Predictable chaos. Those who follow Horizon League basketball know the conference is exceptionally deep, with a different conference tournament champion each of the last five years. When three-fourths of the teams have genuine title hopes, the ensuing parity opens the door to teams picked lower in the preseason poll.
In three of the last five years, a squad picked in the bottom half of the Horizon League preseason vote has reached the NCAA Tournament, while the favorite has only won once.
This season, the Milwaukee Panthers had the unfortunate honor of being the preseason favorite.
On Friday night, Milwaukee did not look like the team that received 57% of first-place votes, suffering a rare 85-67 home loss to Northern Kentucky.
The 18-point margin was the worst home defeat of Bart Lundy’s four-year UWM tenure.
After starting 1-2 in conference play, the Norse — picked to finish sixth in the league — are now one of the hottest teams in the Horizon. Four straight wins now have the senior-laden team within a half-game of first place in the Horizon League at 5-2.
For the fourth straight game, Milwaukee dug itself a 20-point first-half hole.
The NKU offense was ruthless and efficient, scoring 55 points before halftime. The Norse kept the Panthers off-balance with blistering pace, crisp ball movement, and accurate three-point shooting.
When the visitors had a rare miss, they punished the Panthers with their physicality. Northern Kentucky turned 11 first-half offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points. Five of those boards led to made threes as a close game quickly became a rout.
Bart Lundy made it clear that he expected more of his team. “We’ve got to have two things,” Lundy said after the game, “make less mistakes and have more toughness.”
The lack of toughness showed up in the rebounding margin. NKU finished with a 14-rebound advantage against a Milwaukee squad that ranked in the KenPom top 100 in offensive and defensive rebounding rate.
Even down three starters, Lundy made no excuses for his inexperienced squad amidst a four-game skid. “I don’t remember ever getting out-rebounded like that. It’s effort. It’s intensity. The learning curve has to happen fast.”
Kael Robinson’s path to DI stardom began halfway across the world.
The New Zealand native spent three years at Rocky Mountain College, an NAIA program in Montana, then played last year for Division II Montana State-Billings. Now at the DI level playing for the Norse, the 6-foot-7 forward is playing some of his best ball.
Robinson entered Friday shooting 45.5% from deep while ranking seventh in the Horizon League at 15.6 PPG.
The Kiwi surpassed that average in the first half with 17 points on five made threes. Robinson hit four more threes after halftime to finish with nine treys for the game and a season-high 29 points.
With his parents both in attendance, Robinson tied an NKU record with nine made threes — also the most of any New Zealander in a DI college basketball game.
When 8 of 11 Horizon League teams are .500 or better in the conference, every league game becomes crucial.
Following a slow start, Northern Kentucky has looked every bit a genuine contender. The Norse’s 18-point road win over Milwaukee continues a strong stretch of play that also includes triumphs over frontrunners Robert Morris and Youngstown State.
Offensively, NKU’s improved three-ball accuracy has raised its ceiling. Darrin Horn’s team is shooting 41.7% from deep over its last three games, with a season-best 14 made threes against Milwaukee.
Alongside sharp-shooter Kael Robinson, senior guard Donovan Oday and Dan Gherezgher also average at least 15 PPG.
Oday is a persistent inside threat, shooting better than 60% from two-point range while hitting the second-most free throws of any Horizon League player. His backcourt mate Gherezgher is another marksman, leading the conference in three-point attempts.
While Northern Kentucky’s recent success has come on offense, the program’s roots are in defense.
The Norse are not particularly tall but offer significant positional length. Horn frequently deploys an aggressive zone defense that has ranked in the top 50 in turnover rate for five straight years.
Off takeaways, NKU pushes the pace. Despite forcing a season-low nine turnovers against UWM, the Norse still managed 28 fast-break points.
With a balanced approach, Darrin Horn’s experienced Northern Kentucky squad is asserting itself as a true Horizon League frontrunner.
