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EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The man known to teammates as D-Mac showed Southern Illinois at Edwardsville he is more than just Northern Kentucky University’s defensive stopper. David McFarland can pass the ball with the best of them, and, if left open by a gimmick defense, he can shoot it, too. McFarland dished out a career-best 10 assists Saturday and buried a trio of 3-pointers in the first half to spark NKU’s 83-67 victory over SIUE. The junior guard also grabbed three rebounds and led a Norse defensive effort that limited the Cougars to 37.9 percent shooting from the field. “He made SIUE do something differently in the first half by hitting those shots, because they were in the same kind of defense that Grand Valley played last year in the NCAA Tournament, and that was not guarding him at all,” NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. “David can shoot the ball when he needs to, but he is so unselfish. He does whatever we need to do to win, and those were big 3-pointers he made. “I didn’t realize he had that many assists, but I’m not surprised. He is such an intelligent player and always makes good decisions.” Anthony Teague scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead NKU. Teague, a senior guard, finished 8-for-12 from the field and made all four of his 3-point attempts as NKU improved to 4-1 overall. Harrison Morton added 18 points and five rebounds for the Norse, who are 2-0 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
NKU made seven 3-pointers in the first half to build a 38-32 lead at the break. The Norse shot 68.2 percent from the field in the second half to roll past the Cougars (2-3, 0-2 GLVC) and win in the Vadalabene Center for the first time since Feb. 6, 2003. It also gave NKU a sweep of the Quincy/SIUE road trip for the first time since 2003. “I wasn’t sure when the last time we swept this road trip, but I am really proud of this group for the way they competed against two tough opponents,” Bezold said. “We were a little sluggish in the first half, but we were still ahead. Then we came out in the second half and extended the lead.” Scott Bibbins scored a career-high 16 points for NKU, while teammate Travis Rasso added six points and six rebounds. Billy Finnell finished with six points and four assists with no turnovers. “Rasso had a very consistent road trip, and that’s important because he is our tallest player inside,” Bezold said. “Bibbins was very solid and hit some big shots in both games on this trip. We’ve won three straight road games against some tough competition, and that’s a good sign.” Anthony Jones led SIUE with 20 points, and T.J. Gray added 14. It marked the final regular-season basketball game between the two schools as members of the GLVC as SIUE is reclassifying to NCAA Division I status next year. NKU plays host to UC-Clermont next Saturday at 7 p.m. in Regents Hall. That begins a stretch of seven consecutive home games for the Norse, who will not hit the road again until Jan. 10.
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