HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky University Norse men's basketball took on Detroit Mercy on Thursday night, battling the Titans after recently having their four-game win streak ended in Green Bay on Sunday. The Norse responded with a dominant win over a solid Detroit Mercy squad, pummeling the Titans by 25. 

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky - 96, Detroit Mercy – 71
LOCATION: Truist Arena - Highland Heights, Ky. 
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 14-6, 6-3 HL | Detroit Mercy: 7-10, 4-4 HL

BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
– Northern Kentucky shot an efficient 54.2% from the field and 39.1% from three, while shooting 23-31 from the free throw line. They limited the Titans to just 38.5% from the field and 28.6% from three, while UDM shot just 3-9 from the line. 
– Detroit Mercy won the turnover battle, 9-7, with the Titans scoring 11 points off turnovers while the Norse had ten. 
– The Norse took the rebound battle by two, 40-38, including 33-23 on the defensive glass. 
– LJ Wells had a career night, going for 35 points, seven rebounds, and three assists on 11-15 shooting from the field, 2-3 shooting from deep, and 11-13 from the line. 
– Dan Gherezgher had a bounce-back night, going for 15 points, six rebounds, and three assists, while shooting 4-5 from deep. 
– Donovan Oday had 15 off the bench, also adding a pair of blocks and a steal.
– Kael Robinson scored ten points and grabbed four rebounds. 

GAME NOTES
– LJ Wells' 35 points marked a new career high, smashing his previous career high of 21. His 11 made field goals were also a new career-high, as were his 11 made free throws. He's now tied for the Horizon League single-season high this season with Oakland's Brody Robinson. It marked just the fifth 35-point game in NKU's Division I history, as Wells joined an exclusive club with Marques Warrick and Drew McDonald as the only players to do so since the Norse joined the NCAA's top level. 
– Wells became just the second player in all of college basketball this season to record 35 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and one turnover or less on 70% shooting, joining Duke star Cameron Boozer. 
– The Norse are now the only team in all of Division I to have four players averaging 14.0+ points per game this season (Oday, Gherezgher, Robinson, Wells). 
– Ethan Elliott recorded his eighth game this season with five-plus assists and one turnover or less, which is tied for the national lead with Iowa State guard Tamin Lipsey and Houston guard Kingston Flemings. He's recorded seven of those in conference play, with no other player in the country having more than three such games in conference competition. Elliott leads the Horizon League in assist-turnover ratio in league play with a remarkable 9.0 ratio. He also now leads the Horizon in assists/game in league play with 6.0. 
– Donovan Oday recorded his 12th game this season with 15-plus points off the bench, leading the nation. 

UP NEXT
– NKU is back home on Saturday to take on Robert Morris for a 7 PM tip.

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.