But they’ve had trouble all year against athletic teams with have active players around the rim — and it was obvious again in their 88-77 defeat Thursday night.
“We had three wins in a row. We had a tough game in Cleveland, a gritty one at IUPUI,” Noel said of the last two victories. “I thought we might come out with some good energy, and it just didn’t seem like we did.
“I don’t have an answer for why that’s the case. It’s disappointing. I wish we could have gotten this one. It stings — a lot. Any loss stings.”
The defending regular-season champs had a 38-26 rebounding edge, picking up 12 on the offensive end.
In the last four games, the Raider foes have racked up 59 offensive rebounds while only allowing 24.
“They just whipped us on the glass,” coach Scott Nagy said. “We forced enough misses. We weren’t great defensively, and we weren’t the worst we’ve ever been. But we can’t get the ball.
“It isn’t like I haven’t been complaining about this. It’s all I’ve been talking about. At some point …” Nagy stopped before finishing his thought. “It’s my responsibility,” he said.
Basketball hasn’t changed much over the years. Defensive rebounding still comes down to boxing out, though sometimes superior athletes can leap to get the ball without an over-the-back foul.
“It’s not that simple, but that’s pretty important — that you actually put your body on somebody and move them. Not just put your body on them, but MOVE them. And we’re not doing that. We’re not even close to that,” Nagy said.
The Raiders, who are 12-11 overall and 7-5 in the league, don’t have time to sulk. They visit preseason favorite Northern Kentucky at 2 p.m. Sunday, looking to break a two-game losing streak at BB&T Arena.
The two teams have dominated the league the last seven years. The Norse have four HL tourney titles, including last season, and two regular-season crowns.
The Raiders have won the tourney twice and the regular-season championship three times in that span.
NKU is also the lone team in the league with a winning record against Nagy, going 9-8 — though YSU pulled even at 8-8 with its fourth straight victory.
But the Norse are in a rut, too. They’re just 11-11 overall and 6-5 in the league. They lost their last two games, getting surprised at home by Purdue Fort Wayne, 63-58, and taking a thrashing at Youngstown State, 82-52.
They took a big hit when preseason second-team all-league pick Sam Vinson suffered a season-ending torn ACL on Dec. 21.
The 6-foot-5 junior guard was second on the team in scoring (13.3) and rebounding (5.1).
NKU is adding a some pizzaz to the game, starting a tailgate party at 10 a.m., staging a “Gold Out” in the arena and awarding the first 500 students replica jerseys.
Asked about hitting the reset button for NKU, Nagy said: “It’ll be up to the players, whether they can move past the disappointment.
“They’re another good offensive rebounding team. They just are. They value it, and if we can’t block out, it ain’t going to matter.”
SUNDAY’S GAME
Wright State at Northern Kentucky, 2 p.m., ESPN+, 101.5, 1410
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