Final | NKU 74 | Charleston 85

First, I just wanted to say welcome back to the City to Chris Mack. A lot of my passion for college hoops came from his teams at Xavier, so getting to cover a game with him coaching in it was a really cool moment. 

The first half started off very ugly for both teams with 6 turnovers before the first media timeout combined. The Norse continued this trend throughout the game and Charleston was able to capitalize. While Charleston continued to turn it over, NKU wasn’t able to capitalize. NKU struggled from the field, going just 9-29/4-15/8-10 from the field in the first. Charleston was able to take a 10 point lead into the break, mainly due to their success from inside the arc, as they didn’t do much better from 3. They were 14-26 from the field. The Cougars also left 6 points on the line, going 8-14. Charleston had 7 turnovers, however, the Norse were unable to capitalize, and Charleston leading the battle on points off turnovers 15-7 at the break. Charleston also was able to dominate the paint in the first, with a 18-10 lead in that category! Those two categories really explain the first half performance. 

The Second half was a completely different ball game for 14 minutes. NKU (mainly Kael Robinson and Donovan Oday) came out scorching hot and combined for 21 of NKU’s first 32 points in the opening 12 minutes of the second half. Tae Dozier played some key minutes and was able to disrupt on defense and get a couple of easy buckets! Donovan Rakotonanahary hit what I believe was his first 3 of the year with 7:42 remaining in the game. That shot gave NKU a 65-63 lead! However, once NKU took a lead, Flynn Counter became a BUCKET when Charleston needed him to, breaking out for a 20 point second half performance to put Charleston in a great spot, up 80-71 with 1:58 remaining in the game. NKU’s offense has improved some, however, they shot just 10-33 from deep and 25-64 from the field on the night. 

NKU will now turn their full attention to Horizon league play after a disappointing end to the non-conference slate. 

NKY’s Takeaways: 

Fouls continue to be a major concern for the Norse. Today, while they did not have a ton of team fouls , LJ wells was rendered useless for a lot of the game due to his foul trouble. In the first half, amidst a Charleston run, Wells went back into the game with 2 and picked up his 3rd. He then picked his 4th foul up with 12:26 remaining in the game. Overall, however, tonight was an improvement and other than Wells, the Norse did well at not fouling, especially in the second half. 

Along with fouls, just getting a defensive stop when needed is a growing concern, and something that is clear to see, even for fans. Today’s solid NKU crowd were pleading for a stop when the game was coming down the stretch. Coach Horn echoed this sentiment post-game, adding that they may need to change some things up on that side of the ball to produce better results.

NKU rebounded the ball very poorly today, allowing Charleston to outbound them 34-33. While this Cougar team isn’t terrible on the glass, it is a relative strength of the Norse (especially on the offensive side of the ball), and losing the overall rebounding battle was very costly this afternoon. Charleston’s size gave NKU a lot of trouble per Coach Horn.

NKU committed 17 turnovers this afternoon, which is a growing trend for the Norse. Charleston is not a high pressure type of team and doesn’t force a ton of turnovers. NKU did, however force 16 Charleston turnovers on the day, which continues to be a strength for the Norse. NKU continues to need to be better at scoring off of the turnovers they create, however, and this afternoon was no different. NKU scored just 17 points off of the 15 Charleston turnovers, and Charleston was able to create 22 points off of the Norse giveaways.

For the Norse: 

Kael Robinson 22/9/0, 1 turnover, 1 steal 

Donovan Oday 20/6/2, 4 turnovers, 2 steals 

Dan Gherezgher 18/2/3, 4 turnovers 2 steals

LJ Wells 7/6/1

For Charleston:

Jlynn Counter 26/11/6, 4 turnovers, 3 steals

Connor Hickman 16/3/1, 2 steals, 1 turnover

Jaxon Prunty with 11/1/1, 2 turnovers

Chol Machot 9/5/1, 3 turnovers, 2 steals, 1 block 

Up Next: 

NKU is now off until their Matchup in Pittsburgh @ Robert Morris on 12/29! 

Charleston will be in action at home vs. Drexel on the same night!