Connie Myers averages 17.1 points

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team will play host to Saint Joseph’s at 5:30 p.m. Thursday in Regents Hall.

NKU, which owns a four-game win streak entering Thursday, is 8-7 overall. The Norse are 6-3 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

NKU will also meet Wisconsin-Parkside at 1 p.m. Saturday in Regents Hall.

The Norse posted a 56-53 win over 18th-ranked Bellarmine last Thursday in Regents Hall to go over the .500 mark for the first time this season. Connie Myers scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Norse.

Myers leads NKU in scoring (17.1 points per game), rebounding (8.1 rpg) and field-goal percentage (.503). She ranks No. 4 in the GLVC in scoring and No. 2 in rebounding.

Myers enters Thursday night with 1,084 career points, which ranks 18th in school history.

DEFENSE KEYS THE STREAK: NKU has won eight of its past 10 contests, and scoring defense has keyed the Norse’s current four-game win streak. During those four victories, NKU has not allowed an opponent to reach 60 points.

While starting the season 0-5, NKU allowed three opponents to score at least 70 points, and the Norse surrendered more than 60 points in each of those five losses.

NKU is currently No. 3 in the GLVC in scoring defense at 62.6 ppg.

BLOCK PARTY: NKU post players Karmen Graham and Angela Healy each rank in the top five of the GLVC in blocked shots. Graham averages 1.07 blocks per game, which is No. 3 in the GLVC. Healy averages 0.87 bpg, which is good for No. 4 in the league.

Graham, a sophomore, is scoring 11.5 ppg. She also averages 5.8 rebounds per contest. Healy, a freshman, averages 3.1 ppg and 2.7 rpg.

ABOUT SAINT JOSEPH’S: The Pumas enter Thursday with a 3-13 overall record, including a 2-7 mark in the GLVC. Saint Joseph’s is in 10th place in the GLVC standings.

Saint Joseph’s is led by senior post player Courtney Rosenbaum, who averages 17.8 ppg and 6.6 rpg.

THE STREAK AGAINST SAINT JOSEPH’S: NKU has defeated Saint Joseph’s 22 consecutive times. NKU has not lost to Saint Joseph’s since the 1993-94 season, when the Pumas posted a 72-67 victory against the Norse at Rensselaer, Ind.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST SAINT JOSEPH’S: Earlier this season on Dec. 4 at Rensselaer, Ind., Nikki Perkins scored 20 points and dished out three assists as NKU snapped a season-opening five-game losing streak with an 83-70 win over Saint Joseph’s.

Karyn Creager had 18 points on Dec. 4

Karyn Creager added 18 points for the Norse, who trailed by 10 (29-19) late in the first half. NKU, however, used a 14-4 run to forge a 33-33 tie at the break. Perkins keyed the run by scoring eight points, including two three-point baskets.

In the second half, with NKU leading 42-40, the Norse used a 13-5 run to take a 55-45 lead on a three-point basket by Betsey Clark. NKU shot at a 57.9 clip from the floor in the final 20 minutes to defeat Saint Joseph’s for the 22nd consecutive time.

Connie Myers added 17 points and 12 rebounds for NKU, which won the rebounding battle by a 39-29 margin.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: On Jan. 22, 2004, Sammy Kromm scored 19 points as Wisconsin-Parkside stunned NKU, 57-45, in Regents Hall.

Carrie Weir added 14 points as Wisconsin-Parkside won in Regents Hall for the first time in history. The Rangers held NKU to just 13 points in the second half and allowed the Norse only five points during the final 13:26 of the game.

NKU built a 22-11 lead midway through the first half, but Wisconsin-Parkside used a 16-10 run to pull within 32-27 at the break. Connie Myers scored 10 of her 14 points before halftime to lead NKU.

Wisconsin-Parkside opened the second half with a 12-6 run and took a 39-38 lead on Michele Pickering’s layup at the 13:52 mark. NKU regained a 40-39 advantage with 13:26 remaining when Connie Myers powered her way for a basket, but the Norse were held scoreless during the next nine minutes.

The Norse shot just 18.5 percent (5-for-27) from the field in the second half and finished at 31.4 percent for the game. NKU also was held to just 6-for-23 shooting from three-point range and made just one field goal during the final 4:55 of the game.