Katie Butler helped NKU defeat Loyola

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team will play host to Brescia (Ky.) at 7 p.m. Thursday in Regents Hall.

NKU is 7-3 overall after knocking off NCAA Division I Loyola (Ill.), 74-55, on Dec. 22. Brescia, a member of the NAIA, is off to a 1-12 start this season.

NKU resumes Great Lakes Valley Conference action on Jan. 5 when Kentucky Wesleyan visits Regents Hall for a 5:30 p.m. contest. Southern Indiana will also play at NKU at 1 p.m. on Jan. 7. The Norse are 2-2 in the GLVC.

NORSE RAMBLE PAST LOYOLA: Given the rare opportunity to play a Division I opponent in Regents Hall, NKU took full advantage of the situation and posted a 19-point win over Loyola (Ill.).

Karmen Graham scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead NKU, which used a 22-6 run in the second half to pull away. Karyn Creager keyed the run with six points as NKU knocked off a Division I opponent for the first time since Dec. 8, 1993, when the Norse posted a 79-60 win over Morehead State.

Graham, a 6-foot-1 junior post player who also scored 48 points in two games during the Sunday Challenger Classic last week, used 6-for-8 shooting from the field to key NKU’s win against Loyola.

HUGE STATS: Graham averaged 22 points, 6.7 rebounds and shot 72.4 percent from the field last week in three games. She poured in a career-high 31 points on 12-for-13 shooting from the field to lead NKU past West Virginia Wesleyan, 68-48, on Dec. 19.

Graham is tied for first place the GLVC in scoring (15.7 ppg), and she leads NKU in rebounding (6.2 rpg). She also ranks fourth in the GLVC in field-goal percentage(.589).

LET THE HEALY BEGIN: NKU sophomore post player Angela Healy scored 13 points and added eight rebounds against Loyola. Healy averages 7.5 ppg and 5.4 rebounds per contest.

Betsey Clark scores against Loyola

She also leads NKU with 13 blocked shots and has made 50.9 percent of her attempts from the field. In addition, Healy leads NKU with 15 steals.

AT THE LINE: Creager ranks No. 2 in the GLVC at 92.3 percent from the free-throw line. She is 24-for-26 this season from the line and averages 9.6 ppg. She has also connected on a team-leading 14 3-point field goals this season.

FEARING REJECTION: NKU continues to lead the GLVC in blocked shots at 4.90 blocks per game. Healy is sixth in blocks at 1.30 bpg, while Cassie Brannen is eighth at 0.90 bpg. Katie Butler ranks 14th at 0.70 bpg.

The Norse are also No. 1 in scoring defense at 52.3 ppg.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST BRESCIA: On Feb. 19, 2003, Amy Mobley scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as NKU defeated Brescia, 71-54, in Regents Hall.

Bridget Flanagan added 16 points, and Elizabeth Burrows finished with nine points, six rebounds and four assists for NKU.

NKU shot 60 percent from the field in the second half to break open a close game. The Norse also made seven 3-pointers in the second half and finished 11-for-20 from behind the arc.

Misty Fenwick scored 13 points for Brescia, which made just 38.3 percent of its shots from the field. The Lady Bearcats entered that game ranked 16th nationally in the NAIA poll.

NKU was ranked No. 21 in the NCAA Division II poll going into the Brescia game in 2003. That is the only meeting between the two schools in women’s basketball.