HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky women's basketball wraps up its weekend on the road at Youngstown State on Saturday, Feb. 8. Tip-off against the Penguins is set for 1 p.m. ET and the game will be carried on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT: The Norse used a 15-0 run to hold a 32-17 advantage at halftime, but Cleveland State answered back with two separate 13-0 runs in the third quarter to take back the lead. The Vikings went on to win by four points, 66-62.
Molly Glick recorded her first career double-double in the setback, leading the Norse with 18 points and 10 rebounds to go with six assists.
Emmy Souder added 14 points and eight rebounds, and
Kailey Coffey led the team on the boards with 11 rebounds, all of which were defensive.
NORSE VS THE HORIZON LEAGUE: Since entering Horizon League play, the Norse find themselves among the top of the league in several statistical categories, ranking in the top-four in scoring offense (64.9 ppg), scoring defense (58.9 ppg), scoring margin (+6.0), rebounding margin (+5.2), free-throw percentage (73.3 percent) and blocked shots per game (3.00). Individually,
Grayson Rose paces the league with 1.5 blocks per game, while
Ally Niece ranks third in assists per game (3.7) and sixth with a 1.42 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Kailey Coffey is fourth in rebounding with 8.5 rpg, and Glick's 1.8 triples per game rank sixth.
FRESHMAN PHENOMS: Ivy Turner has been making an immediate impact in her rookie campaign, starting in all 23 contests for the Norse. The Danville, Kentucky, native is fourth on the team in scoring with 8.4 points per game, and is doing so at 36.4 percent from the floor. Turner also averages 2.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game. She was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week for the second time this season on Jan. 13 after averaging 10.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game against UIC and IUPUI. Earlier on Dec. 2, she earned her first weekly distinction after helping the Norse record three victories over Central Arkansas, Jacksonville State and FIU. Turner had double-digit scoring efforts in each game, 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..
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 197 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 16 of NKU's 23 contests.
SCOUTING YOUNGSTOWN STATE: The Penguins enter Saturday's contest with an 11-12 record and are 4-8 in Horizon League play. Youngstown State is looking to snap a five-game losing skid, most recently falling in a 67-54 decision to Wright State. Chelsea Olson has been leading the Penguins in nearly every category, with 11.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 steals per game. McKenah Peters also adds double-digit scoring at 10.4 ppg, shooting 43.8 percent from the field and 32.4 percent from beyond the arc. As a team, the Penguins have been scoring 61.9 ppg at 36.1 percent from the field during league play and have allowed opponents to post 69.3 ppg at 41.1 percent.
Northern Kentucky took a 6-5 lead in the all-time series with Youngstown State after a decisive victory over the Penguins on Jan. 2. Souder used a career-high 19 points to lead the Norse to a 75-56 win, while three other Norse scored in double figures.
