Norse slay surging Cleveland State, 85-75
John Wooden, perhaps the greatest coach to lead athletes – in any sport, at any level – once said… “Winning takes talent…to repeat takes character.”
While the legendary UCLA Bruins basketball coach of years gone by clearly wasn’t talking about the Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team back then…if he were alive today however, he could have been. It doesn’t take winning 10 Division I basketball national championships to know that winning takes talent, but it does take wisdom to realize that wins will keep coming if you find a winning recipe and then stick with it.
For the second game in a row, the Norse men’s basketball team showed not just character, but aggression and the ability to adapt and flex to a fresh approach on the court that netted crucial back to back wins.
After the game, senior guard Sam Vinson stated that before the Oakland game earlier in the week, the team revisited their approach to the games this season and found that they “were doing the same thing over and over and it just wasn’t working.”
When asked if his team has approached the past two games differently compared to the previous 22, Head Coach Darrin Horn stated the team is playing with more intensity, aggression, and looking to score earlier in each offensive possession instead of passing the ball around looking for “the perfect shot” every time down the court. This has shown to be a recipe for success the past two games, as the change in the Norse attack is both visible and admittedly a more exciting brand of basketball for the fans.
Wednesday night the Norse played like a team possessed on its way to a quality home win against visiting Cleveland State University. As the conference leaders perched alone atop the Horizon League standings, the Vikings (17-7, 11-2 HL) came into NKU’s Truist Arena winners of 13 straight games, the second longest win streak in the nation. The team that came in ranked #22 in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll, left Highland Heights on the sour end of an 85-75 loss to the Norse.
While the schemes and plays haven’t changed dramatically, Horn stated the intent to attack teams faster gives his blossoming playmakers more range to be creative with their passing and shooting. Now from the stands (and press box), there is a visible shift in the team’s attitude and purpose as they bring the ball up the court, looking to attack the defense quickly as opposed to giving the defense time to get set and then force a bad shot before the shot clock runs dry.
With the recent 6-game losing streak now in their rear view mirror, the Norse have won two straight games for the first time since their consecutive wins over Purdue Fort Wayne and Green Bay the first week of January.
Following a conference win over Oakland earlier in the week, the convincing result over Cleveland State was a bit of a statement win for Horn’s squad. Prior to their bus rolling down US Route 27 South toward campus, the Vikings were 11-1 in the conference and flat out steamrolling its opponents.
Of their seven total losses on the season, three of those came to high-major ,“Power 5” foes Michigan, Kansas State and Minnesota…and three others to fellow mid-major teams making some noise of their own this season in Kent State (14-8), Morehead State (14-9) and conference foe Milwaukee (15-8).
While the Vikings and Norse have historically played well against each other over the years (11-10 edge to NKU), predicting a dominating Norse win this time around would have felt like a long shot. Thankfully for the Norse, they hit plenty of long shots on the night. They also hit plenty of mid-range jumpers, dunks, fast-break layups and free throws.
In front of 2,380 fans, the Norse shot just shy of 51% from the field on the night, nearly 40% from behind the arc and 70% from the charity stripe. While the visitors had a decent night from the field (45.8%) in their own right, they couldn’t overcome the home team’s intensity, propensity to force turnovers and offensive rebounding that led to second-chance points.
But most of all, the Vikings couldn’t stop junior guard Dan Gherezgher. The 6-4 guard popped off for a career night in the form of 26 points, leading a potent Norse offense that posted five players in double figures.
In addition to Gherezgher’s 26, senior wing Trey Robinson (12), Sam Vinson (13), grad student guard Josh Dilling (14) and junior forward LJ Wells (13) all scorched the nets against the Horizon League’s stingiest defensive squad – Cleveland State came into the game giving up just 64.5 points per game, good for best in the conference and ranked in the nation’s top 25.
The More NK(U) Know:
- Dan Gherezgher: With his 26 points Wednesday night, he is now averaging 13.8 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds over his past five games. When asked about Gherezgher’s recent surge, Horn stated he can’t think of a player he’s coached in recent memory that was so clearly the best player on the court over a two game stretch than the transfer guard from Division II Michigan Tech
- Sam Vinson: The local product from Ft. Thomas, KY continues to find ways to help his team after coming off of major reconstructive knee surgery last season. In addition to his 13 points on 50% shooting from the field, he snared 7 boards, delivered 7 assists, had 4 steals and drew 6 fouls on the offensive end of the floor. When Vinson is attacking the basket, he is at his most dangerous
- LJ Wells: Coach Horn and Wells’ teammates were effusive with praise when talking about the junior forward after the game. After essentially disappearing in the loss at Detroit on January 30, Wells has posted impressive back-to-back efforts versus Oakland and Cleveland State. Over the past two games, Wells has averaged 11.5 points and 6 rebounds, with 50% (6/12) of his boards coming off the offensive glass
- Trey Robinson – Lucky 7?: In the last three games, the Hamilton, OH native is averaging 7.7 rebounds per game
- “They’re Pretty Board:” Against (according to Horn) the most physical team in the conference, NKU outrebounded the Vikings 34-29, allowing them to also carry the heavy edge in both points in the paint (40-26) and second-chance points (21-14)
Right when you thought the 84-75 win at Oakland was the most complete conference game of the season for the Norse, they go out and knock off one of the hottest teams in the nation. Stretching the win streak to three is going to be a chore for the Norse…next up on their plate they host a resurgent Robert Morris team that currently sits at 17-8 overall and 9-5 in the Horizon League.
Last time these two met, they provided the college basketball world one of the most entertaining games of the season, a 97-93 triple-overtime thriller that the Colonials pulled out in front of their home crowd on December 29. The conference clash will take place Saturday, February 8 at NKU’s Truist Arena – tipoff is set for 2:00pm EST and will be available on both the ESPN+ app and FoxSports 1360 AM Radio.
