Feb. 19, 2005

Box Score

ROMEOVILLE - Steve Turner scored 18 of his team-high 21 points in the second half of his final appearance at Neil Carey Arena Saturday, but it was to no avail as Lewis fell 72-66 to Northern Kentucky in a Great Lakes Valley Conference battle.

Turner shot 9-of-11 in the second half - part of the Flyers' 14-of-26 performance after intermission -- and finished 10-of-17. He also led Lewis with six rebounds.

Mike Kelsey scored 21 of his game-high 27 points in the second half to fuel Northern Kentucky (11-13, 7-11), which secured a GLVC Tournament berth with the victory. Kelsey, who was 0-of-8 from 3-point range in Lewis' 75-68 victory at NKU in December, was 0-of-5 from beyond the arc in the first half before going 4-of-6 following the break.

The game featured six ties in the first eight minutes. An 8-0 run by Lewis (10-15, 5-13) gave the Flyers their biggest lead, 20-14, at 9:52, but NKU responded with its own 7-0 spurt to grab a 21-20 edge at 7:25.

Neither team led by more than four points the rest of the half, and the score was knotted 32-32 at halftime.

Kelsey nailed two treys in the first four minutes to spark the Norse to a 43-38 advantage. John Loeffelholz scored on an alley-oop dunk and Turner netted two baskets to put Lewis back on top at 44-43 with 13:59 left, but Derek Smith's layup on NKU's next possession ignited an 8-0 run that resulted in a 51-44 Norse lead.

Two Turner buckets quickly sliced the NKU lead to 51-48, and another basket by the senior made it 53-50.

Later, the Flyers would come back from an eight-point deficit to trail by just three points twice inside the one-minute mark, the second time at 69-66 following Branden Hunter (Silvis, Ill./United Township)'s offensive rebound and basket with :12 to play. But NKU's Pat Cary made a free throw moments later, and Kelsey's steal and two free throws secured the win.

DeAndre Williams tallied 11 points and four assists in his final Neil Carey appearance. Senior teammate Randy Wright had nine points and four assists.

Kelsey added four rebounds and three steals to his 27 points. Cary had 18 points and a game-high eight rebounds for NKU, which shot 57.9 percent in the second half. The Norse also got 10 points and five rebounds from Courtney Fergerson, 10 assists from Sean Rowland and five assists from Jordan Stowers.

The Flyers travel to Saint Joseph's Feb. 24 for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff. With two games to play, Lewis has a one-game lead on Bellarmine and Missouri-St. Louis for the eighth and final GLVC Tournament spot.