Northern Kentucky Norse 85 | Oakland Golden Grizzlies 84
OU Credit Union O’rena, Rochester, Michigan, March 4, 2026
NKU was able to do just enough to squeak past Oakland.
The first half of this matchup was as expected, a back and forth affair with two teams who are relatively evenly matched. The first half saw an impressive performance from the Norse, who were able to hold Oakland to just 31 points on 13-33 from the field, 4-14 from deep, and most importantly 1-2 from the FT line. Oakland did grab 20 rebounds and had an extremely balanced attack with 2 guys with 9 (Garrett, Robinson), and Naivalurua with 6. NKU’s first half saw Donovan Oday put up 11 points to lead 6 Norse scorers. LJ Wells put up 8, and Tae/Kael/Dan had 5 each. The Norse shot 15-36 from the field, 6-18 from deep, and 1-2 from the FT line. They turned it over just 2 times, committed just 4 fouls, and pulled down 21 rebounds.
The second half, however, was a much different story. NKU shot 14-25 from the field, 3-10 from deep, and 17-28 from the FT line. That right there is the sole reason this game was close. NKU left so many points on the line tonight that a 13 point lead was able to evaporate to just a 1 point victory. LJ and Dan carried the team with 10 and 12 second half points respectively, however, LJ also kept Oakland in it with a 4-10 performance from the FT line. With approximately 2:00 remaining, Oakland started fouling and NKU’s offense took the foot off the gas. There were multiple trips to the FT line where the Norse missed both, and a couple other trips where the Norse went 1-2. They have to fix that if they want any chance at winning the next one. Oakland’s second half saw 18-41/9-20/8-10, 5 turnovers, and an unreal 27 from Brody Robinson!
Overall, NKU took a 4 point lead with 1:58 remaining, but was unable to close the door on Oakland because of their performance from the FT line. If the Norse had hit their shots, this would’ve ended up as a 10 point game. NKU finished 29-61 (48%) from the field, 9-28 (32%) from deep, and 18-30 (60%) from the FT line. Oakland was 31-74 (42%)/13-34 (38%)/9-12 (75%). NKU was able to use a balanced scoring attack in both halves to build a lead and cling to it to end the game. A lot of that comes down to pure grit and toughness on the side of the Norse. LJ Wells’ 11 rebounds were vital tonight.
Revisiting the three keys:
Fouls
NKU committed a total of 15 team fouls, resulting in just 12 free throw attempts for the Grizzlies. Oakland, however, committed 26 (most of them late), resulting in 30 free throw attempts for the Norse. While NKU couldn’t capitalize on things and made it more difficult on themselves at times, the Norse were able to do enough to take advantage here.
Take Good Shots
For the most part, NKU did well at picking their shots. They took just 28 3’s (46% of their shot attempts). That is almost spot on for their average amount. I know it seems high, especially at 32%, but the other matchups this % was much higher.
Rebound the Ball
NKU actually lost the rebounding battle, largely due to their weakness on the offensive glass. However, they were able to limit second chance points to just a 21-19 deficit for the Norse. Keeping things as close as they did allowed them to neutralize this perceived advantage that Oakland had coming in and take care of Oakland.
Summary
Despite a couple of areas that the Norse will look to clean up heading into their next matchup, tonight was a gritty, impressive win for the Norse. Of note, the Norse are the lowest seeded team remaining in the Horizon League Tournament, however, they’re playing like one of the better teams in the conference at this time. As coach Horn has said multiple times: this team is just a couple of plays from being on a 6+ game win streak. The Norse are peaking at the right time, they now just need to consistently play at a high level.
Record update: Coach Horn is now officially 3-0 against teams that have beaten them 2 times in the regular season. This stat will, yet again, be tested on Sunday afternoon when NKU heads to Indy to face off with Green Bay!
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