NKU’s Gavin Ludgood

ST. LOUIS - Joey Paul hit just one shot the entire game Thursday night against Northern Kentucky University, but it turned out to be the biggest field goal of the evening for Missouri-St. Louis.

Paul drained a 3-pointer as time expired to give Missouri-St. Louis a 67-64 victory over NKU in the Mark Twain Building. His buzzer-beating trey came off an assist from Nathan Whittaker, who drove the lane with the clock winding down and dished the ball out to Paul on the left wing.

Paul - who was just 5-for-18 from behind the arc entering the game - connected on the 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded.

“We stopped the drive on that last play, the guy (Whittaker) kicked it out and (Paul) makes a shot,” NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. “In that situation, they have to shoot a jump shot. We stopped the drive, but they hit the shot from the outside.”

Jonathan Griffin scored 21 points as the Rivermen (9-4 overall, 3-3 Great Lakes Valley Conference) snapped a three-game losing streak. Whittaker added 13 points and four rebounds for Missouri-St. Louis, which shot 52 percent from the field in the second half to rally for the win.

Gavin Ludgood led NKU (9-5 overall, 4-2 GLVC) with 14 points on 6-for-6 shooting from the field. Kevin Schappell added 13 points for the Norse, who finished 3-for-18 from 3-point range.

With less than a minute remaining in the game and the score tied at 62-all, Griffin attempted a jumper that missed everything. Derrell Minner, however, grabbed the offensive rebound and converted a layup to give the Rivermen a 64-62 lead.

Schappell was fouled with 34 seconds left and made two free throws to tie the game at 64-all. Missouri-St. Louis held the ball for the final shot, setting the stage for Paul’s heroics.

Scott Bibbins scored a career-high 12 points for NKU, while Travis Rasso added seven points and three rebounds. Billy Finnell and Vincent Humphrey each scored six points for the Norse.

NKU will meet Missouri-Rolla at 4 p.m. Saturday at Rolla, Mo.

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