Getty Darrin Horn and the Northern Kentucky Norse take on Cleveland state in the Horizon Conference tournament championship.
The No. 4 seed Northern Kentucky Norse (22-12) and the No. 3 seed Cleveland State Vikings (21-12) will clash in the Horizon Tournament Championship on Tuesday, March 7.
The game (7 p.m. ET) will be televised on ESPN, but if you don’t have cable, you can watch a live stream on ESPN+, FuboTV or DirecTV Stream.
Here’s a full guide on how to watch a live stream of NKU vs Cleveland State:
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Free Trial: FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of ESPN and 100-plus other live TV channels on FuboTV, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch NKU vs Cleveland State live on the FuboTV app or FuboTV website.
Compatible devices for the FuboTV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Fubo credentials to do that.
Free Trial: DirecTV Stream
DirecTV Stream has four different channel packages: “Entertainment,” “Choice,” “Ultimate” and “Premier.” ESPN is included in every one, and you can pick any package and any add-on you want with your free five-day trial:
Once signed up for DirecTV Stream, you can watch NKU vs Cleveland State live on the DirecTV Stream app or DirecTV Stream website.
Compatible devices for the DirecTV Stream app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Samsung TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your DirecTV Stream credentials to do that.
Cheapest Without Free Trial: ESPN+
If you’ve already used up your free trials for other streaming services, the cheapest way to watch the game is through ESPN+, which costs $9.99 per month:
ESPN+ also includes dozens of other live sports, every 30-for-30 documentary and additional original content (both video and written) for $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year (or $13.99 per month for a bundle of all three of ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu).
Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch NKU vs Cleveland State live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com.
Compatible devices for the ESPN app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4 or 5, Xbox One or Series X/S, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), Samsung Smart TV, Oculus Go, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
Sling TV
You can watch a live stream of ESPN and 40-plus other live TV channels via Sling TV’s “Sling Orange” bundle. This option doesn’t include a free trial, but it’s the cheapest live-TV streaming service with the ESPN channels, and you can get your first month for half off:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch NKU vs Cleveland State live on the Sling TV app or Sling TV website.
Compatible devices for the Sling TV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Sling credentials to do that.
NKU vs Cleveland State Preview
NKU took down Youngstown State, 75-63, in the semifinals. Marques Warrick led the Norse with 22 points, while Sam Vinson scored 17 and Chris Brandon added eight points and snagged a team-high 17 rebounds in a solid overall team effort.
“We knew it would be a tough game coming in, we have a tremendous amount of respect for Youngstown State,” Northern Kentucky head coach Darrin Horn said after the win. “Our guys did the things we needed to do to play well. We were aggressive at both ends. A big factor in the game was how often we got to the free throw line and how we shot it there.”
Horn has a point. NKU made it to the charity stripe 38 times, making 28 of those attempts. The Norse also turned the ball over just three times in the win.
On the other side, the Vikings took down Milwaukee, 93-80, to punch their ticket into the finals. Junior Tristian Enaruna finished with a game-high 24 points for Cleveland State, while four other Vikings players finished in double-figures, including Tae Williams (18 points), Diontae Johnson (14 points) and Yahel Hill (11 points).
CSU took an aggressive stance out of the gate, going up early and never relinquishing the lead. The Vikings shot 49.3% from the field and they got to the line more, hitting 19 of 22 shots from the charity stripe compared to Milwaukee’s 13 free throws on 17 attempts.
“The tempo was dictated by their press, and we wanted to be aggressive against their press. The way they play, they try to wear you down,” Cleveland State head coach Daniyal Robinson said. “We took what they gave us. And we turned them over and were able to score. … We took what they gave us. And we turned them over and were able to score.”
“I’m really proud of how we came out playing together and implementing the gameplan,” Robinson added. “Everybody that came in brought something to the table.”
Cleveland State and Northern Kentucky last met on February 19, with the Vikings eking out a 64-63 victory. The Norse will have to improve their shooting if they want to come out on top in this one, as they hit just 37% of their field goal attempts and 17% of their 3-point attempts in their win in the semis. NKU has six of its last seven games against Cleveland State.