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ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - They made just 54.2 percent of their free throws, lost the rebounding battle by a 40-28 margin and received only four points from their leading scorer. And, to make matters even worse, the game was played on the road. No way the Norse of Northern Kentucky University ever won this game, right? Not with numbers like those staring back from the stat sheet, right? Not in Neil Carey Arena with Lewis the opponent, right? Wrong. NKU built an 18-point lead in the second half and held off a late rally to post a 72-66 win over Lewis in Neil Carey Arena on Saturday. The Norse parlayed 66.7 percent shooting from the field in the first half to take a 42-25 lead into the locker room, and, after extending the advantage to 18 early in the second half, held on for the key Great Lakes Valley Conference road victory. "We came out and blew them away in the first half, but you know they are going to fight back," said NKU senior guard Kevin Schappell, who poured in 23 points to guide his team to the win. "We were on fire in the first half, but you can't expect to shoot like that the entire game." NKU (8-4 overall, 2-3 GLVC) cooled off considerably in the second half, but the Norse were able to withstand the Lewis rally. The Norse made just 40 percent of their shots during the final 20 minutes and missed eight free throws in the second half. Lewis, meanwhile, used a 28-12 run to slice the deficit to 62-60 on a Stephan Bolt basket with 2:59 remaining. Bolt was also fouled on the play, but he missed the free throw. Lewis grabbed the offensive rebound with a chance to tie or take the lead, but a short jumper by Dustin Warfield was off the mark and James Cripe collected the board for NKU. Anthony Teague drained a 3-pointer with 2:06 left to extend NKU's lead to 65-60. Billy Finnell, who scored 10 points, converted a short jumper in the final minute that extended NKU's advantage to 68-62. After Lewis pulled to within three points with 8.2 seconds left, Finnell made two free throws to seal the win. "You have to find a way to win, and we did," NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. "Lewis was in the double-bonus with 10 minutes left in the game, and that really concerned me. Players are more relaxed when you know it's two shots, and they were in the double-bonus a long time in the second half." NKU won despite getting only four points from leading scorer Steven Wright, who entered the game averaging nearly 17 per contest. Wright, however, grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds and dished out four assists. "Steve only had the four points, but Kevin stepped up and hit some big shots, and that was important for us," Bezold said. "Steve is a special player, and opposing teams know what he means to us. Everyone has an off-day now and then, but he will bounce back. He does a lot of things for our team, but it was nice to get a win like this when others stepped up." Bolt led Lewis (8-6, 3-3 GLVC) with 22 points and 18 rebounds. NKU shot 54.5 percent from the field and held Lewis to 39.3 from the floor. Teague came off the bench and scored nine points, and Cripe added eight points. NKU plays host to Kentucky Christian at 7 p.m. Tuesday in a non-conference game. The Norse resume GLVC play at 7:45 p.m. Thursday against Missouri-Rolla in Regents Hall, followed by a Saturday afternoon clash with Missouri-St. Louis. "You have to win some games on the road, and you have to win all of them at home," Schappell said. "We have two really big conference games at home next weekend, and we need to win both of them." FLYING DOGS IN REGENTS HALL: Bill Camp and America's Best Frisbee Dogs will be performing at halftime of the NKU men’s game against Missouri-Rolla this Thursday. These canines have provided great entertainment for the NBA, NFL, minor league and college teams. |
