Tied 84-84 in OT with 11 seconds to go, Green Bay head coach Doug Gottlieb gathered his team together for a crucial timeout. As the buzzer sounded, both teams set up for what could be the final play of the game.
With the ball in his hands, Preston Ruedinger let the clock run. Five. Four. Three. He dribbled behind his back. Two. He found himself open. One. He took the shot.
The buzzer sounded as the ball floated in the air. Fans rose to their feet, hoping for a miss. Instead, Ruedinger hit the shot.
NKU fell 87-84 at home, extending their losing streak to five games. What could have been an opportunity to break .500 in conference play instead dropped the Norse to 6-8.
NKU hosted the Green Bay Phoenix on Feb. 4 at Truist Arena. In their last meeting, Green Bay held off the Norse and secured a two-point home victory after a fierce comeback.
To start the game, NKU’s bench was very vocal, standing and cheering for some of the new faces in the lineup, helping them feel more comfortable as the game went on.
“The game tonight was [Ethan Elliot’s] first live action since he went out with a concussion at Wright State,” said head coach Darrin Horn. “I had a lot of guys play a lot more minutes than they’re used to playing.”
In the first half, Green Bay shot 46% from the field, while NKU shot 35%. The Norse also shot 6-21 from beyond the arc, compared to the Phoenix, who made 2-8.
Graduate Student Tae Dozier and Senior Donovan Oday led the way for the Norse with 23 of the team’s 31 split between the two. Senior Dan Gherezgher, who averaged 16.3 points per game entering the contest, was 0-6 from the field and 0-5 from three, leading to a sluggish start for the Norse offensively.
For Green Bay, C.J. O’Hara led the team with nine points at halftime on 4-7 shooting. He averaged 14 points per game and is one of three players with 300+ total points on the season.
At halftime, Homecoming week was celebrated, with the Northerner’s very own assistant Arts and Life editor, Lillian Ramsey, being nominated on the Homecoming court.
NKU opened the second half down 35-31 but quickly found themselves in trouble, falling behind by 10 just two minutes in.
Green Bay controlled the game for most of the half, until Oday knocked down his first three-pointer to give the Norse their first lead of the game.
After Oday went 1-2 from the free-throw line, O’Hara attacked the basket and drew a foul, converting the first attempt but missing the second. NKU secured the rebound, but a costly turnover sent the ball out of bounds.
With 12 seconds remaining, Ruedinger found Hall, who drilled a game-tying three with eight seconds left to force overtime.
In overtime, NKU once again struggled defensively in the closing moments, surrendering a deep three to Ruedinger with just 0.5 seconds remaining, sealing the Norse’s fate.
NKU looks to snap their five-game losing streak at home against Milwaukee Feb. 7 in what has become a must-win game for NKU.