HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Wofford men's basketball team fell in a foul-filled contest against the Northern Kentucky Norse on Wednesday afternoon, 83-93, in Truist Arena. The game had a total of 53 fouls called, with 74 free throws awarded to the two teams.

The Terriers (4-3) were led by a 21-point performance from Kahmare Holmes, followed closely by Nils Machoswki's 15. Machowski also grabbed 11 rebounds for his first career double-double. He also led the team with four assists. Brian Sumpter had two blocks, and four Terriers had one steal each.

"We have got to get tougher," said head coach Kevin Giltner. "Offensively, I have no problems with how we played. That match up was funky and for us to come in here and score 83… I had no problems at all offensively."

How It Happened
It took 3:19 minutes and 12 changes of possession for either team to score, after Kahmare Holmes was fouled during his shooting motion and went 1-2 from the line. It took until after the first media timeout for a team to make a field goal, with Holmes draining a three with close coverage. Wofford grabbed another three and made three more free throws before the
Norse grabbed their first bucket. Before the 13:01 minute mark, North Kentucky scored all its ten points from the line.

The low-scoring affair, 18-17, was prompted with both teams combining for 7-22 shooting at the halfway mark of the first period. Both teams were in foul trouble, with both in the bonus before that 11th minute. The Norse were more clinical from the line, going 12-12, while the Terriers went 6-11. The three was an early sign of life for Wofford, as they were shooting 50 percent from behind the arc heading into the under-eight timeout.

Max Ortega was an early leader on the day, the first Terrier to reach double-digits, going a perfect three for three from the field while grabbing two rebounds. Eight of Wofford's 10 points over the next four minutes came from the line, but the Terriers were not finding the momentum to bring the game closer with NKU holding a seven-point lead heading into the final four minutes of the half. After the final media stoppage Wofford would go on a 12-7 run to bring the game closer before the end of the half. Having trailed as many as eight in the half, the Terriers clawed it back to 45-43 going into the locker room.

The teams opened the second half with a combined three fouls in the first two possessions, leading to Rex Stirling converting one of his two free throws to open scoring in the half. On the next Wofford possession, the Melbourne, Australia native, would also grab an offensive rebound on his way to grabbing the first basket of the half for Wofford. Luke Flynn propelled the Terriers to their first lead since the opening five minutes with a corner three-pointer. Brian Sumpter grabbed two layups in back-to-back possessions to complete a 9-2 run before the first media timeout, Wofford up 53-49.

It returned to the back-and-forth game that was seen in the first half, with the teams going six possessions trading scores. Wofford held onto its lead for five minutes, but NKU grabbed the lead back with just over nine minutes on the clock. They would extend the lead to four before the under-eight timeout after a three-point make off an offensive rebound from a free throw miss.

The next stretch would go in favor of Wofford as Holmes drained two from the line and Nils Machowski finished a heavily contested shot to tie the game back up. The Terriers called their first timeout to reset the message heading into the final five minutes. Kahmare Holmes found himself on a fast break after a steal, but the ensuing Norseman fouled him with no play on the ball, earning himself a flagrant foul. Holmes converted both free throws, but the Terriers could not convert the possession.

With just two minutes left on the clock, Wofford found itself down by four. NKU would grab a bucket while the Terriers would convert their free throws to keep the game within four. After a timeout from the Norse, they were able to land a three-pointer with one second left on the shot clock to push NKU to 89-82 with 48 seconds to play. The Terriers' efforts to shorten the lead would fail, and Northern Kentucky would take down Wofford, 93-83.

Inside the Numbers

• Starters: Cayden Vasko, Luke Flynn, Kahmare Holmes, Nils Machowski, Rex Stirling. This is the first time this starting lineup has appeared for the Terriers.
• Wofford has trailed at halftime four times this season, going 1-3.
• The game had 53 fouls between the teams.
• Four or more Terriers have scored in double figures for four straight games.
• This is only the ninth time in this century that Wofford has lost after scoring 80 or more points.

Up Next
The Terriers are back in action on Saturday, November 29, at Eastern Kentucky with tip-off set for 5 p.m. in the Baptist Health Arena. Listen along at wofford.leanplayer.com or watch on ESPN+.