HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team will hit the road and meet Bellarmine University at 8 p.m. Thursday night in Louisville, Ky.
The Norse will conclude their regular season at 4:30 p.m. Saturday with a road contest at Kentucky Wesleyan College. NKU will then travel to the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament March 5-7 at Evansville, Ind.
NKU dropped to 15-13 overall Saturday with a 93-81 loss at the University of Indianapolis. The Norse are 8-10 in the GLVC and in seventh place in the league standings.
NKU, though, has clinched a berth in the upcoming GLVC Tournament, which includes the top eight teams in the standings. Based on results in the final two games, the Norse will be seeded either sixth or seventh at the GLVC Tournament.
ROUGH NIGHT AT INDY: David Logan and Jason Wright combined for 45 points and 14 rebounds Saturday night as Indianapolis posted a 93-81 win over NKU. Logan - who earlier this season scored 44 points against NKU - tallied 21 of his 23 points in the first half Saturday as Indianapolis built a 42-35 lead. The Greyhounds never trailed in the second half and led by as many as 16 points.
Wright, a senior center playing in his final home game for Indianapolis, scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half and was unstoppable inside. He also grabbed a team-leading nine rebounds, including five offensive boards.
Rodney Rollins added 11 of his 15 points in the second half, and he also dished out five assists. Indianapolis shot 61.5 percent from the field in the second half and finished at 56.9 percent for the game.
Jesse Rupe led NKU with 19 points and 11 rebounds, while teammate Steve Purdon added 16 points. Kevin Reinhardt finished with 12 points, and Mike Kelsey and Pat Cary each scored 10 points.
RUPE GETS ANOTHER DOUBLE-DOUBLE: NKU senior center Jesse Rupe picked up his sixth double-double of the season with 19 points and 11 rebounds Saturday. Rupe averages 15.6 points per game and 7.2 rebounds.
PURDON ON TARGET: NKU junior guard Steve Purdon has scored in double figures in seven straight games entering Thursday. Purdon has averaged 18.3 points during that streak and is scoring 11.3 ppg for the season.
THE LAST TIME AGAINST BELLARMINE: Earlier this season on Jan. 31, Steve Purdon scored 20 points as NKU posted a 100-87 win over Bellarmine in Regents Hall. Kevin Reinhardt scored 15 of his 19 points in the first half as NKU built a 55-37 lead at the break.
Purdon, who made six three-point shots, added 11 points before halftime for the Norse.
NKU shot 53.7 percent from the field in the first half, and the Norse used 7-for-13 shooting from three-point range before the break to build the 18-point lead before a sellout crowd of 1,685 on hand for the 2004 Homecoming.
Mike Kelsey finished with 16 points and seven assists as the Norse also made 11-of-24 attempts from three-point range. Jesse Rupe added 14 points and six rebounds for NKU, and Kevin Schappell came off the bench and finished with 13 points for the Norse.
Victor Pierson led Bellarmine with 24 points, and Bruce Johnson added 21 points.
THE STREAK AGAINST BELLARMINE: NKU owns 18 consecutive wins against Bellarmine going into Thursday’s game. Bellarmine’s last victory against NKU came on Feb. 3, 1994, when the Knights escaped with a 73-72 win in Regents Hall.
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Jesse Rupe |