Northern Kentucky Sports Chronicle

(This column was originally published on Aug. 27, 2018) ----- At first glance, I thought it was a mistake. Could a high school baseball player have really driven in 11 runs during a single game? Not just 11 RBI, but every run during an 11-0 victory? That’s what the Newport High School Hall of Fame biography says for 2014 charter inductee Jim Cutter, who was the preeminent hitter of 9 th  Region baseball in the 1970s. Cutter was a mixture of Mike Trout, Superman, James Bond and Bo Jackson as a do-everything athlete for the Wildcats, earning 11 varsity letters. But all 11 of Newport’s RBI in a single baseball game?   Turns out, it’s completely factual. Cutter hit a grand slam, three-run homer, two-run homer and two-run double as Newport — er, make that Jim Cutter — clobbered Campbell County by an 11-0 score in 1978. There are eyewitnesses around to vouch for the feat, too. “I was an assistant coach at the time and was there to see it,” said Grady Brown, who has been associated with the

(This story was originally published on Feb. 26, 2020) Are you searching for the ultimate irony of sports justice inside the wishy-washy, leaning-tower-of-jello world called the NCAA? Look no further. It’s on full display simultaneously at Northern Kentucky University and the University of Houston. All you need to do is peer through the NCAA eyepiece nicknamed “betterment of the student-athlete” and you’ll see the contradictory view. But it’s easier to locate Alpha Centauri with a hand-held magnifying glass than to find common sense through the NCAA’s flawed administrative telescope.   Unfortunately for NKU senior basketball standout Tyler Sharpe, the NCAA’s logic-challenged focus is on the 11 total minutes he played as a freshman walk-on at the University of Louisville. And those seven games — virtually all in mop-up roles — will cost Sharpe a year of eligibility. Meanwhile, Houston quarterback D’Eriq King — a full scholarship recipient — throws for 663 yards and six touchdowns during

Attached below in a PDF file is the history timeline of Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball. It was published for several years in the NKU media guides and features much of the history from 1971 until 2013. Also included are team photos from each season (1971-2013) and all-time records that were updated through 2013.

(This column was originally published on Dec. 23, 2019) Christmas Eve is always my favorite day of the year. For many reasons. For several decades. From trying to figure out how Santa Claus and his reindeer would land on the rooftop, to driving around the area looking at the various holiday displays. Sneaking down the steps to see my parents putting gifts underneath the tree. Spending time with family and friends. Christmas Eve is a special time, then and now. My all-time favorite college basketball memory also occurred on a Christmas Eve. Of course, it depends on if you go by the Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone or Eastern Time, because that moment occurred around 2 a.m. (EST) on Dec. 24, 1982. That’s the night Chaminade stunned the college basketball world by defeating top-ranked Virginia in Honolulu. Technically, the game tipped off on Dec. 23, 1982, in Hawaii. But by the time Chaminade — then an NAIA program — had pulled off the gargantuan upset of previously unbeaten Virginia and All-Ame

(This article was originally published on March 27, 2000) By Sean Keeler Post staff reporter PINE BLUFF, Ark. — The Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team, coming off a 2000 NCAA Division II national championship Saturday, has more than enough pieces coming back this fall to make a repeat run. NKU returns all five starters from this season's national champion. The roster is composed of four juniors, two sophomores and four freshmen. While the program has maintained a standard of excellence — a 62-5 record over the last two seasons, 32 wins this year — the Norse know they've become an extra-special marquee game for their opponents next season. “We already know we have a big target on our backs for next season,” said junior guard Michele Tuchfarber, who had nine points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals in a 71-62 overtime win over North Dakota State. It’s a role that was more familiar to the favored Bison, whose program had won five national titles. I

(This story was originally published on Nov. 12, 2011) HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — For their 40th birthday on Saturday, the Norse of Northern Kentucky University blew out the candles. Then, they blew away UC-Clermont. NKU opened the game with a 38-8 run and cruised to a 106-58 victory over visiting UC-Clermont. Given it was the 40th anniversary of the program’s first-ever game, the Norse appropriately built a 40-point halftime lead (64-24) by shooting 61.1 percent from the field. “We moved the ball really well in the first half and knocked down open shots, and that allowed us to build a huge lead,” NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. “We were able to get everyone in the game, and it was a nice way to begin the regular season.” Jon Van Hoose led NKU (1-0) with 17 points, going 5-for-8 from 3-point range. DeAndre Nealy added 16 points and nine rebounds in his Norse debut, while Stretch Watson finished with 14 points and nine boards. Ethan Faulkner scored 13 points, dished out six assists and co