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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team travels to Louisville on Saturday night to meet Bellarmine at 7 p.m. in Knights Hall. NKU is 4-1 after posting a 92-69 non-conference win over Georgetown (Ky.) on Wednesday night in Regents Hall. The Norse are 1-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference going into Saturday's showdown with rival Bellarmine (5-1, 1-1). Senior guard Karyn Creager scored a season-high 21 points to lead NKU past Georgetown. The Leipsic, Ohio, native connected on all five of her 3-point attempts and added three assists. Brittany Winner scored 14 points and dished out five assists for NKU, which shot 63 percent from the field. The Norse, ranked No. 12 nationally in the NCAA Division II poll, used 10-for-15 shooting from 3-point range and finished with a 30-23 rebounding edge. Cassie Brannen added 14 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots for NKU, while teammate Karmen Graham scored 13 points. Katie Butler reached double figures with 10 points as the Norse upped their lead in the all-time series with Georgetown to 11-1. ON TARGET: Cassie Brannen (67.9 percent) and Katie Butler (62.1 percent) rank first and second, respectively, in the latest GLVC field-goal percentage statistics.The Norse have four of the conference's top eight shooters, with Angela Healy (No. 5 at 56.4 percent) and Nicole Chiodi (No. 8 at 55.2 percent) rounding out the list. BALANCED ATTACK: Five different Norse average more than 10 points per game, led by Karyn Creager at 11.4. Angela Healy (11.2 ppg), Brittany Winner (11.0 ppg), Cassie Brannen (10.8 ppg) and Katie Butler (10.8 ppg) each average double figures for the GLVC's No. 1 offense (83.2 ppg). PERFECTION: NKU senior forward Katie Butler is still perfect from the free-throw line at 13-for-13 this season. The Findlay, Ohio, native missed her final attempt of last season. The NKU record for consecutive made free throws is 27, set by Karyn Creager two years ago. RIGHT AT HOME: The Norse just ended their longest season-opening homestand in team history at five games with a record of 4-1. It is not the longest homestand in team history, however, which was eight games between Nov. 25, 2000, and Jan. 4, 2001.
WINS GALORE: Saturday will mark the second straight game that head coach Nancy Winstel and her opposing coach will have combined for 1,000 or more wins. Winstel and Georgetown's (Ky.) head coach Susan Johnson have combined for 1,009 wins in their careers, while Winstel and Bellarmine's Dave Smith combined for exactly 1,000 wins coming into the 2006-07 season. ABOUT BELLARMINE: The Knights are led in scoring by guard Angela Smith, who is averaging 11.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Ashley Lewallen is averaging 11.0 points on the season and has been the Knights' leading scorer in three of their six games. THE LAST TIME AGAINST BELLARMINE: On Feb. 14, 2006, NKU's Cassie Brannen and Brittany Winner combined for 35 points on 13-for-16 shooting from the field during an 82-70 victory over Bellarmine in Knights Hall. Brannen scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds for NKU, which won at Knights Hall for the first time since Jan. 30, 1999. She also finished 6-for-8 from the field and had three assists. Winner added 16 points, four rebounds and three assists. Winner scored all 16 of her points in the second half and was 7-for-8 from the field as the Norse cruised to the victory. Karyn Creager scored 12 points for the Norse, who bolted to a 23-point lead midway through the first half. Bellarmine took advantage of 11 NKU turnovers to slice the lead to 44-29 at the break. Bellarmine pulled within six points with 11:55 left in the game, but Winner responded with a conventional three-point play to give NKU a 55-46 advantage. Winner - who drained the winning shot against the Knights in a 66-64 victory on Jan. 28 in Regents Hall - later made consecutive baskets to push the Norse lead to 61-49, and Bellarmine never threatened the remainder of the game. NKU shot 56.6 percent from the field and controlled the boards with a 39-25 advantage in rebounds. Nicole Chiodi grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds, while Katie Butler finished with five boards. Karmen Graham scored 11 points and collected four rebounds for NKU, which swept the regular-season series with Bellarmine for the first time in 14 years. NKU holds a 41-25 lead in the all-time series against Bellarmine. |
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