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OWENSBORO, Ky. - Northern Kentucky University saw firsthand why Kentucky Wesleyan's Jeff Fahnbulleh is the leading scorer and rebounder in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The 6-foot-7, 270-pound post player muscled his way for 22 points and 15 rebounds on 10-for-16 shooting from the field Thursday night against the Norse. Fahnbulleh, however, could not carry Kentucky Wesleyan to a win over the balanced attack of NKU. The Norse placed five players in double figures en route to a 76-65 victory over the Panthers in the Owensboro Sportscenter. Kentucky Wesleyan, meanwhile, was introduced to NKU's Steven Wright, another GLVC newcomer who has made an impact this season. Wright led the Norse with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists. He also hit a trio of 3-pointers and blocked a shot. Kevin Schappell added 14 points as NKU improved to 12-4 and won for the third straight season in the Owensboro Sportscenter. Norse head coach Dave Bezold is now 5-0 all-time against Kentucky Wesleyan, and NKU remained tied for first place in the GLVC East standings with a 5-3 record. "This is the best 40 minutes we've played this season, and we followed our game plan from start to finish," said Bezold, who is 3-0 in the Owensboro Sportscenter. "I don't care what the stat sheet says, James Cripe and Travis Rasso did a heck of a job getting up and down the floor because that's a man (Fahnbulleh) they had to deal with tonight. "He ended up with 22 points and 15 rebounds, but he could only be on the floor so many minutes and they helped wear him down." Fahnbulleh entered the game averaging 18.2 points and 11.5 rebounds per contest to top the GLVC in both categories. The Panthers dropped to 8-7 overall, 1-7 in the GLVC. NKU jumped out to a 25-9 lead midway through the first half and looked ready to blow the Panthers off their home floor. Wright and Schappell knocked down consecutive 3-pointers for a 21-7 lead, followed by baskets from Cripe and Anthony Teague to push the margin to 25-9 with 8:46 remaining. Kentucky Wesleyan chipped away at the NKU lead behind Fahnbulleh and Tim Baker (19 points). By halftime, the Panthers trailed by just eight points (35-27). Kentucky Wesleyan eventually tied the score at 48-all on a Fahnbulleh basket with 11:23 remaining in the game, but NKU countered with a 7-0 run to take a 55-48 lead. Cripe hit a pair of free throws to start the spurt, Wright hit a jumper to extend the lead to four and Teague drained a 3-pointer to cap the run. "They made their run at us, but we hung in there and made big shots," Bezold said. "We had a lot of guys step up and hit shots." Billy Finnell finished with 13 points and made a clutch 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down late in the second half. Anthony Teague scored 11 points for the Norse, and teammate Vincent Humphrey added 10 points. Cripe finished with eight points, two rebounds and two steals. Wright, who played three years at Bowling Green State before transferring to NKU this season, now has 993 career points. NKU will meet No. 10 Southern Indiana on Saturday at Evansville, Ind. NKU has not won a regular-season game in the PAC Arena since the 1994-95 season, when the Norse rallied for a 96-90 victory over then-No. 1 Southern Indiana. |
