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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky University's men's basketball team ended the 2021 calendar year on a high note by defeating Green Bay 79-74 and claiming a season-first Horizon League victory. The Norse outscored the Phoenix 46-36 in the second half to improve to 5-7 (1-2 Horizon League), Thursday at BB&T Arena.
STATS LEADERS
- Marques Warrick led four Norse double-figure scorers with 20 points, including 12 in the second half.
- Trevon Faulkner also had a big second half, amassing 15 of his 19 points after the break. Faulkner shot 50% from the field (5-for-10) and made seven of his nine free throws.
- Sam Vinson added 11 points, six rebounds and two steals, while Trey Robinson chipped in 10 points, six boards and two steals.
- Chris Brandon added a season-high 11 rebounds with eight points in his first NKU start.
TURNING POINT
- Warrick's jumper with 52 seconds left provided crucial separation in a tightly contested game, vaulting the Norse ahead 76-72. Warrick delivered two free throws with 23.6 seconds remaining and Faulkner added another at the 13.1 second mark to clinch the Norse's 79-74 victory.
FIRST HALF SUMMARY
- An NKU team down multiple players due to illness and injury was dealt an early blow when Faulkner picked up his second foul 4:32 into play. The Norse led for more than five minutes but fell on the wrong side of a 20-9 run and trailed at the break, 38-33.
- Although NKU approached the outing averaging a nation-13th and league-best 10.3 made 3-pointers, the Norse missed their first six attempts beyond the arc. Robinson ended the drought with a trey at the top of the key with 13:56 left in the frame.
- Brandon snapped a nearly four-minute drought with 5-0 spurt. He buried a 3-pointer and jump shot. He also retrieved a team-best eight first-half rebounds.
- NKU trailed by as many as 11 points before Warrick rattled off six straight points to narrow the gap.
SECOND HALF SUMMARY
- NKU outscored Green Bay 14-6 to start the second half, buttressed by Faulkner's two 3-pointers and four points by Warrick. The Norse jumped ahead 47-44 on a Brandon layup with 16:13 left.
- The back-and-forth affair remained a one-possession game for more than six minutes. Isaiah Mason provided a cushion by converting an offensive rebound to a layup for a 63-58 Norse lead with 7:54 remaining.
- Bryson Langdon's floater ensured a seven-point NKU advantage with 4:01 left but Green Bay answered with consecutive layups. Vinson's weak-side stickback gave the home team a 72-67 lead.
- NKU shot 53.1% in the second half including 44.4% from the perimeter.
GAME NOTES
- NKU improved to 5-2 at home, dealt Green Bay (2-10, 1-2) a fifth straight loss and kept the Phoenix winless on the road (0-5).
- The Norse entered the game averaging 10.5 steals, a good for ninth nationally and first in the Horizon League, but finished with four.
- Roster limitations required creative lineups but NKU won the rebounding battle 37-33 and scored 26 second-chance points.
UP NEXT
NKU plays a second game in three days when it hosts Milwaukee at 2 p.m. Saturday in a New Year's Day matinee. It's the second outing in a five-game homestand at BB&T Arena.
#NorseUp
