NKU falls in HL tourney semifinals, 82-75
There’s an old proverb that goes, “March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.”
Well it’s March, and we’re in the midst of college basketball’s famed postseason. Unfortunately for the Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team, while they did indeed enter the Horizon League post-season tournament semifinals like a lion after a thrilling win at Wright State Thursday night…they left the tournament like the proverbial lamb.
Monday night at the Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis, the Norse battled to a seven-point halftime lead (38-31) over No. 6 seed Milwaukee, only to be completely dismantled by the Panthers in the second half, resulting in the devastating seven-point loss.
The Norse sprinted out to an early seven-point lead in the first half, taking a 12-5 edge into the under-15 media timeout at 14:29. That lead ballooned to 11 at the 7:28 mark (29-18) on a three-pointer from freshman guard Randall Pettus II.
A little more than three minutes later, sophomore wing LJ Wells pushed the lead to 15 on a slick jumper in the paint (36-21). But the Panthers used the remaining 3:34 of the half to trim the wide margin down to a serviceable seven-point deficit going into halftime.
It was at this point that social media went ablaze with Norse fans ruminating over their last game – a game in which, ironically, the Norse entered halftime down seven but went on to win the game.
As it turned out, the sudden collective uneasy feeling in the gut was well-founded.
The Panthers emerged from the locker rooms renewed and refocused. In the first 2:37 of the second half they knocked the Norse lead down to two (40-38), courtesy of a quick five points by junior forward BJ Freeman and two from a thunderous dunk by junior post Faizon Fields.
At the 12:29 mark, the Panthers took the lead (52-51) and from then on never took their foot off their opponents’ necks. By the 10:20 mark they were up by six (59-53), the lead crept to 10 at the 6:38 mark (67-57).
Over the course of the next three minutes of action, the Panthers continued to nurse a 6-8 point lead until the 3:13 mark when Norse senior wing Trey Robinson – who had a career game of his own with 33 points and 9 rebounds – closed the gap to a two-possession game (68-63) on a timely short jumper in the paint.
From that point moving forward, for every basket the Norse sank, the Panthers equalized with a bucket of their own to maintain control of the game. With just 0:07 remaining, Wells’ seeing-eye trey that clanged hard off the rim found its mark, skinning the Milwaukee lead down to four.
With no timeouts remaining and only fouls to offer, the Norse could only watch as the inevitable happened.
What was looking like a clear and controlling win by the Norse early on, was impossibly transformed by a quizzical 14-point swing that sent the Norse back to Highland Heights and the Panthers forward to the Finals, where they will meet #1 seed Oakland on Tuesday night for the tourney title.
“I have the utmost respect for Coach Horn and their program,” said Milwaukee head coach Barty Lundy after the game. “We had a rocky first half but came out after halftime much tougher. We’re getting healthy at the right time. BJ got going and Faizon got every big rebound we needed. We’re proud of these guys but we have to get ready for Oakland.”
NKU finishes the season 18-15 overall, while Milwaukee (20-14) looks to finish what they started against the Golden Grizzlies.
The Norse will head back home now and await word on if they will receive a postseason tournament bid from either of the secondary postseason tourneys. An NIT or CBI bid would afford the Norse one last chance to pick up their program’s first ever official postseason win before seniors Marques Warrick, Trey Robinson and Michael Bradley move on to pursue professional careers after graduation.
For more Horizon League Tournament coverage, turn in to ESPN+ Tuesday night for the Oakland vs. Milwaukee Championship game at 7:00pm EST.
Another FINE read Larry!!
Thank you, sir! ❤️🙏🏻