All five seniors were in the starting line-up for the Raiders on senior night as Wright State defeated the Northern Kentucky Norse (9-18; 5-11 Horizon) 67-64 at the Nutter Center on Saturday, Feb. 20.
“It was people’s last impression of me and I wanted to go out as a winner,” senior forward Joe Thomasson said. “It feels good getting a win on senior night and me making a clutch play down the stretch.”
The Raiders led 65-62 with 55 seconds remaining when sophomore guard Grant Benzinger fouled NKU guard Tyler White on a drive the basket. After sinking both free-throws, the Norse trailed by one with 44 seconds to go. The Raiders turned the ball over, then Thomasson stripped the ball from White and drew a foul with five seconds remaining. Joe sank both free-throws as the Raiders held on after the Norse out-scored WSU 37-35 in the second half.
“I played it smart and made a senior move,” Thomasson said. “That’s what seniors are supposed to do and I feel like I did my job.”
Senior center Michael Karena led the Raiders with 17 points while sophomore guard Grant Benzinger was close behind with 16.
White led the way for the Norse with a game-high 21 points followed by freshman forward Drew McDonald and guard Cole Murray each with 11.
Neither team got much going in the first half as WSU led 5-4 after the first 4:20, then 13-11 after 10 minutes.
Benzinger sank a three-pointer followed by a lay-up by freshman guard Parker Ernsthausen to give WSU an 18-12 lead with 8:11 remaining. The Norse powered back with a 5-1 run over the next 1:22 before WSU retaliated with a 9-2 run over the next three minutes.
Benzinger sank a three with 2:49 remaining to give the Raiders their largest lead of the half at 30-20. A 7-2 run by NKU made a halftime score of 32-27.
Benzinger sank a three with 13:46 remaining to put the Raiders up 46-35, then hit another jump shot with 9:08 remaining to give WSU their largest lead of the game at 13.
The Norse retaliated with a 7-0 run over the next two minutes to cut the deficit to six-points before cutting the deficit to one-point with 44 seconds remaining.
After the win, Wright State (17-12) finishes with a 13-2 record at the Nutter Center with two-games remaining in the regular season; both on the road. WSU is tied with Oakland (19-10) in the Horizon League standings with an 11-5 conference record, but the Golden Grizzlies own the tie-breaker. Oakland travels to UIC (5-21; 3-12 Horizon) then hosts Detroit (15-12; 9-7).
The game was followed by a senior night presentation showcasing the five seniors on the roster: Daniel Collie, Joe Thomasson, JT Yoho, Michael Karena and Biggie Minnis.
“You remember a lot of games in your career but senior nights are right at the top of the list,” Raiders head coach Billy Donlon said. “We did our job and now we have to go on the road and take care of business.”
Next up for WSU will be Youngstown State (10-17; 5-9 Horizon) on Thursday, Feb. 25 at 7:45 p.m.
