HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky women's basketball team fell to Cleveland State, 73-68 on Saturday afternoon at BB&T Arena. The loss moves the Norse to 8-7 on the season and 2-2 in the Horizon League. Cleveland State is now 12-3 on the year with the win and moves back to .500 in conference play.
STATS LEADERS
- Emmy Souder put up 18 points and eight rebounds for the Norse. She was 5-for-11 (45 percent) from the floor and made all eight of her free throws.
- Taylor Clos also had 18 points for the Norse on an impressive 8-for-13 (62 percent) clip
- Ally Niece was the other Norse in double figures, scoring 11, which included a 3-for-6 (50 percent) mark from beyond the arc.
- Grayson Rose pulled down a whopping 17 boards in the contest.
- Kailey Coffey had 14 rebounds to go along with her six points.
FIRST HALF SUMMARY
- Up-tempo basketball was the name of the game to start out. In just over five minutes of action, the Vikings had a 14-9 lead over the Norse. Niece opened up the game with a pair of 3-pointers to keep NKU in striking distance.
- After the first timeout, NKU finished the first quarter on a 12-2 run. Clos hit a jumper to start things off and Souder reached the free throw line for a pair of made shots. In the last minute and a half, Glick made a shot from beyond the arc, while Niece put down another triple and sank a jump shot at the buzzer to put the Norse up, 21-16.
- Clos and Souder began the second quarter with a couple shots to increase NKU's lead to seven. Cleveland State then closed in and was down just 29-28 with 4:14 left in the half.
- The game was tied up at 33 with 16 seconds to go thanks to free throws from Ivy Turner, but the Vikings scored in the final seconds, heading into the half with a slight 35-33 edge.
- Niece led the Norse with 11 points at the half on 4-of-9 (44 percent) shooting. Souder was not far behind with eight points.
SECOND HALF SUMMARY
- Cleveland State scored nine unanswered points to open the second half, increasing the Viking lead to 44-33.
- At the 7:06 mark in the third quarter, Coffey ended the NKU drought with a layup. Turner then chipped away at Cleveland State's lead with a pair of shots from the charity stripe.
- Turner brought the Norse even closer to the Vikings with a basket and-one with 3:13 left in the quarter. She converted the free throw attempt afterward to bring the Norse within two possessions at 50-44.
- The Norse comeback continued with a Coffey and-one, as well as made shots by Turner and Clos to end the third quarter. The Norse were down just one possession, 55-52, heading into the final 10 minutes of action.
- Both sides traded baskets in the next five minutes. Clos hit two shots for the Norse with 5:58 and 5:09 left to remain one possession back.
- With 2:31 left in the matchup, Cleveland State had built a 70-62 lead, but the Norse weren't out of the fight yet. A layup by Souder and a clutch 3-pointer from Glick brought the game within three points with 1:22 to go.
- Ultimately, the Norse comeback fell short. Cleveland State made a free throw with 17.4 remaining that forced the Norse into needing a 3-pointer to tie the game. Clos got a great look from the corner, but her shot bounced off the rim and left Cleveland State with possession with two seconds to play. The Vikings added a pair of free throws to extend out to their final five-point lead.
GAME NOTES
- This is the second-straight matchup that NKU had two players score at least 15 points. Souder has been a part of both of them.
- Rose's rebounding total is a new career high. Coming into today's game, her best was 14 against Wright State on January 12, 2019. The last Norse to eclipse the 15-rebound threshold was Coffey on January 25, 2019 against UIC (16).
- Clos' 18 points mark a new season high, besting her mark of 11 against Milwaukee on December 30.
- Coffey's 14 boards are also a season high. She's had 12 on two separate occasions this season.
UP NEXT
The Norse will head out to Indianapolis for a January 9 matchup against IUPUI. The game will begin at 7:00 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN+.
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