings last year, with the most recent being a 78-44 victory in BB&T Arena.
