Special to The Post

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - And now, a chance for a little breath-taking for the breathtakingly successful Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team.

NKU's romp through its 29-game schedule with just two losses earned the Norse home-court advantage and a first-round bye in the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Region Tournament.

NKU, coming off its 77-57 Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament championship game win Saturday over Indianapolis, doesn't play again until Friday night at 7:45 at Regents Hall.

The Norse will play the winner of Thursday's game pitting Michigan Tech against Gannon.
Friday's winner will advance to the regional championship game at 7:45 p.m. on Saturday.

The winner of that game joins the other seven regional champions in the Elite Eight.

And so now, with almost a week off, it's time to ask the coach the obvious question.

The team has won 19 straight games.

The team is on a roll.

The team is hot.

So, would NKU coach Nancy Winstel rather have an extra day for her team to catch its breath after winning three games in three days in the GLVC Tournament?

Or would she prefer to just keep her squad on its oppressive roll?

''The bye gives us an extra day. That's the only way we look at it,'' said Winstel, who has guided the Norse to No. 2 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association rankings. ''Whether that's good or bad depends. Some people say it's good to keep playing. Some people say it's good to watch.

''But I'd rather have the bye now, not because of how it affects us, but because we earned it. We're really playing well right now, and I was happy with our defense and total team effort in the GLVC Tournament. 'We played together and with a lot of purpose,'' she said.

Playing particularly well for NKU, and it's with no surprise, are junior guard Michele Tuchfarber and sophomore forward Michelle Cottrell, the team's top two scorers.

Tuchfarber was named GLVC Tournament MVP, and Cottrell joined her on the all-tournament team.

''Tuchfarber really picked up her game in all phases and played an all-around great tournament,'' Winstel said.

''She and Cottrell gave us a good inside-outside presence, and that's what we need to stay on a roll.''

INDIANAPOLIS (57): Glenn 2-5 2-4 6, Ramsey 6-12 3-3 15, Sturtevant 0-2 2-2 2, Virgin 0-0 1-2 1, DeWitt 3-7 1-1 7, Hall 2-5 2-2 8, Schmalstig 2-7 5-6 9, Hammes 1-4 1-3 3, Oberle 0-2 2-2 2, Shafer 1-1 0-0 2, Luttrell 0-1 2-2 2. Totals 17-46 21-27 57.

NKU (77): Cottrell 5-9 3-4 13, Jenson 4-7 1-2 10, Cowens 3-6 0-0 6, Livingstone 4-7 4-4 13, Tuchfarber 6-10 6-7 21, Smith 0-3 1-2 1, Mobley 3-4 3-4 9, Flanagan 1-3 0-0 2, Polosky 1-6 0-1 2. Totals 27-55 18-24 77.
Halftime-NKU, 39-24. Three-point goals-NKU 5-9 (Tuchfarber 3-3, Jenson 1-2, Livingstone 1-3, Smith 0-1), Indianapolis2-8 (Hall 2-4, DeWitt 0-1, Hammes 0-1, Schmalstig 0-2). Fouled out-None. Fouls-NKU 21, Indianapolis 21. Rebounds-NKU 36 (three with 5), Indy 28 (Ramsey 13). Assists-NKU 18 (Livingstone, Tuchfarber 4), Indianapolis 13 (DeWitt 3). Technical fouls-None. Records-NKU 27-2, Indianapolis 17-12.

NCAA Great Lakes Region
At Northern Kentucky University's
Regents Hall
THURSDAY'S FIRST ROUND
(3) Ferris State (22-6) vs. (6) Missouri-St. Louis (18-10), 5:30 p.m.
(4) Michigan Tech (22-6) vs. (5) Gannon, Pa. (21-9), 7:45 p.m.
FRIDAY'S SEMIFINALS
(2) Northern Michigan (24-5) vs. Ferris-Mo.St.Louis winner, 5:30 p.m.
(1) NKU (27-2) vs. Michigan Tech-Gannon winner, 7:45 p.m.
SATURDAY'S FINAL
Semifinal winners, 7:45 p.m.