INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Northern Kentucky men's basketball opened Horizon League play on the road Saturday, as the Norse traveled to Indianapolis for a weekend matinee at IU Indy.
Following a back-and-forth battle, a late run from the Norse gave NKU an opportunity to win with 1.1 seconds on the clock. Josh Dilling inbounded the ball to Trey Robinson, whose layup was knocked off the rim by an IU Indy defender for a goaltend that gave the Norse the win at the buzzer. Robinson scored his 1,000th career point in the victory.
The Norse have now won six straight matchups over the Jaguars. The victory marked head coach Darrin Horn's 100th victory as the head men's basketball coach at NKU.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky - 66, IU Indy - 64
LOCATION: The Jungle (Indianapolis, Ind.)
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 3-6 (1-0 Horizon), IU Indy: 5-6 (1-1 Horizon)
BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
- Trey Robinson finished with 19 points, six rebounds and four assists, with his basket at the buzzer being the game winner. Robinson scored his 1,000th career point on a layup that cut the NKU deficit to one with 2:44 remaining.
- Josh Dilling was a huge factor for NKU, scoring 17 points on 6-11 shooting (5-9 3PT). His five threes marked a season-high, with his last triple giving NKU the lead at 64-62 with 18 seconds to go.
- Randall Pettus II got his first start of the year and scored nine points (3-10 3PT). Pettus had a game-high five assists (without a turnover), while grabbing three rebounds and adding three steals.
- Keeyan Itejere made his presence known at the rim tying his career-high five blocked shots. Itejere scored four points and grabbed three rebounds as well.
- NKU lost the rebounding battle 29-25, but forced 16 IU Indy turnovers while committing just 10.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- NKU started off hot with a 7–0 run out of the gate and led by as many as 10 in the first half, but the Jaguars battled back to lead by four at the break.
- NKU took a 46-44 lead with 9:52 left in the game, but IU Indy punched back with an 11-0 run of its own to lead by eight with 5:44 to go.
- With 4:32 left, the Norse kicked off a 7-0 run, capped by Josh Dilling's go-ahead triple with 18 seconds left. IU Indy tied the game with nine seconds left.
- Following a neck ball, the Norse had the possession arrow with 1.1 to go. Dilling inbounded to Robinson, and an IU Indy goaltend gave the Norse the victory.
UP NEXT
- Northern Kentucky opens a four-game home stand vs. the University of the Cumberlands on Wednesday, December 11. Tip off is set for 7 PM.
FOLLOW NKU NORSE MEN'S BASKETBALL
Get in the game and follow Northern Kentucky's NCAA Division I college team through @NKUNorseMBB on Twitter, @nkunorsembb on Instagram, nkunorsembb on Facebook and subscribe to the NKU Norse Youtube channel.
