Under the Radar Game of the Day: Wright State at Northern Kentucky

Wright State at Northern Kentucky, 7:00 PM Eastern, espn3

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This is the time of the season that teams in the Under the Radar conferences are battling it out for regular season championships and top seeds in their league tournaments.  However, there are some equally compelling battles that can happen lower down in conference standings, as teams battle for seeding position.  One such battle is taking place in the Horizon League tonight as our Under the Radar Game of the Day focuses in on the game between Wright State and Northern Kentucky.  The visiting Wright State Raiders enter play tonight at 19-9 overall and 10-5 in conference play, tied with Green Bay for third place, one game behind Oakland.  They have won four straight games including a double overtime thriller at Cleveland State on Saturday.  Grant Benzinger had an impressive 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Raiders in the victory.

Northern Kentucky is only a game behind Wright State, sitting at 18-10 overall and 9-6 in Horizon League play.  The Norse are eligible for the Division I tournament for the first time ever this season after having completed their four year transition.  They had won 6 of 7 games before being upset at Youngstown State this past weekend.  Their wins during that stretch included an 83-79 win in Dayton over Wright State back on February 4.  Drew McDonald led the Norse in scoring with 20 points, but was only one of four NKU players in double-digits in that win.  A home win tonight will not only move the Norse into a tie with Wright State, but will also give them the tiebreaker edge in seeding for the conference tournament.  Although Valparaiso continues to lead the conference standings, the Crusaders have had enough missteps in conference play that the door may be open for either of the teams in tonight’s contest to sneak in and steal the Horison League tourney title and its automatic bid.