ROCHESTER, Mich. – Survive and advance is the name of the game at this time of year and the Northern Kentucky women's basketball program did just that as the Norse defeated conference foe Oakland, 70-62 in the opening round of the 2024 Horizon League Tournament inside the Athletics Center O'Rena on Tuesday night.
THE FACTS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 70, Oakland – 62
LOCATION: Athletics Center O'Rena – Rochester Michigan
RECORDS: NKU: 11-19 (8-12 HL), OAK: 12-17 (8-12 HL)
BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
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Carter McCray: 24 points, 19 rebounds, four steals, two assists, one block
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Kailee Davis: 17 points, five helpers
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Khamari Mitchell-Steen: 12 points, nine boards, three assists
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Macey Blevins: 7 points, four rebounds, four helpers
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Kennedy Igo: 7 points, three boards
NORSE NOTES
- Newly named Freshman of the Year McCray went off with an All-League performance. She posted her 16
th double-double of the season with an eye-popping 24 points and 19 rebounds. It was the third-highest board total posted by a Horizon student-athlete in a game so far this year. The only performances better? McCray when she pulled down 21 against Marshall and 20 against Purdue Fort Wayne. The Oberlin, Ohio native is now up to 332 rebounds on the year, a mark that ranks third all-time in a single season in school history.
- Davis had one of her best games of the season as she racked up 17 points on a 4-of-7 night from beyond the arc. The point total tied for her second-highest output of the year.
- Mitchell-Steen just missed out on a double-double of her own with 12 points and nine boards.
- NKU was unstoppable down low with 30 points in the paint and 20 second chance points.
- The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair as Oakland took a slight 16-14 lead after 10 minutes of play.
- Northern Kentucky bounced back with a strong second as the Norse won the frame 17-11 to take a 31-27 lead into the half.
- It was all NKU once again in the third. The Norse won the 10 minutes by a 22-17 margin to extend their lead to 53-44 as the game headed into the fourth.
- Oakland tried to go on a few comeback attempts but Northern Kentucky wasn't having any of it as NKU closed out the 70-62 victory.
NEXT UP
Good thing the Norse packed for extra days as NKU will stay on the road and head to top-seeded Cleveland State for a quarterfinal showdown with the Vikings on Thursday, March 7. Tip is set for 7 PM ET inside the Wolstein Center and the clash will be played in front of a national audience on ESPN+.
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