Jihad Muhammad is fouled by Northern Kentucky University's Pat Cary in the first half. (Enquirer photo/STEVEN M. HERPPICH)

Zero steals. One block. Fifteen turnovers. It all added up to the Norse's worst loss to Cincinnati in the team's 11 meetings, days after a loss to No. 9 Kentucky in an exhibition opener.

"This is reinforcement that when you show up, no matter who it is, you better be ready to play basketball," Bezold said. "And we were not ready, and they dominated us."

The Norse made only one shot in the first 10:27 and never recovered, connecting on one of 15 shots as the game unfolded. By the time freshman Harrison Morton infused a shot of confidence into the struggling offense, the Bearcats had a 22-5 lead.

Cincinnati beat NKU on the boards, in the paint and on fast breaks. Five UC players scored in double figures, compared to NKU's two: Morton, who led the team with 21 points, and senior guard Mike Kelsey with 14.

"Cincinnati was just bigger, and we couldn't really go inside and shoot that much," said Morton, who tried to distract the Bearcats from the perimeter.

Senior center Tory Reed couldn't find a rhythm inside and was called five times for traveling and committed six turnovers. He finished with six points and five rebounds.

NKU played without forward Derek Smith, a starter last week against Kentucky. Smith has a blister on the bottom of his left foot.

The Norse, which led Kentucky by as many as eight points, succumbed to turnovers and lost 91-73 at Rupp Arena Wednesday. The difference between that game and UC's, Bezold said, was that Kentucky had never seen the Norse before. And UC beat NKU for four straight years in exhibitions.

"We told them, 'We're not going to fool UC.' They've seen our guys in the summer, they know how we play," Bezold said. "And UK wasn't sure how we ran our offense, so we could get some open looks."

NKU concludes its exhibition schedule at Ohio State today at 7 p.m. It opens its season against Michigan Tech at Regents Hall Nov. 19.

---

E-mail srussell@enquirer.com