Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball coach Darrin Horn called it their most complete game.
The Norse had five players in double figures in a 90-72 victory over Milwaukee on Thursday night at Truist Arena. The 90-point mark was their second highest total of the season as they improved to 10-9 on the season and 5-3 in Horizon League play.
“I thought it was our most complete game in terms of when you look down the box score everybody that played came in and really contributed in a positive way,” Norse head coach Darrin Horn said.
Marques Warrick led the way with 21 points, also dishing out four assists and three steals. The scoring output inches him even closer to the program’s all-time scoring record, set by Drew McDonald. Warrick currently sits in fourth with 1,951 career points. He needs just 30 points to move into third, 57 for second and 116 to overtake Drew McDonald for the most all-time in program history.
“Literally we’ve got a guy chasing history,” Horn said. “I want you to think about this. There’s 363 Division I teams if I’m not mistaken. So assuming they’re still alive, there’s only 363 people in the world, we’ve got one at our scores table right now Drew McDonald who can say that they’re the all-time leading scorer, so you’re getting to watch that and Marquise Warrick as he chases that.”
He had an arsenal with him as Michael Bradley scored a season-high 18 points and dished out four assists without a turnover while Keeyan Itejere wowed the crowd with a couple of rim-racking dunks and ending with 14 points and seven rebounds, Trey Robinson posted a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds while doling out five assists and LJ Wells came alive in the second half to score 10 points with eight rebounds.
Milwaukee was a team coming in as one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country, the Norse were sure to limit those second chance opportunities, holding the Panthers to 11 offensive boards and winning the battle of the boards 36-31.
“It was the main focus,” Robinson said. “They’re a really good offensive rebounding team and that was our focus all week. We just hit bodies, just making sure they don’t go and just grabbing the ball. It was a major, major focus this week and we did a good job with it.”
Robinson’s night stood out the most with his plus-minus of plus-30, meaning when he was on the floor, the Norse outscored the Panthers by 30 points in his 35:24 of action.
The Norse got going early and often, putting up 14 points in the first 4:30 of the contest. Milwaukee did not shy away from the 3-point shot, putting up 22 in the first half alone and 36 for the game. They hit nine in the first half, the last one a BJ Freeman triple to end the half as the Norse built a 46-41 halftime advantage.
NKU jumped out to a nine-point lead in the early stages of the second half, but were unable to pull away from the Panthers as they got the deficit to one at 64-63 with 10:23 to play. The Norse turned the defensive intensity up from there.
“We extended our zone a bit to three quarter court pressure and tried to get some traps out of it,” Horn said. “I was just looking more than anything for a way of try to find us a little bit more aggressive, get us a little more aggressive and I thought that they were a little too comfortable on the offensive end. We’ve got a ton of respect for their team and the offensive talent that they have in terms of being able to just really go make some plays.”
Milwaukee was held to just nine points over the final 10:23 and without a point in the final 4:05 of the game.
Some nuggets from Thursday night’s contest:
Vinson undergoes surgery
In his first few games after his injury, Sam Vinson was visibly seen on the Norse bench and engaged with the coaching staff as he sat right by them. On Thursday, he was behind the bench and on crutches after having knee surgery earlier this week. Vinson injured his knee in the Dec. 21 contest at Saint Mary’s and based off the normal recovery timetable, should be ready for the start of practice for the 2024-25 season.
Pettus’ playing time picks up
Over the past handful of games someone on the bench has had to step up and play more minutes. With Michael Bradley in foul trouble in the second half, it was Randall Pettus II turn to do so, logging 24:31 of action. Pettus scored seven points, hit 3-of-7 shots from the field, grabbed two rebounds with an assist and a steal. The offense is a bonus, Pettus knowing his role when he’s in there.
“My main focus is always on defense,” Pettus said. “When I come in, I’m trying to bring a spark on on defense and whatever else will figure itself out.”
Punishing them in the paint
NKU felt they had a physical advantage in the post and outscored the Panthers 44-28 in points in the paint. They scored 23 second chance points to the Panthers nine.
“We knew that their bigs weren’t as physical as ours, so that was my mindset going in,” Robinson said. “Just going at them physically, trying to go at them on the offensive glass, defensive glass class and just see what I can get and it worked out well.”
Bradley pouring it in
Bradley’s season-high came with 17:43 left in the second half and if it wasn’t for foul trouble, he could have added even more to it. His scoring has really ramped up in recent weeks, scoring at least nine points in nine of his last 10 games. He’s averaging 9.6 points per game during that span, increasing his scoring average by nearly two points on the season.
“I don’t really feel like anything’s changed,” Bradley said. “It’s just the belief our teammates have in each other. Whenever our number is called, everyone’s ready. Our confidence in each other pours into one another.”
Not to mention another zero turnover night to go with four assists. The senior point guard now has 91 assists to 35 turnovers on the year.
What lead?
Milwaukee never led in the contest. The Norse led for 37:25 with three ties in the contest. The Panthers didn’t have a scoring run bigger than five points.
Horizon League heating up
With Green Bay’s win at Wright State on Thursday, it puts the Phoenix in a first-place tie with Oakland at 7-2, adding even more importance to Saturday’s game when Green Bay comes to Truist Arena. Green Bay went 2-18 in conference play last season and 3-29 overall. They brought in Sundance Wicks as the new coach and they’re one of the biggest turnaround stories in college basketball with a 12-8 overall record.
“He’s done a fantastic job and I haven’t studied them as close as I’m about to starting tonight and tomorrow, but the one thing that stands out to me is they have an identity and they know exactly who they want to be and how they want to play,” Horn said. “That’s what it all begins and ends with and they’re definitely doing that. They present a totally different challenge than tonight’s game did, but on a quick turnaround we’ll have to get ready for them.”
Green Bay also happens to be the former home of forward Cade Meyer, who transferred to Highland Heights in the offseason.
The Norse are tied with Youngstown State for third at 5-3 in the conference and do own the tiebreaker over the Penguins with a head-to-head victory. It doesn’t get much clearer after those four, Milwaukee alone in fifth at 4-3 while Purdue Fort Wayne, Wright State and Cleveland State are tied for sixth at 4-4. Rounding out the conference is Robert Morris at 3-5, IUPUI at 2-7 and Detroit at 0-8.
Barber, Shields to be honored Saturday night in doubleheader
The athletic department will be honoring legendary coaches Ken Shields and Nancy Winstel at halftime of the men’s and women’s doubleheader on Saturday as the women take on Wright State at 4 p.m., the men’s game following at 6:30 p.m. against Green Bay.
Both coaches will be honored with a special ceremony at halftime of the respective games, Winstel during the women’s game, Shields during the men’s game.
“We’ve got two coaching legends,” Horn said. “It’s hard to be a true legend in this business and the two people we’re honoring on Saturday are just that. We’re all here and have programs and are Division I and have a chance to have success because of what they built and created. The one thing about this area and our fanbase is I think they have a great deal of respect for that. I hope that it’s our biggest crowd of the year by far, they deserve that.”
Winstel, Northern Kentucky’s all-time winningest coach, led NKU to a pair of NCAA Division II National Championships in 2000 and 2008 and finished with an overall record of 636-214 after 29 seasons with the Norse. She was named the National Coach of the Decade by Women’s Division II Bulletin in 2009 and her program was also tabbed as the best during the decade by the same publication.
She was awarded the Great Lakes Valley Conference Coach of the Year six-times and she earned the WBCA Division II National Coach of the Year honors in 1999-2000, after Winstel led the Norse to their first national title in school history. She is a member of the GLVC Hall of Fame and the David Lee Holt NKU Hall of Fame.
Shields, Northern Kentucky’s all-time winningest coach on the men’s side, guided NKU to seven 20-win seasons, the most in school history, to go with three Great Lakes Valley Conference Championships. He twice led his team to regional championships in both 1996 and 1997 and was named National Coach of the Year in 1994-95.