By Brenda June Temple
2 28 2024
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. – The calendar is about to flip to March and the Northern Kentucky men’s basketball program is entering the month as the hottest team in the conference as the Norse picked up an important 70-60 Horizon League win over Robert Morris inside the UPMC Events Center on Wednesday night.
With the victory, Northern Kentucky sealed a first-round bye in the upcoming Horizon League Tournament. Another win on Saturday would clinch one more home game for both the Norse and Norse Nation on Thursday, March 7 at Truist Arena.
No matter what happens over the weekend, Northern Kentucky can fall no lower than fifth in the Horizon standings, which guarantees the squad its first-round bye.
To go with tournament implications, NKU is red hot at the moment as winners of three straight along with six of its last seven games played.
THE FACTS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 70, Robert Morris – 60
LOCATION: UPMC Events Center – Moon Township, Pennsylvania
RECORDS: NKU: 17-13 (12-7 HL), RMU: 10-20 (6-13 HL)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Marques Warrick went off for 28 points, five assists, two rebounds and a steal. The standout from Lexington, Kentucky is now averaging 23 points per game over his last four contests. He has also tied his season-best in assists in two of his last three games played. To go with the playmaking numbers, Warrick has kept his foot on the pedal in the scoring department as he has posted 20-plus point games in nine of his last 11 contests.
– Trey Robinson continued to make his presence felt on both ends of the court with 18 points, five boards, three swipes, one block and a helper. The do-it-all senior has gone for double-digit points and five-plus rebounds in each of his last four contests. He was just two points off from trying his season and career high.
– Michael Bradley has been red-hot from beyond the arc as he added 15 points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal. He went 4-of-9 from three (44.4 percent) and has now shot 23-of-50 (46 percent) from deep in the month of February.
– Randall Pettus II chipped in five points, four boards and an assist.
– LJ Wells added four points, nine rebounds, two helpers and a swipe.
– Five Norse student-athletes combined for all 70 points in the win.
– NKU forced 19 Robert Morris turnovers and recorded seven steals that turned into 22 points off turnovers.
– The Norse led wire-to-wire in this one as they held the lead for all 40 minutes of the contest.
NEXT UP
It all comes down to this as the Norse are set for a conference clash with rival Wright State on Saturday, March 2 inside the Nutter Center. Tip is set for 7 PM ET and the showdown will be played in front of a national audience on ESPN+. The winner clinches a home game in the upcoming conference tourney.
Tickets for the game can be purchased here for fans and supporters looking to make the short drive to cheer on NKU.
FOLLOW NKU NORSE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Get in the game and follow Northern Kentucky’s NCAA Division I college basketball team through @NKUNorseMBB on Twitter, @nkunorsembb on Instagram, nkunorsembb on Facebook and subscribe to the NKU Norse Youtube channel.
COURTESY NKU ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
