CHENEY, Wash. – Northern Kentucky opened its two-game road trip with a 81-60 loss to Eastern Washington on Wednesday. Daniel Camps had a team-high 14 points for the Norse, who fell to 2-3 on the season.
Camps and Jalen Billups each scored four points for the Norse in the opening 8:35 of the contest to keep NKU within three, 14-11. Six-straight points from Eastern Washington were followed by a trifecta from Camps.
However, a 17-6 run over the final eight minutes of the first half by the Eagles put NKU behind, 37-20. Eastern Washington (5-1) continued its spurt coming out of the break, outscoring Northern Kentucky, 14-6, in the opening minutes of the second frame to put the Norse down 25.
Behind the second-half three-point shooting of Todd Johnson, NKU kept in stride the rest of the way before falling, 81-60.
Paced by Camps’ 5-for-8 shooting effort, NKU connected on 37.3 percent (22-of-59) of its attempts from the floor. EWU knocked down 55.8 percent (29-of-52) of its shots. Northern Kentucky’s bench outscored Eastern Washington’s, 42-18, in the game.
Johnson knocked down four triples, matching his career-high for the fifth time, and gave NKU its second double-digit scorer with 12 points. Tayler Persons finished with seven points, seven rebounds and three assists. Jalen Billups tallied six points and team-best five boards.
Tyler Harvey, who entered the game as the nation’s leader in made threes, scored a game-high 20 points on the strength of four trifectas for Eastern Washington. Ognjen Miljkovic (14), Venky Jois (14) and Brandon Harvey (11) also reached double-figures for the Eagles.
Northern Kentucky will stay along the border between Washington and Idaho for a few more days. The Norse are headed to Moscow, Idaho, for a Saturday-evening tilt against the Idaho Vandals. Game-time is slated for 10:00 p.m. (ET).
