LEXINGTON, Ky. (November 13, 2026) – Northern Arizona men's basketball was mere seconds away from a landmark program win, but No. 24/RV Kentucky stole victory away from the Lumberjacks with a late 3-pointer. Alex Wilkins connected on a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds to push Kentucky to a 78-77 victory on Friday, halting NAU's bid for its first-ever win over a nationally-ranked team.
 
The Lumberjacks (0-4) fell to 0-35 all-time against top 25 teams, but they gave the Wildcats (3-1) all they could handle in front of 19,459 fans in Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center.
 
"Right now, it's hard. It would've been the biggest win in NAU history," said head coach Shane Burcar. "We're a 3-pointer away. The guys played so hard. They played right, they played together. To play with that type of energy tells you everything you need to know about our guys after our road trip to start the season."
 
The Lumberjacks trailed by as much as 13 points in the first half and eight points at halftime, but battled back to lead 77-73 following a Cade Bennett 3-pointer with 21.9 seconds remaining. Kentucky followed with a jumper on its next possession, and then was forced to foul 
 
NAU went to the free throw line and missed the front end of a one-and-one. The ensuing rebound went off a Wildcat though, giving the Lumberjacks another opportunity. However, a second missed free throw on the next bonus opportunity set up Wilkins' late game heroics.
 
Wilkins, who was one of three Wildcats with a team-high 14 points among five double-digit scorers, knocked down a triple from the right win to give Kentucky, the all-time winningest Division I men's college basketball program, the one-point 78-77 lead. NAU's three-quarter court heave did not draw iron.
 
"Everyone in this industry is a competitive person and when the ball is tipped, you believe you can win the game," Burcar said. "The how-to for us is possession by possession playing NAU basketball. We were a heavy underdog, but you never look at it like that when you're in the battlefield."
 
Chris Komin posted his third 20-point game, leading all players with 25 points on just 16 shots. Komin was the main cog in an effective NAU 3-point shooting effort, making 5-of-8 behind the arc. As a team, the Lumberjacks shot 50.0% (13-of-26) from long distance. Komin also totaled game-highs of seven rebounds and six assists, the latter of which tied a career-high.
 
NAU excelled in many areas that were thorns in its side over the first three games. The Lumberjacks had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio (18 assists, 10 turnovers). The 10 turnovers were a season-low, while the Lumberjacks also held a sizeable rebounding advantage, 32-20. Most impressively, Kentucky had a single offensive rebound after NAU allowed 14.0 offensive rebounds per game prior to Friday.
 
Despite being 32.5 point underdogs, the Lumberjacks got out to a fast start, making four of their first six shots from the field, including dunks by Lucas Toukam and Tamiel Green, in claiming a 9-8 lead at the first media timeout. The 'Jacks remained close, trailing only 22-20 with 8:43 left in the first half following a Komin jumper, before they endured their longest drought of the game.
 
NAU went more than four points without scoring, committing four turnovers in that stretch, while Kentucky went on a 7-0 run. The Wildcat lead grew as large as 39-26 with 2:40 before halftime, only for Komin to knock down consecutive 3-pointers to bring NAU within seven points.
 
Kentucky eventually went into halftime with a 45-37 lead, shooting 62.1% from the field to offset a strong offensive half by NAU with a field goal clip of 46.2%.
 
The 'Jacks seized momentum and silenced the Rupp Arena crowd with an 11-0 run to turn a 49-40 deficit into a 51-49 advantage. Ryan Abelman, who drilled three triples for the fourth consecutive game to start the season, gave the Lumberjacks a 54-52 lead at the 12:22 mark that they would maintain for more than seven minutes until the Wildcats took a brief 63-62 advantage.
 
Abelman put NAU ahead, 70-68, with his final 3-pointer with three minutes remaining, and the Lumberjacks answered every Wildcat basket with one of their own capped by Bennett's trey with 21.9 seconds left for NAU's final points.
 
Backing Komin's 25 points was Lucas Toukam, who scored a career-best 18 points in his fourth career game. Toukam also had six rebounds, with four coming on the offensive glass. Abelman and Bennett had nine points each with Bennett notching a career-high scoring game.
 
"This team cares about one another and you don't see that in the stats," Burcar said. "We're capable of playing with anybody. Rupp Arena was rocking. Perspective-wise, there's a lot to look forward to, but to not pull the win off tonight, it's tough and I feel for the guys."
 
After four road games to start the season, the last two against nationally-ranked opponents, NAU finally opens its home slate on Tuesday, Nov. 17, at Findlay Toyota Court. The Lumberjacks host Embry-Riddle in their first of 14 home games inside the Rolle Activity Center.
 
Season and single-game tickets are available for purchase at this link.
 
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