MAD MAX GETS MAD: 'Cats Smoke Huskies 98-66
Click the AUDIO buttons to hear post-game comments from Max Weisbrod and from Coach Matt Majkrzak.
MARQUETTE, Mich. - In front of well over 2,000 fans at the Berry on Saturday, Max Weisbrod scored a career-high 35 points to lead the Northern Michigan men's basketball team to an all-around 98-66 rout of Michigan Tech, making 12 straight victories for the nationally-ranked 'Cats.
Leading 44-33 at intermission, the Green and Gold would go on to score 54 second half points on an eye-popping 20-31 (64.5%) mark from the floor and 9-14 (64.3%) clip from beyond the arc. The Huskies were just 1-12 (8.3%) from deep in the second half, resulting in a 27-3 scoring advantage on the long ball in the closing half.
Max Weisbrod was nothing short of spectacular yet again. His career-performance came on an efficient 10-18 (55.6%) from the field and a career-best 7-12 (58.3%) clip from deep. Carson Smith was second in command with 21 points, shooting 7-9 from the field and 3-3 from deep. Sam Schultz had another dominating game down low, hauling in 13 rebounds and adding 11 points en route to his eighth double-double of the season.
Northern as a team shot lights out, going 34-57 (59.6%) from the field and 15-25 (60.0%) from deep. The 15 made triples and the 60% shooting clip both marked season hights. The Green and Gold out-rebounded the Huskies 38-22, which led to a 13-6 edge in second-chance points. Marcus Tomashek led the Huskies offensively with 18 points.
The victory propels Northern to 16-5 overall and a perfect 9-0 in the conference as they have now defeated every other squad in the GLIAC. It was the fifth straight win for the Green and Gold in the rivalry. The 12 straight for the Wildcats now puts them just one game shy of the program's all-time winning streak of 13 set in 1984-85.
Tech's Dan Gherezgher got the visitors going, scoring a quick six. Triples from Smith and Dylan Kuehl evened the score at 10's just over four minutes in. Tech would grab a 20-18 lead over halfway through the half, but a 9-0 run for NMU gave them the lead they would not relinquish.
With the first half winding down, Kuehl scored seven points on three straight possessions, highlighted by a slam and a no-doubt triple, to give the 'Cats a 38-30 ledger with three minutes left in the half.
NMU scored six of the final eight of the opening 20 minutes to take a double-digit lead, 44-33, into intermission. Northern really got it going from deep as the half progresses as they converted on six of 11 shot attempts (54.5%). Weisbrod was only heating up, scoring 14 first half points.
Michigan Tech closed its deficit to five with a run early in the second half, but NMU responded with the next six to get the game back to double figures. With just over 13 minutes left, Weisbrod connected on a layup and triple in back-to-back possessions to give NMU a 65-51 lead.
From there, NMU would continue to dominate. The Wildcats managed six separate runs in the half of five or more points (6-0, 5-0, 11-0, 8-0, 5-0, 6-0). Soon the lead propelled to 20, and then 30. It reached as many as 34 late and the game was never in doubt down the stretch.
