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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Northern Kentucky University finishes its regular-season schedule this week with two road games, and the Norse can wrap up their second straight Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division title by winning twice. NKU plays at Wisconsin-Parkside on Thursday night, and the Norse conclude the trip with a Saturday afternoon game at Lewis. NKU enters this week with a 19-5 overall record, and the Norse are tied with Kentucky Wesleyan atop the GLVC East Division with 13-4 records. GLVC LOWDOWN: If NKU and Kentucky Wesleyan finish in a tie, the Norse will earn the East Division title and No. 1 seed due to their two wins over the Panthers this season. NKU will play host to a first-round GLVC Tournament game March 4 if it finishes first or second in the GLVC East Division. Saint Joseph’s is 12-5 in the GLVC, one game behind both NKU and Kentucky Wesleyan. The Pumas meet Kentucky Wesleyan in the season finale Saturday at Rensselaer, Ind. The league office will officially announce pairings, sites and times for the first round of the GLVC Tournament Saturday night. If NKU hosts a women’s/men’s doubleheader March 4, the times will be 5:30 and 7:45 p.m. The women will play first, followed by the men. The GLVC Tournament semifinals and championship will be played at the site of the highest remaining seed March 8-9. PANTHER PERFECT: NKU head coach Dave Bezold remained perfect (8-0) against Kentucky Wesleyan with a 78-63 win over the Panthers last Thursday in Owensboro, Ky. Bezold is 4-0 in the Owensboro Sportscenter. MORTON ON A ROLL: NKU senior Harrison Morton was named GLVC Player of the Week on Monday. Morton, a 6-foot-4 forward from Lexington, Ky., led NKU to a road sweep of GLVC East rivals Bellarmine and Kentucky Wesleyan last week by averaging 22.5 points and 6.0 rebounds. He also drove the length of the court in the closing seconds at Bellarmine and hit a shot with 3.2 seconds left in the game to give NKU a 67-66 win. That capped a 23-point performance for Morton, who was 11-for-14 from the field in that game. Morton is averaging 20.0 points during the Norse’s last four games. He leads NKU in scoring (13.2 ppg) and steals (30). He is also shooting 57 percent from the field and 72.9 percent from the free-throw line. He enters this week with 843 career points, which ranks 36th in Norse history. Morton needs three points to pass Terry Hairston (845 points) for 35th place and six points to pass George Smith (848 points) for 34th place on NKU’s all-time scoring list. D-MAC CLOSES IN ON NATIONAL TITLE: NKU junior guard David McFarland continues to be No. 1 in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio at 5.64. McFarland has dished out 79 assists against just 14 turnovers this season. BIBBINS STAYS NO. 1: NKU sophomore guard Scott Bibbins continues to lead the GLVC in free-throw percentage at .939. Bibbins has converted 62 of 66 attempts this season. ABOUT WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: The Rangers are 14-11 overall, 7-10 in the GLVC. Wisconsin-Parkside - the preseason favorite to win the East Division - has been eliminated from GLVC Tournament contention. The Rangers feature junior forward LaVontay Fenderson, who averages 15.1 ppg. Senior guard/forward Kyle Clark is scoring 11.1 ppg, while teammate Brad Ferstenou averages 10.3 ppg and 5.1 rebounds per contest. Senior guard Tyrone Deacon averages 10.1 ppg for the Rangers, who are 11-3 at home this season. THE LAST TIME AGAINST WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: Earlier this season on Feb. 2 in Regents Hall, NKU rallied from a five-point deficit in the second half to post a 74-67 victory over the Rangers. Harrison Morton led NKU with 17 points, while teammates Vincent Humphrey and Anthony Teague each netted 15 points. Morton scored six points during a 10-1 run that helped the Norse turn a 58-53 deficit into a 63-59 lead. THE LAST TIME AGAINST LEWIS: Earlier this season on Jan. 31 in Regents Hall, Harrison Morton and Anthony Teague each scored 14 points as NKU defeated Lewis, 74-68. Dennis Gagai hit a 3-pointer with 13:20 left in the game to give the Norse their first lead of the second half, 48-47, and the advantage held up. Scott Bibbins added 12 points and made all eight of his free-throw attempts for NKU. Stephan Bolt scored 11 in the first half for the Flyers and finished with 15 points. Dennis Thomas Jr. led the Flyers with 24 points and was 9-for-10 from the field, including 4-for-5 from 3-point range.
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