JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Northern Kentucky University Norse men's basketball headed back to Tennessee on Wednesday for a battle with East Tennessee State, after dropping its last contest to #18 Tennessee. The Norse and Buccaneers battled in the first half, but ETSU pulled away in the second half for the victory. 

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky - 75, East Tennessee State - 63
LOCATION: Freedom Hall - Johnson City, Tenn.
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 1-2 | ETSU: 2-1

BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
- Dan Gherezgher led the Norse with 24 points, going 8-19 from the field with five made threes. 
- Donovan Oday was the only other Norse to score in double figures, as he went for 14 points on 5-10 shooting with a team-high four assists and three steals. 
- Kael Robinson went for seven points, six rebounds, four steals, and three assists.
- Northern Kentucky scored 29 of its 63 points off turnovers, with each team committing 18.

HOW IT HAPPENED
- East Tennessee State stormed out to an early lead, taking a 15-2 advantage eight minutes in. NKU quickly battled back to make it 20-14, but the Bucs' lead got back to eleven. A fastbreak slam from Donovan Oday injected some life into the Norse, who cut it down to one in the first, and exited the half with a one-point deficit. 
- A slow start to the second half from NKU saw ETSU take an eight point lead at the under-16 media timeout. The Bucs' lead was no smaller than nine for the remainder of the game. 

UP NEXT
NKU takes on the University of the Cumberlands on Sunday at 1 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.