BOX SCORE

MOREHEAD, Ky. – Senior guard A.J. Hicks tied his own school record with nine steals Tuesday night, but his Eagle men's basketball team saw Northern Kentucky pull away in the second half as MSU fell 93-71 to the Norse at Johnson Arena.
 
MSU slipped to 2-5 with its third consecutive setback, while the Norse moved to 7-1. NKU has now claimed three straight in the series.
 
Hicks, who had set the program record with nine swipes last year against UT Martin, also scored a team-high 20 points.

"I thought A.J. had a really solid game," said head coach Preston Spradlin. " I thought he was engaged and got us into our offense, and he was disruptive on defense."
 
The Norse scored the first five and later held a 14-10 lead at the 14:16 mark of the opening half. But, a 9-0 run by the Eagles, started by a pair of De'von Cooper free tosses, pushed MSU into a 19-14 cushion just two minutes later. The Norse went for a 4:06 period without a field goal but stayed within reach.
 
An 11-0 run henceforth for the visitors turned the tide into a 27-21 Norse lead at the 7:41 media timeout. The Norse held a 46-38 advantage at the halftime break.
 
A 7-0 run by the Norse to open the second half catapulted them as the visitors ended up leading by as much as 26 in the final half. NKU shot 68 percent in the final half and 63 percent for the night.

"I didn't really feel like it was a 22-point loss," Spradlin added. "Because my focus is on us just getting better, and I really felt like we were light years ahead of Sunday (a loss to Lipscomb), especially offensively. NKU did a good job of getting open shots against our defense, so for us, it's a process. I do feel like we are getting better."
 
Drew McDonald finished with a triple-double for NKU (12 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists), while Tyler Sharpe registered a career-high 28 points.
 
Senior forward Lamontray Harris notched 15 points and seven rebounds, including 13 in the second period. He also set a career high with five assists. Cooper tallied 14 points. The Eagles nailed nine three-pointers.
 
The Eagles are back in action on Friday against Ohio-Chillicothe. The Education Day game will tip off at 11:05 a.m. ET.