NKU’s Cassie Brannen

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University women’s basketball team will look for its 13th consecutive victory when Indianapolis visits Regents Hall at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.

NKU enters Thursday with a 12-game winning streak after holding off Quincy, 73-70, last Saturday at Quincy, Ill. The Norse are 18-3 overall, 11-2 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

NKU is in sole possession of first place in the GLVC East Division. Lewis (10-3 GLVC) trails the Norse by one game in the GLVC East standings.

Indianapolis is 10-11 overall, 5-8 in the GLVC.

In addition, NKU will close out its 2005-06 home schedule Saturday at 1 p.m. against Saint Joseph’s. Both games this week will be televised live on ICN-6.

FABULOUS FROSH: Cassie Brannen came off the bench and scored 15 points, including a key basket and free throw in the final minute, to lead NKU past Quincy. Brannen, a freshman and a graduate of Mount Notre Dame High School in Cincinnati, also finished with eight rebounds and three steals.

For the season, Brannen averages 5.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. She is also shooting 50 percent from the field and ranks second on the team with 18 blocked shots.

GOING FOR 13 IN A ROW: NKU is looking for its first 13-game winning streak in a season since ending the 1999-2000 campaign with 24 straight victories and an NCAA Division II national championship.

NKU’s longest single-season winning streak is 25 games, set by the 1975-76 team. The most consecutive victories during a two-season span is 34 (24 straight to end 1999-2000, a 10-0 start in 2000-01).

Nicole Chiodi launches a shot

CLUTCH PLAY AT THE POINT: Sophomore point guard Nicole Chiodi averaged 13.0 ppg and 4.5 assists during the Norse’s two-game road trip. She also averaged 2.0 steals as NKU swept games at Southern Illinois at Edwardsville and Quincy.

GRAHAM-TASTIC FIRST HALF: NKU junior post player Karmen Graham scored all 15 of her points in the first half to ignite the victory at Quincy. Graham leads NKU in scoring (14.4 ppg) and field-goal percentage (.539). She is tied with Angela Healy for the team lead in rebounding at 6.0 rpg.

WINSTEL APPROACHES NKU MILESTONE: NKU’s Nancy Winstel owns 529 victories as a collegiate head coach in 26 years at two schools. On Dec. 31, 2004, she notched her 500th career win with a 57-51 victory at Northwood (Mich.).

Winstel is now 490-166 in 23 years at NKU and needs 10 victories to become the only basketball coach in school history to reach the 500-win plateau.

THE BUTLER DID IT: NKU junior forward Katie Butler came off the bench Saturday and scored seven points in the win over Quincy. Butler used 3-for-4 shooting from the field to contribute the seven points. She also hit a 3-pointer and added a blocked shot in 14 minutes of action.

ABOUT INDIANAPOLIS: The Greyhounds are led by Mandy Geryak, who averages 13.8 ppg. Amanda Norris is scoring 10.4 ppg and averages 6.4 rebounds per contest. Vanessa Jackson averages 9.0 ppg and leads the team with 32 blocked shots.

EARLIER THIS SEASON AGAINST INDY: On Dec. 10, Karmen Graham scored 16 points, including a key basket in the final minute of the game, as NKU posted a 58-56 win over Indianapolis in Nicoson Hall. Graham also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.

Brittany Winner added 14 points and four assists for the Norse, who limited Indianapolis to 9-for-24 shooting (37.5 percent) from the field in the second half. Graham’s basket with 34 seconds remaining gave NKU a 56-52 lead, but Vanessa Jackson countered by making a jumper with 24 seconds left to bring Indianapolis within 56-54.

Indianapolis fouled Karyn Creager with 21 seconds remaining, and the NKU junior guard made one of two free throws to extend the Norse advantage to 57-54. Mandy Geryak’s layup with nine seconds remaining cut the NKU lead to 57-56, and Indianapolis fouled Betsey Clark with 6.4 seconds left on the clock.

NKU’s Brittany Winner

Clark missed the first free throw, but she converted the second attempt to give NKU a 58-56 lead. Indianapolis had an opportunity to send the game into overtime, but Geryak’s jumper missed at the buzzer.

Creager finished with 10 points and two steals for NKU.

EARLIER THIS SEASON AGAINST SAINT JOSEPH’S: On Dec. 8, Saint Joseph’s ended a 23-game losing streak against NKU with a 50-47 win over the Norse at the Scharf Alumni Fieldhouse. It was Saint Joseph’s first victory against NKU since Feb. 19, 1994, when the Pumas posted a 72-67 win.

Michelle Bova scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Saint Joseph’s. Patience Meyer added 10 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots for the Pumas, who built a nine-point lead in the second half and held off a late NKU rally.

After Allison Hughes made a pair of free throws with 3:07 remaining to give Saint Joseph’s a 46-37 lead, Katie Butler drained a 3-pointer to bring NKU within 46-40 with 2:52 left in the game. Brittany Winner converted two free throws with 47 seconds left to cut the lead to 46-42, and Bova missed the front end of the bonus.

Karyn Creager then made a layup to pull the Norse within 46-44 with 16 seconds remaining. Ashley Hughes was fouled with 12 seconds showing on the clock, and she hit two free throws to extend the Puma advantage to 48-44. Creager, however, was fouled while attempting a 3-pointer with 4.7 seconds left, and she made all three free throws to cut the Saint Joseph’s lead to 48-47.

Allison Hughes hit two free throws with 2.7 seconds left in the game to give the Pumas a 50-47 lead, and Karmen Graham’s desperation 3-pointer was off target at the buzzer. Saint Joseph’s won despite shooting just 31.3 percent from the field in the second half and 40 percent for the game.

Winner led NKU with 12 points and three steals, but the Norse shot just 21.7 percent (5-for-23) from the field in the second half. Creager added nine points.