Second Half Collapse Costs NKU as PFW’s 20–0 Burst Swings the Game
Northern Kentucky walked into Fort Wayne carrying momentum and a chance to stack another early-season win, but the afternoon turned into a test of composure and toughness. The Norse controlled the first half with efficient offense and disruptive defense, building a 15-point lead that looked secure. Everything changed after halftime, though, as Purdue Fort Wayne stormed back behind a relentless run and turned the game into a possession-by-possession fight. What started as one of NKU’s sharpest openings of the season ended with a frustrating 79–77 loss that exposed the narrow margins of league play.
First Half
NKU’s Pressure Sets the Tone
Northern Kentucky opened with a defensive surge that immediately dictated the pace. The Norse forced turnovers on three of Purdue Fort Wayne’s first four possessions, jumped passing lanes, and disrupted every early action the Dons tried to run. Ethan Elliott set the table with assists on NKU’s first two baskets, a backdoor slip to Tae Dozier and a pick-and-pop setup for a wide-open Kael Robinson three. By the second media timeout, NKU led 15–10 and had already forced four turnovers in the opening eight minutes.
Kael and LJ Carry the Early Scoring Load
Robinson and LJ Wells traded big moments as the offense settled in. Kael scored 11 of NKU’s first 15 points, knocking down threes, finishing around the rim, and keeping possessions alive on the offensive glass. Wells then went to work, first hitting a rhythm three before attacking Darius Duffy head-on. He scored on four of five trips, overpowering single coverage and even rejecting a dribble handoff so he could drive straight at Duffy. With seven minutes left, the duo had combined for 22 of NKU’s 24 points.
Gherezgher Joins the Party and the Run Explodes
With Kael and LJ already stretching the defense, Dan Gherezgher took over. Elliott found him for back-to-back threes, then another, and another. Three straight possessions, all assisted by Elliott, followed by a fourth coming off a baseline sideline out of bounds action out of a timeout. In a matter of minutes, NKU ripped off a 13–0 run and pushed the lead into double digits. At the under-4 timeout, NKU led 36–25 with 31 of its 33 points coming from Gherezgher, Wells, and Robinson.
PFW Shows Frustration, NKU Finishes Strong
Tempers flared when DeAndre Craig grabbed Donovan Oday in transition, resulting in a Flagrant 1. NKU capitalized and closed the half on a 17–4 run, powered by precise ball movement and Elliott’s steady control. He entered the break with seven assists and no turnovers. The Norse led 44–29 after holding PFW to 34% shooting, nine turnovers, and its second-lowest first-half scoring output of the season.
Second Half
PFW Flips the Game with a 20–3 Run
PFW opened the second half with a wave of energy that NKU had no answer for. After an early Robinson and-one briefly halted the momentum, the Norse offense unraveled. Possessions grew stagnant, shots came late or forced, and the defensive urgency that defined the first half evaporated. Craig buried back-to-back threes, Hadnot got downhill repeatedly, and NKU’s turnovers piled up. The 15-point halftime cushion vanished in five and a half minutes. In the postgame with Jim Kelch and Rick Broering, Horn flatly rejected the idea that PFW made adjustments, saying,
“They didn’t change anything. We just decided defense wasn’t important.”
NKU Searches for Answers as the Lead Swings Away
PFW eventually stretched the lead to six, and the Norse entered their first long stretch of struggles. Wells hesitated against the bigger Elisée, Oday struggled to finish and turned the ball over, and NKU repeatedly dribbled or spun into traps that became fast breaks the other direction. Robinson stopped one surge with another tough and-one, but the Dons kept answering. Hadnot’s deep three pushed the lead to eight. Horn pointed to NKU’s mindset:
“We’ve got a group that’s into offense because we can score… but we don’t have a group that believes you win by guarding.”
The Press Gives NKU Life, but Missed Chances Add Up
The full-court press finally breathed some life into the Norse. Robinson hammered a backdoor dunk from Elliott, Wells created second chances, and Dozier jumped a passing lane but started to look up for potential defenders and never secured the ball. Even so, NKU never flipped the deficit. Horn’s frustration centered here:
“As bad as we were defensively, if we take care of the ball better, we turn those into layups or free throws.”
Final Minutes Become a Possession-by-Possession Fight
Down two with 90 seconds left, NKU finally caught a break when PFW threw the ball away against pressure. Dozier missed a clean corner three, but Wells ripped down the rebound and knocked down two clutch free throws to tie the game at 74–74. Craig answered with a tough jumper. Robinson’s wide-open corner three on the next trip was on line but rimmed off. NKU seemed to force a turnover by trapping in the full-court press near the sideline, but after review, PFW was awarded the ball even though the call on the floor went NKU's way, and the camera angles were limited.
Hadnot pushed the lead to four at the line before Dan drilled a deep trail three with six seconds left. After Craig split a pair, NKU had one final chance. Gherezgher’s pull-up three at the horn came up well short, sealing a 79–77 PFW comeback.
Final Numbers and Takeaways
Purdue Fort Wayne’s second half run was the clear turning point. NKU has now had back-to-back games where a strong first half was followed by a major swing from the opponent, but this time the Norse couldn’t recover. PFW is a better team than Cleveland State, which is why they were able to sustain their push and control the game late instead of fading after their comeback.
The frustrating part is that PFW didn’t change anything schematically. NKU’s poor offensive possessions early in the second half bled directly into a lack of urgency on the defensive end. The ball got sticky, shots came late in the clock, and when the offense lost its rhythm, the defensive effort dipped with it. It felt like the group hit a wall and never fully pushed back.
Turnovers were the biggest anchor. NKU had just 6 giveaways in the first half, then added 12 more after the break, many of them unforced. Panic dribbles, loose-ball mishandles, and simple execution slips fed PFW. All eight rotation players who logged real minutes had at least one turnover, with Dan Gherezgher leading with five.
Offensively, NKU was carried by three players. Dan, Kael, and LJ combined for 67 of the team’s 77 points, while the rest of the roster shot just 4-for-20. Donovan Oday finished with a season-low four points and was scoreless after halftime. Tae Dozier never found traction either. If NKU gets even a modest lift from one of them on either end, they probably withstand PFW’s run.
On the other side, Corey Hadnot II scored 25 and repeatedly got downhill, although his free throw struggles kept the door open for NKU late. Stevenson was mostly inefficient and out of control, which gave NKU a few breaks, but not enough to flip the game.
The lineup conversation now becomes real. Based on Horn’s postgame comments, it would not surprise me to see a change on Tuesday against Brescia. Donovan Rakotonanahary sliding into the starting group is a possibility, with Oday or Dozier moving to the bench. The wild card is Ethan Elliott, who injured his left shoulder late and was clearly in pain, which may force NKU’s hand on Tuesday regardless of any planned rotation tweaks. Horn had this to say about Monday's practice and Tuesday's game:
“My overall thoughts are I can't wait to have practice on Monday… We can play some different guys. We can play some different guys if we have to.”
Purdue Fort Wayne's Key Players
Corey Hadnot II: 36 MIN, 25 PTS, 8-14 FG, 2-3 3PT, 7-13 FT, 4 REB, 4 AST, 4 STL, 3 TO
DeAndre Craig: 33 MIN, 16 PTS, 5-11 FG, 3-5 3PT, 3-4 FT, 4 REB, 1 STL
Mikale Stevenson: 33 MIN, 11 PTS, 4-13 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, 6 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL, 4 TO
Darius Duffy: 28 MIN, 6 PTS, 3-5 FG, 8 REB, 2 BLK, 3 STL, 4 TO
Maximus Nelson: 27 MIN, 6 PTS, 2-4 FG, 2-4 3PT, 2 REB, 2 TO
Ebrahim Kaba: 8 MIN, 5 PTS, 1-3 FG, 1-3 3PT, 2-2 FT, 2 REB, 5 PF, 1 TO
Northern Kentucky's Key Players
Dan Gherezgher: 36 MIN, 27 PTS, 8-19 FG, 7-14 3PT, 4-4 FT, 7 REB, 2 AST, 5 TO, 1 STL
Kael Robinson: 30 MIN, 26 PTS, 8-16 FG, 2-8 3PT, 8-8 FT, 7 REB, 1 AST, 2 TO
LJ Wells: 33 MIN, 14 PTS, 5-9 FG, 1-4 3PT, 3-4 FT, 7 REB, 2 AST, 2 TO, 1 BLK
Tae Dozier: 24 MIN, 2 PTS, 1-5 FG, 0-2 3PT, 4 REB, 1 AST, 2 STL, 2 TO
Ethan Elliott: 30 MIN, 0 PTS, 0-6 FG, 0-3 3PT, 1 REB, 10 AST, 1 TO
Donovan Oday: 23 MIN, 4 PTS, 1-7 FG, 0-4 3PT, 2-2 FT, 3 REB, 3 TO, 2 BLK, 1 STL
Donovan Rakotonanahary: 13 MIN, 4 PTS, 2-2 FG, 3 REB, 2 PF, 2 TO, 1 STL
Northern Kentucky
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Purdue Fort Wayne
|
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|---|---|---|
| Field Goals (FG) | 25-64 (39.1%) | 28-57 (49.1%) |
| Three-Point FG (3PT) | 10-35 (28.6%) | 9-19 (47.4%) |
| Free Throws (FT) | 17-18 (94.4%) | 14-22 (63.6%) |
| Total Rebounds (Offensive) | 36 (14) | 34 (11) |
| Assists | 16 | 15 |
| Steals | 5 | 12 |
| Blocks | 4 | 4 |
| Turnovers | 18 | 18 |
| Points Off Turnovers | 18 | 28 |
| Fast Break Points | 7 | 11 |
| Points in the Paint | 28 | 36 |
| Personal Fouls | 17 | 20 |
| Largest Lead | 15 | 6 |
Up Next- Brescia (Ky.) @ Truist Arena 7 PM
Brescia comes in as an NAIA program still searching for its first win at 0-7, and this matchup gives NKU a chance to reset and keep evaluating rotations against a non-D1 opponent. They haven’t played since November 25, so Tuesday will be their first game in two weeks. With it being a non-D1 matchup, Norse Illustrated won’t have full pregame coverage, but it’s still an opportunity for NKU to tighten details and experiment before returning to D1 opponents.
