HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — Matt Rosenwinkel has played nearly four years of basketball at Northern Kentucky University, but all of that time flashed before his eyes near the end of the Horizon League Conference Championship between the Norse and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers.

With a spot in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on the line, Northern Kentucky (24-10) hung on to defeat Wisconsin-Milwaukee this past Tuesday by a score of 59-53 to win the conference title and enter the Big Dance as a No. 15 seed. It was an unbelievable feeling for Rosenwinkel, who scored well over 1,000 points as a player at Rochelle Township High School.

“I still don’t believe that I actually get to play in this thing,” he said. “The game was pretty close toward the end so the only thing I was thinking about was winning the game… It’s been such a long journey and it was crazy to cap it off with a chance to go to the NCAA Tournament.”

The Norse will face the University of Kentucky, a No. 2 seed with a record of 29-5, in the first round of the south region on Friday at 8:40 p.m. The Wildcats feature a trio of standout freshmen in De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Bam Adebayo, but Rosenwinkel said his squad is just as good.

“We have some pretty talented freshmen too and we have a lot of homegrown Kentucky kids,” he said. “We’re not going to be scared to play against these kids. We’ve won a lot of big games this year and we’re both good teams… Anything can happen.”

Rosenwinkel said he has gone through many changes at Northern Kentucky including coaches, sponsorships, scenery and more. But the NKU senior and former Hub sharpshooter has been a steady presence on the team’s roster, and he said he’s enjoyed his time in Highland Heights, where he pursuing a degree in finance.

“It’s been a fun time,” he said. “If I could go back I wouldn’t change anything. I’ve met some of my best friends here.”

Under the tutelage of Rochelle head basketball coach Tim Thompson, Rosenwinkel became one of the program’s elite players. Along with Grant Prusator, who spent time at Indiana State before transferring to Arkansas Tech, Rosenwinkel said he learned a lot of valuable lessons as a Hub.

“Working with coach Thompson and coach [Jared] Johnson, every week one of them was willing to give up his time during the week to help me get better. The sacrifices they made for me and for Grant to pursue our dreams is something I’ll never forget, and I think that’s what makes Rochelle great, that people are willing to make sacrifice for each other.”

And for the younger players coming up in the system right now, Rosenwinkel offered an important piece of advice.

“Don’t make everything about yourself,” he said. “Get over the pride of being selfish and try to help other people. Do it for the betterment of the team. It’s more of a team sport and I get more joy out of watching our team win now than I every would have scoring 40 at Rochelle. Wins mean a lot more down the road than looking back and thinking about how many points you scored.”