GLIAC CHAMPS! 'Cats Earn Top Seed For Tourney
This story was written by NMU Sports Information. Click the AUDIO buttons to hear post-game comments from Dylan Kuehl, Carson Smith, Riley Brooks, Brian Parzych, Sam Schultz, and Coach Matt Majkrzak. Also click to hear RRN Casey Ford call of the final seconds.
MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan men's basketball team cut down the nets in the regular season finale as its 83-64 victory over the Davenport Panthers secured the outright GLIAC regular season title for the first time since the 1992-93 season.
The Wildcats finished out the regular season with a 21-9 record and a conference mark of 14-4 that stood above the rest.
NMU had five in double figures led by 16 from honored senior Carson Smith and a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double from another senior in Sam Schultz. NMU shot over 50% from the floor for the eighth time this campaign, going 31-57 (54.4%) while holding Davenport to 25-60 (41.7%).
After a tightly contested first 15 minutes that saw the Green and Gold trailing 32-29 with the last few minutes to play in the opening half, the Wildcats brought a 15-2 run into the locker room as well as a 44-34 lead. The run was capped off by the heroics of Max Weisbrod again, as he splashed in a buzzer-beating triple to take the double-digit advantage into the half.
A pair of Panther buckets closed the gap to six out of halftime, but that was as close as it'd be the rest of the afternoon as the Wildcats punched right back with another significant run, this time with an 18-3 spread including an emphatic Dylan Kuehl poster dunk to go ahead by 21, 62-41, with under a dozen minutes remaining.
Davenport went on its largest run of nine to close the margin to 12 with five minutes to play, but NMU had the next six to seemingly put the game on ice.
After the game, the players along with the coaching staff and head athletic trainer cut down the nets to celebrate its GLIAC regular season championship.
The Wildcats enter the GLIAC Tournament as the No. 1 seed and will welcome Purdue Northwest on Wednesday, March 6 at 7:30 p.m. for the No. 1 vs. No. 8 matchup in the GLIAC Tournament. With a win on Wednesday, the Wildcats would earn the right to host the remainder of the conference tournament. The two semifinals games will take place on Saturday with the Championship on Sunday.
