The Cincinnati Enquirer

Mike Kelsey scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half, when Northern Kentucky University rallied from a four-point deficit to defeat Saint Joseph's (Ind.) 86-75 at Regents Hall Saturday.

Jesse Rupe added 20 points and four blocked shots for the Norse (13-8, 6-5 Great Lakes Valley Conference). He made all nine of his attempts from the field and went 2-for-3 from the line for NKU, which trailed by one point at halftime and fell behind 45-41 with 19:01 remaining.

The Norse rallied behind 50-percent second-half shooting (16-of-32) and limited Saint Joseph's to 36 percent (14-of-39) in the period.

Rupe scored 16 points after the break, and he keyed a 22-7 run early in the second half with six points as NKU built a 63-52 lead. Adam Howell and Steve Purdon added five points each during the spurt.

With NKU holding a 73-63 lead with 7:38 remaining, Blake Schoen drained a 3-pointer to cut Saint Joseph's disadvantage to 73-66. Schoen then added a jumper for the Pumas to make the score 73-68.

But Rupe responded with a pair of baskets to push NKU's advantage back to 77-68.

Pat Cary added 12 points and nine rebounds for NKU, which defeated Saint Joseph's (8-10, 4-7) for a third straight time.

Howell finished with 10 points, and Purdon added eight points and seven rebounds for NKU.

Corey Seegers led Saint Joseph's (8-10, 4-7) with 22 points and eight rebounds. Derek Fey added 18 points for the Pumas, who upset 13th-ranked Indianapolis on Thursday.

Kelsey has 1,040 career points and moved up to 22nd on NKU's all-time scoring list.

Thomas More 100, LaGrange 89

Junior center Chad Wachs scored 23 points and the Saints outscored the Panthers 60-35 in the second half to wipe out a 14-point halftime deficit.

Wachs shot 11-of-13 from the field for Thomas More (6-9), which earned its third straight victory. The three-game winning streak is the first for the Saints since the 1998-99 season.

Saints freshman guard Chris Hill, playing in place of injured Will Adams, totaled 16 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in his first collegiate start.

Franklin 81, Mount St. Joseph 75

Tom Luther scored a game-high 21 points for the Lions, who couldn't overcome Franklin's 57-percent shooting from the field.

Luther shot 8-of-14 on field goals and 5-of-10 on free throws for the Mount (7-10, 1-5 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference).

Jared Sabelhaus totaled 15 points to lead four players scoring in double figures for Franklin (11-6, 3-3).

Women: Northern Kentucky 68, Saint Joseph's (Ind.) 59

Betsey Clark came off the bench and scored eight points during a key 30-6 second-half run that rallied the Norse from a four-point deficit.

NKU, ranked No. 22 in the NCAA Division II poll, trailed 34-30 with 18:36 to play before the scoring surge helped the Norse defeat the Pumas for the 20th consecutive time.

Nikki Perkins scored 14 points to lead NKU (12-5, 7-4 GLVC), which shot 58.3 percent (14-of-24) from the field in the second half. Sharell Snardon added 13 points and seven rebounds for the Norse.

Connie Myers, Karmen Graham and Jessica Brock scored 16 points apiece for NKU.

Heather Allen had game-highs with 25 points and nine rebounds for Saint Joseph's (5-12, 2-9).

Franklin 67, Mount St. Joseph 59

Kindra Moorman had 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead Franklin (14-3, 5-1 HCAC).

Nekeala Richardson finished with 17 points for the Lions (7-9, 3-3), who shot just 29 percent (19-of-65) from the field.

Cincinnati State 65, Owens 55

Crystal Norman totaled 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Khaleelah Head had 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Surge (18-6, 5-0 Ohio Community College Athletic Conference). Janice Bright added 17 points for Cincinnati State.